Why give to Legal Aid?
When you give people access to justice, it changes every aspect of their lives. It gives them opportunities that stretch far beyond the benefits of free legal aid.
KC Home Rehabber Loan Fund
Abandoned and blighted housing can diminish property values of the surrounding neighborhood, and frequently give rise to criminal activity, leading to violence and further destruction of the neighborhood. These funds support rehabbers in reclaiming Kansas City’s urban neighborhoods. With more than 5,000 vacant homes and lots in Kansas City, there is an urgent demand for…
Adopt-A-Neighborhood completes first rehab.
In December 2015, a participating neighborhood association under Legal Aid’s Adopt-A-Neighborhood Project (AAN), approached the AAN team about a problem property in the neighborhood. AAN investigated the conditions of the property, determined it was eligible for the Abandoned Housing Act, and assisted the neighborhood association in vetting a local community partner in Kansas City to…
Veterans Relief Project
Veterans Relief Project By Maura Weber – Project Director In October 2013 I was proud to be named the first project director of Legal Aid’s Veterans Relief Project. There are an estimated 1,400 homeless veterans in the Kansas City metro area. Many of these Veterans have legal problems impeding their ability to obtain or maintain…
LEGAL AID TRANSFORMS PUBLIC HOUSING IN KANSAS CITY
The transformation of public housing in Kansas City began in 1989 when Julie Levin, the Managing Attorney of the Central Office of Legal Aid of Western Missouri, filed the Tinsley vs. Kemp et al lawsuit in Federal District Court on behalf of public housing tenants and applicants. The lawsuit was filed against the Housing Authority…
Consolidated domestic violence docket is now the norm.
The past few decades have seen dramatic changes in the response to domestic violence in states and communities throughout the United States. Some of the earliest efforts to improve Kansas City’s response came out of Legal Aid of Western Missouri in the mid-1980s. Legal Aid staff was concerned about the way domestic violence cases were…