Is your community under threat of being closed? Do you think yours or your neighbors rights have been violated? Have you been served an eviction notice?
Contact us if your community is under threat of closure.
If one of these other problems apply to you or your community, see if one of the following legal aid organizations may be able to help you, and please contact us if you have a question.
You can also contact your local legal aid by calling 866-LEGLAID (866-534-5243).
Legal Aids
The following legal aid organizations offer free legal services for Virginia residents dealing with a variety of issues, such as; Fair Housing violations, dealing with eviction notices, assistance filing taxes, etc.
Central Virginia Legal Aid Society (CVLAS)
CVLAS is a legal aid organization which provides free civil legal services to qualifying low-income individuals.
They can not offer assistance to undocumented immigrants.
On their website they have a large collection of self-help documents.
CVLAS can potentially help with a legal problem in one of the of the following areas: Consumer (personal property sales), Housing (utilities & repairs), Health, Family (domestic violence), Public Benefits (SNAP), Employment (unemployment benefits), Writing a Will or Power of Attorney.
Legal Aid Justice Center (LAJC)
LAJC is a legal aid organization which provides free legal help to eligible low-income people living in their service areas.
Their service areas include: Richmond, Petersburg, Northern Virginia, and Charlottesville.
They accept clients of all immigrant statuses.
LAJC focuses on pursuing Civil Rights & Racial Justice, Economic Justice, Youth Justice, Immigrant Justice, Workers Justice. With this commitment they can potentially help with a number of legal issues including: consumer debt, education issues, expunging criminal records, landlord/tenant disputes, immigration, police misconduct, public benefits, etc.
The disAbility Law Center of Virginia (dLCV)
The dLCV is a legal aid organization which can offer free legal assistance to you or someone you know with disability-related problems.
Their website has lots of resources and information that is important for all Virginians to know, and it is available in multiple languages.
The dLCV can potentially help with issues such as; legal rights violations, discrimination, abuse, neglect, housing, and healthcare/medicaid.
The Community Tax Law Project (CTLP)
The CTLP is a legal aid organization that provides free legal assistance, with federal and state taxes, to low-income Virginia taxpayers.
Their website, and the services they provide, are available fully in both English and Spanish.
If you didn’t receive one or more of the three pandemic stimulus checks they may be able to help you get them.
The CTLP can help in cases where you owe the IRS $50,000 per tax year or less, and can potentially help with issues such as: IRS Notices, representation before the IRS, tax audits, Earned Income Tax Credit eligibility and denials, etc.
Virginia Poverty Law Center (VPLC)
The mission of the VPLC is to fight systemic barriers trapping low-income Virginians in the cycle of poverty. The VPLC does this through a combination of advocacy, education, and community litigation.
They also serve as a resource for those seeking information on legal issues impacting Virginians, including: domestic and sexual violence law, elder law, housing law, immigration law, public benefits law, etc.
They typically do not provide direct legal representation except in very limited cases when referred by a local legal aid program. However they do offer several direct service programs:
- Enroll Virginia is a community based organization which helps consumers and small businesses to navigate the healthcare enrollment process.
- LA VIDA is a free program only available to clients who are low-income immigrants and are domestic or sexual violence victims. LA VIDA helps these clients to attain Lawful Permanent Resident status.
- Through VPLC Housing Advocacy VPLC can assist Virginians dealing with some housing/tenant related issues, including, navigating the eviction process, help with unlawfully shut-off utilities, and dealing with rental unit repair issues.
Virginia Legal Aids – Quick Facts
| | Offer direct legal services? | Serve non-US citizens? | Accessible to non-English speakers | Do they deal with housing issues? | Are their services free? | Service area? |
| CVLAS | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes, for eligible low-income citizens | 5 Cities, and 15 Counties across Virginia |
| LAJC | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes, for eligible low-income individuals | 4 Metro Areas across Virginia |
| dLCV | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes, for those living with a disability | All of Virginia |
| CTLP | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes, for eligible low-income taxpayers | All of Virginia |
| VPLC | Yes, but only in unique cases | Yes | Yes, but limited | Yes | Yes, for eligible low-income individuals | All of Virginia |