Newark, NJ – January 12, 2022 – As New Jersey celebrates National Human Trafficking Prevention and Awareness Month, Governor Murphy signed a new law that expands access to vacatur for survivors of human trafficking. The bill, A5322, will help survivors of human trafficking build new lives by expanding the existing list of crimes that can be cleared from their records beyond just prostitution convictions. This will result in real and immediate relief for survivors of both sex and labor trafficking who have been unfairly stigmatized as a result of their convictions. The bill also streamlines the process for survivors pursuing this relief and ensures enhanced privacy protections of the petitions filed in court.
May 2021 Volunteer of the Month: Asad Rizvi
Asad Rizvi has been an active and dedicated volunteer at VLJ’s Veterans Legal Wellness Clinic since shortly after starting with PNA in April 2019. He notes that with the strong encouragement of PNA Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary Jessica L. Hodkinson, the entire PNA Legal Department team has played a great role in the Clinic since its inception, with additional support from PNA’s law firm partners such as McGuireWoods LLP and Nukk-Freeman & Cerra, P.C.
VLJ announces a gift from David Bershad
Newark, NJ – March 2, 2021 – Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (VLJ) is excited to announce the creation of the Bershad Communications Fellowship. Funded through the generosity of long-time Board Member David Bershad and his wife, Mindy Cohen, the fellowship will enable VLJ to enhance its public profile as the organization celebrates its 20th year anniversary.
VLJ's 20th Anniversary
Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (VLJ) is excited to celebrate the organization’s 20th anniversary! VLJ was founded in 2001 as a program of the Legal Services Foundation to provide direct legal representation to residents of Essex County, New Jersey. The program began with a core group of 30 volunteer attorneys and was led by Karen Sacks, who in her 15 years as VLJ’s executive director transformed the program into a statewide pro bono leader. In 2008, VLJ separately incorporated as its own 501(c)(3) New Jersey not-for-profit corporation.
VLJ Receives a Generous Donation from Amazon
Newark, NJ – January 26, 2021 – Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (VLJ) is excited to announce that it has received a generous donation from Amazon at the suggestion of its volunteer partner Audible, an Amazon company. VLJ, which is headquartered in Newark, provides free civil legal services for New Jersey residents living at or below the poverty level through in-house lawyers and pro bono lawyers throughout the legal community. VLJ has partnered with Audible’s legal department, also based in Newark, who provide pro bono legal services to client populations in dire need of help. With this unexpected support from Amazon, VLJ will be able to continue to change lives through legal assistance, especially for those who have suffered disproportionately as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
January 2021 Volunteer of the Month: Daniel D'Alessandro
VLJ is pleased to recognize Daniel D’Alessandro as our January Volunteer of the Month. Dan is a partner with McCarter & English, where he is a commercial and securities litigator. January is National Slavery and Trafficking Prevention Month, and given Dan’s extensive volunteerism with VLJ’s NJ Human Trafficking Victims’ Legal Assistance Program, it is very fitting he receive this distinction this month.
Experts Fear Coming 'Tsunami' of Evictions
“There’s so much talk right now about how Covid is causing an eviction crisis,” Kitson says. “And the reality is that we have had a significant eviction crisis in this country—and certainly in the state—for quite some time. What Covid is doing is worsening it at an alarmingly rapid rate and also shining a light on the many ways in which so many renters in New Jersey were very vulnerable to begin with.”
New Mediation Program for Landlords and Tenants, Emergency Aid to Renters, to be Provided by Housing Initiatives of Princeton
Retired judge Philip Carchman helped [Housing Initiatives of Princeton] develop a mediation program run by volunteers that will bring landlords and tenants together to negotiate payment amounts and timelines. Volunteer Lawyers for Justice is working to help get lawyers to serve as advocates for tenants.
N.J. must ban ‘the tenant blacklist’ | Editorial
Few people realize that even if you win a court case against your landlord, its very existence will continue to haunt you. It could be that you didn’t pay rent for legitimate reasons, like having no heat or water. But tenants are still getting blackballed from future rentals, as if even asserting your rights against a landlord is offensive.
“It’s wildly unfair,” Jessica Kitson of Volunteer Lawyers for Justice says. “We have clients living without heat, without hot water. They can’t find a new place. They have an eviction filing on their record that is being used against them.”
VLJ Welcomes Four New Team Members
VLJ recently invited three new staff attorneys to join our Tenancy Team, thanks to the generosity of the New Jersey Pandemic Relief Fund. These new staff attorneys will be on the front lines combating the impending eviction crisis in New Jersey. We also welcome Sabrina Ambrose, our new Administrative Assistant, who will be vital to VLJ's ability to provide legal support to low-income New Jerseyans. Welcome to the team, Zainab Awelenje, Nina DePalma, Jeff Stephens, and Sabrina Ambrose!
December 2020 Volunteer of the Month: Sydney Darling
VLJ is pleased to honor Sydney J. Darling, a partner at the Newark-based law firm of Walsh Pizzi O’Reilly Falanga, as December 2020’s Volunteer of the Month. At Walsh, Sydney works primarily for lenders, corporations, and other business and institutional clients, but she finds satisfying balance when offering her pro bono services to individual clients who could not otherwise afford counsel.
Should NJ eviction records be kept private if a tenant wasn't evicted? Housing experts say yes
New Jersey Braces for Rent Due When Health Emergency Ends
The first of the month means rent is due, but thousands of residents are still struggling to pay their bills. Under a state moratorium on evictions during the COVID-19 public-health crisis, renters can’t be kicked out of their homes, even if they miss a payment. But what happens when that rule expires? Will families find help if landlords don’t follow the rules?
On Giving Tuesday, Don’t Forget Your Own Neighbors
Landlords aren’t getting the money they need. The eviction cases they file are likely to number in the hundreds of thousands, advocates predict. Think about the human toll of evicting that many people, all at once.
“It’s going to be a disaster, quite honestly,” says [Cathy] Keenan of Volunteer Lawyers for Justice.
November 2020 Volunteer of the Month: Michael Kondria
Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (VLJ) is proud to feature Michael Kondria as its November Volunteer of the Month. Michael is Assistant Counsel-Environmental at PSEG Services Corporation (PSEG) where he practices environmental law and focuses on environmental health and safety matters arising from federal, state and local laws and regulations.
As Housing Crisis Looms, a Call to Action for NJ’s Legal Community
Volunteer Lawyers for Justice Supports New Jersey Tenants During COVID-19 Housing Crisis
Cathy Keenan, Executive Director of Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (VLJ), joined TAPintoTV’s Brian Brodeur to discuss the New Jersey Pandemic Relief Fund's Housing Stability Project Grant.
Keenan described the work of the New Jersey Pandemic Relief Fund (NJPRF), which was established after the COVID-19 pandemic, and which has raised over $37 million from over 60,000 donors to address the economic and human crisis that New Jersey has experienced.
New Jersey State Bar Association Honors Gibbons Director Michael Griffinger with Lifetime Pro Bono Achievement Award
Michael R. Griffinger, a Director in the Commercial & Criminal Litigation Department at Gibbons P.C., has been honored with a Lifetime Pro Bono Achievement Award from the New Jersey State Bar Association (NJSBA) Pro Bono Committee. Honorees, including Mr. Griffinger, were celebrated during a virtual ceremony on October 27.
Housing and Community Development Network of NJ Enlisted to Provide Help as Housing Crisis Deepens
The Housing Stability Project Grant from the New Jersey Pandemic Relief Fund (NJPRF), will allow the network to provide residents with access to housing counseling and legal assistance if needed. The network partners with organizations, such as Volunteer Lawyers for Justice, which provides comprehensive legal services to economically-disadvantaged adults, children and families in the state.