Proposition F: Free Legal Aid for Tenants Facing Eviction

"Earlier this year, attorney Carolyn Gold was contacted by several San Francisco tenants facing eviction. “All had strong defenses,” said Gold, who runs the pro-bono landlord-tenant program at the Bar Association of San Francisco’s Justice & Diversity Center. “At least two of them, I would say, the landlord had absolutely zero grounds for their eviction.”

But no lawyers were available to represent them in court. Two of the tenants gave up, opting for a settlement that required them to move out. The other two held on and kept calling her.

Moments before a judge was preparing to hear their case, Gold made a last-ditch effort and found an attorney.

“As soon as that person entered the courtroom, the lawyer for the landlord said, ‘We do not intend to try this case,’” Gold recalled. “That’s why it’s so critical to have an attorney for your trial, because a lot of the cases really are just saying, ‘Will the tenant cave?’”..."

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