Why You Should Attend
This substantive training provides more in-depth coverage of select topics in the federal housing programs. The half-day training is designed for advocates with some housing experience, but practitioners at all experience levels should be able to benefit from this training. The panelists are noted experts in housing law who will cover critically important issues related to accessing federally assisted housing. The sessions start with a foundational overview of admissions policies and practices including the due process rights of HUD tenants, and presents the main barriers that people face to obtain housing including prior eviction history, poor credit, and criminal records. Panelists will then discuss strategies to overcome these barriers including enforcing tenant protections through litigation and systemic advocacy.

What You Will Learn
After completing this program, participants will be able to:

• Understand admissions policies in federal assisted housing and the major barriers to accessing housing.
• Recognize how tenant screening practices exacerbate the problem.
• Apply legal protections available to applicants to overcome housing barriers including fair housing laws and the Violence Against Women Act.
• Implement legal strategies to protect tenants’ right to access affordable housing.

Who Should Attend
Practitioners who want to gain a deeper understanding of subsidized housing, as well as housing attorneys looking for tools to represent their clients in federally-subsidized housing and help them to obtain and maintain affordable housing. The sessions will address issues pertinent to those with limited federally-subsidized housing practice as well as experienced practitioners.

PLI offers full scholarships, registration fee waivers, and discounts to attend PLI programs for attorneys, paralegals, law librarians, and staff working for nonprofit/legal services organizations; pro bono attorneys/volunteers (providing no-fee legal assistance to clients individually or through a nonprofit organization); government attorneys; judges and judicial law clerks; law professors and law students; retired attorneys; independent/freelance paralegals; unemployed attorneys; and others with financial hardships. Learn more here.