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Message
from CLS' Executive Director
I’m honored and thrilled to take the helm of Connecticut Legal
Services at a time of such great opportunity. Two years ago, the legislature
and governor authorized funding for a contract that expands our legal
services to needy low-income people. This year, we are seeing the first
signs of some increase in funding as a result of new court rules that
require IOLTA accounts to pay interest rates comparable to those in
the market. Support from our donors, United Ways, municipalities, and
foundations continues to be steady.
With funding strong, we
face an important question: What new and significant projects can
we undertake to help low-income people in Connecticut?
Our staff attorneys—from the newest to the most experienced—have
been answering that question with impressive results.
- Two of our newer attorneys, Megan McLeod and Jennifer Mellon, along
with senior manager Nadine Nevins, are partnering with community
activists to help immigrant day laborers whose employers refuse to
pay them. McLeod spotted the issue through her public-benefits outreach
in Stamford; Mellon is the first full-time immigration lawyer for
CLS, working out of our Bridgeport office.
- Another new
attorney, Catherine Holahan, is leading a CLS effort to help schoolchildren
suffering from mental health problems. Because
of new “zero tolerance” policies at some schools,
such children are often suspended from school and sometimes arrested,
rather than being referred for services to help them cope with
their
problems.
- One of our
more experienced lawyers, Rick Brody, is litigating against a too-common
illegal practice by landlords: requiring extra “side
payments” from low-income tenants whose total rent is supposed
to be limited by federal law to a reasonable percentage of their
income.
- Kevin Brophy, a senior manager with CLS, successfully represented
a low-income woman who was harassed by a collection agency trying
to collect a credit card debt she had repeatedly demonstrated was
not hers.
- Marvin Farbman, the former executive director of CLS, has reached
an agreement with the city of Bridgeport and other government
agencies to create hundreds of new scattered-site housing units
in Bridgeport,
replacing two housing projects previously torn down. The agreement
includes a groundbreaking trust fund to support social services
for the tenants in the new units.
We’re
also looking to continue taking steps to fill
in our service network, perennially
stretched thin around the state. Anticipating
the hiring of several new attorneys this spring, we look
forward to filling some of the service gaps we have seen in family
and
housing law and in services to children and the elderly.
All this growth and opportunity would be impossible without your support.
Please call or email me with any concerns, suggestions, or new opportunities.
Steve Eppler-Epstein
Executive Director
(860) 344-0447 x109
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