The City Bar Justice Center

The City Bar Justice Center is the legal services arm of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York. By harnessing resources from the legal profession, the City Bar Justice Center annually provides direct legal representation, information, and advocacy to 25,000 indigent and low-income New Yorkers from all five boroughs. Clients include immigrants, the homeless, people seeking asylum, the elderly, victims of domestic violence, small businesses, cancer patients and survivors, and those in need who cannot otherwise access legal resources. The City Bar Justice Center recruits, trains and mentors volunteer attorneys to provide advice and representation; offers a legal telephone hotline; holds matrimonial clinics for clients proceeding without representation in divorce actions; and manages the Public Service Network, which matches volunteer attorneys with nonprofit organizations in need of legal and nonlegal support.

To enhance understanding of the law and respect for the rule of law both locally and internationally, the City Bar Justice Center also educates the public on its rights and the legal system. The Center catalyzes lawyers to serve the public and their profession by providing the means and opportunities to do pro bono legal and non-legal projects. One of the City Bar Justice Center’s greatest strengths is the ability to leverage the resources of the private bar. Last year its volunteers donated more than 41,000 hours valued at more than $7 million.

The City Bar Justice Center’s immigration programs are the centerpiece of its work. By offering a wide array of free legal services, the Center assists immigrants to become more self-sufficient, strengthen their families and improve their living conditions. The Center works with individuals seeking asylum and ancillary immigration relief, such as relative petitions, green cards and employment authorization; immigrant women and children seeking battered spouse waivers, self-petitions, employment authorization, green cards and public benefits advocacy; victims of trafficking eligible for the T or U visa; immigrant families and small businesses impacted by the September 11th tragedy; and immigrant entrepreneurs seeking to establish small businesses.