Free Attorneys Suggested For NYC Housing Court

With nearly 30,000 families evicted from their homes in 2013, the nation’s largest city is considering providing free lawyers for resident who can’t afford legal representation. PIX11 TV is reporting that New York City Council members Mark Levine and Vanessa Gibson are pushing for the law with Levine arguing that “.. only 10 percent of tenants who head to housing court have attorneys.”

Residential evictions have become a key issue, along with family law and other “social good” classifications, for advocates of what’s called the “civil Gideon” movement, named after the landmark case that guaranteed representation in criminal cases.