REJOICE! Thanks to voters like you, starting July 2019, every tenant in San Francisco now has a right to a free, full scope attorney if they face eviction.
Thanks to Proposition F, which passed in June of 2018, San Francisco will be the second city in the country after New York to provide a right to counsel for renters.
The Right to Counsel will be a game changer in protecting tenants from eviction. In our expensive city, for many tenants, eviction means banishment or even homelessness. Unscrupulous landlord attorneys commonly serve unofficial or multiple eviction notices on tenants who have no recourse unless they paid out of pocket to fight fraudulent charges, which can reach tens of thousands of dollars.
Now tenants will be able to fight their evictions with the help of a full-scope tenant attorney. New York City passed a Right to Counsel program and the results have been incredible: eviction rates there dropped by almost 50 percent.
This program does not apply to evictions conducted by a roommate or owner who lives in the unit. For other disputes with your landlord, such as repairs or passthrough of costs, you should still utilize our drop-in
counseling clinic. As always, time is of the essence to respond to issues. Seek help as soon as you get a notice and we can help you navigate it. You can be displaced even by fraudulent evictions because you wait too long to respond.
How to Access Your Right to Counsel
If you receive a 30 or 60 day notice
contact the Eviction Defense Collaborative: <https://default.salsalabs.org/T61e04fee-12e9-4862-b30c-13d6551088a3/8472b5d2-1736-4ffd-8aeb-ad0b3b91d625>
1338 Mission Street 4th Floor
Monday – Wednesday, Friday
9:00 AM – 11:00 AM
and 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM
Or Thursday 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM
Or Call: (415) 947-0797 about the program
*Many eviction notices are curable or faulty and do not require a lawyer. Please visit our drop-in clinic first so we can route you to the right assistance.