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Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County (NLSLA)

Neighborhood Legal Services is a steadfast advocate for individuals, families and communities throughout Los Angeles County. Through a combination of individual representation, high impact litigation and public policy advocacy, NLSLA combats the immediate and long-lasting effects of poverty and expands access to health, opportunity, and justice in Los Angeles’ diverse neighborhoods.

NLSLA operates ten Self-Help Legal Access Centers across Los Angeles County—the largest network of self-help centers in California. Piloted by Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, the NLSLA Centers have helped close to a million people access the courts during the past decade. The Centers are staffed by NLSLA advocates, legal services partners’ staff, dedicated volunteers, and Justice Corps students.

The Centers provide guidance to litigants:

Requiring protection from domestic violence Resolving child custody disputes Seeking a divorce Halting an eviction to avoid being homeless. Self-Help Centers are located at Courthouses in Antelope Valley, Compton, Inglewood, Long Beach, Pasadena, Pomona, San Fernando, Santa Monica, Torrance, and Van Nuys.

“Through no fault of their own, purely for financial reasons, too many members of our community have found themselves locked out of our civil justice system when they most need help with family law matters, health and housing problems, and consumer, small-business or employment disputes. For these residents, Neighborhood Legal Services and the Self-Help Legal Access Centers they operate are the key to the courthouse door, and I’m very proud of what they’ve been able to accomplish over the past 15 years.”

– Zev Yaroslavsky, Los Angeles County Supervisor

The Van Nuys Self-Help Center is powered by the service of volunteers who walk self- representing litigants through the process of getting their cases heard. This may be done through clear translations in languages ranging from Spanish, Farsi, and Mandarin. Special to this particular center are the daily workshops that are offered to assist litigants with specific concerns. They are taught in their language how to fill out forms on child custody, requesting protective orders, and establishing guardianship among other services.

Funded by the County of Los Angeles and the State Bar of California Legal Services Trust Fund.