Lone Star Legal Aid

Lone Star Legal Aid is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit law firm with a rich and deeply respected history of advocacy on behalf of low-income and underserved populations, beginning with the Houston Legal Aid Clinic in 1948 and East Texas Legal Services in 1977. The Houston Legal Aid Clinic, which later became the Houston Legal Foundation, was established by the Houston Bar Association and Texas Southern University, among others. East Texas Legal Services was created as the result of local interest from multiple parties, including client groups in Nacogdoches and Tyler, members of the Nacogdoches County Bar Association, and to some degree, the Jefferson County Bar Association. Both programs were created for the same purpose: equalizing access to justice for low-income persons who otherwise would not be able to afford an attorney to protect their rights and help meet basic needs.

There were changes over the years. For example, the two legal aid firms expanded their reach with increasing numbers of counties included in their respective service areas. In the 1960s, the Houston Legal Foundation offered criminal defense for a period of time in response to the Supreme Court decision in Gideon v. Wainwright; and the Houston Legal Foundation eventually became known as Gulf Coast Legal Foundation. In the 1980s, East Texas Legal Services created the East Texas Fair Housing Center to investigate, address and monitor corrective actions related to violations of the Fair Housing Act. Throughout this natural evolution, East Texas Legal Services and Gulf Coast Legal Foundation always remained true to their original purposes.

A 2002 merger was designed to capitalize on each entity?s resources. East Texas Legal Services, a largely rural legal aid program, and the primarily urban Gulf Coast Legal Foundation, along with a portion of Legal Aid of Central Texas, were combined to become Lone Star Legal Aid as it exists today: the fourth largest legal aid organization of its type in the United States. LSLA has a proud tradition of successful client-centered work, and, historically, the firm has won victories that affect not only the client who initially presented with a particular issue, but groups of low-income people on community, state, and national levels when the firm?s actions have resulted in systemic policy and procedural changes, such as public housing desegregation and health care access for children.

(All clients must meet financial and legal status eligibility requirements. This list is not a promise or guarantee of full representation on any of these legal issues. LSLA does not have funding or staff to represent everyone who is eligible and may turn down your application or limit assistance to advice, limited actions, information and or referral if we lack sufficient staff to effectively represent you. However, we will attempt to help all eligible applicants as much as we can.)

FAMILY LAW

• Divorce/Annulment
• Custody/Visitation
• Child and Spousal Support
• Family violence
• Child Abuse
• Guardianship (adult and child)
• Name Change
• Paternity
• Parental Rights Termination Defense
• Adoption
• Emancipation

WELFARE AND INCOME ASSISTANCE

• Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF)
• Food Stamps
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
• Social Security
• Disability
• County Welfare
• Unemployment Insurance
• Veterans' Benefits
• Workers' Compensation
• Discrimination in government programs based on race, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, age, disability, sexual orientation or family size

PUBLIC EDUCATION

• Discrimination based on race, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, age, disability, sexual orientation or family size
• Enforcement of Americans with Disabilities Act, Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act against public schools on behalf of children with disabilities
• Truancy, discipline, expulsion and suspension issues related to the above
• Bilingual education program issues
• Civil rights in education

HOUSING

• Public and Subsidized Housing issues
• Foreclosure defense
• Eviction defense
• Utility shutoffs
• Code enforcement
• Property tax issues on home
• Discrimination based on race, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, age, disability, sexual orientation or family size
• Contract for Deed abuses
• Landlord breach of duty to repair
• Title issues on mobile homes
• Predatory lending issues
• Title issues on homestead

HEALTH CARE

• Medicaid
• Medicare
• Nursing home problems
• County indigent health care
• Denial of emergency room care
• Access to Care
• Private insurance issues

CONSUMER

• Fraud or deceptive trade practices
• Warranties or breaches of contract
• Debt collection abuses
• Unlawful repossessions
• Rent-to-own abuses
• Bankruptcy
• Predatory Lending
• Public utility access
• Student financial aid program abuses and collection defense

LOW INCOME TAXPAYER CLINIC

• Federal tax audits
• Tax Court
• Earning Income Tax Credit Disallowance
• IRS Collection Alternatives
• Innocent Spouse Claims
• IRS Garnishment of wages or Social Security Benefits.
• Other disputes with the Internal Revenue Service

MISCELLANEOUS

• Incorporation of nonprofit orgs
• License suspension/revocation
• Wills and estates
• End-of-life planning documents
• Civil rights abuses
• Certain immigration issues
• Human trafficking

NEIGHBORHOOD PROBLEMS

• Municipal services
• Public utilities
• Environmental problems
• Code enforcement

EMPLOYMENT

• Work place safety issues
• Wage claims
• Unlawful termination
• WARN Act claims
• Discrimination based on race, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, age, disability, sexual orientation or family size
• Fair Labor Standards Act rights enforcement

JUVENILE ISSUES

• Delinquency
• Neglect or abuse of children