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 | September 2011 |
 Cleveland Homeless Legal Assistance Program
| Issue No. 11
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 Greetings!
The CMBA and The Legal Aid Society have partnered in sponsoring Pro Bono Week in the greater Cleveland community again this year October 23 through 29, 2011. The Celebration is a coordinated national effort to meet the ever-growing needs of this country's most vulnerable citizens by encouraging and supporting local efforts to expand the delivery of pro bono legal services, and by showcasing the great difference that pro bono lawyers make to the nation, its system of justice, its communities and, most of all, to the clients they serve.
CHLAP volunteers are invited to attend their choice of CLEs offered by Legal Aid and the CMBA in connection with Pro Bono Week free of charge. CHLAP volunteers are also invited to attend a special recognition event on Oct. 26 at the Barley House honoring all attorneys who volunteer their services pro bono.
Highlights of Pro Bono Week 2011:
For a full Pro Bono Week calendar including free CLEs and specialty clinics focused on bankruptcy bypass, expungements, elder law, child support, and divorce click here. RSVPs required for CLEs and other Pro Bono Week events.
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Lawyers Guild at the Cosgrove Center
 | The Cosgrove Center
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CHLAP is pleased to announce a new partnership with The Lawyers Guild of the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland to staff intake at the Catholic Charities/Bishop William M. Cosgrove Center in downtown Cleveland. Lawyers Guild leaders expressed their excitement at committing to the intake site as a means of strengthening the group's connection to the community and providing structure to their volunteer activities.
The Cosgrove Center (1736 Superior Avenue Suite Number: #209) provides a daytime Drop-in Center, offering hot meals, shower facilities, and basic needs assistance for rent and utilities, when available. The Center also provides an emergency Pantry Program and is a mail distribution site for those with no permanent address.
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Resources
"How to Start a Small Business as a Restored Citizen" Workshop on Oct. 26
Local organizations that are actively involved in the development of small businesses in the Greater Cleveland area will participate in this workshop, which will include an overview of entrepreneurship as well as panels of representatives working in the legal, technology, and finance fields. The workshop will conclude with a resource fair, where attendees will be able to ask individual questions and gather supplementary information for starting a small business.
Click here for info. For more about how you can help or for information for attendees, please contact Ashley Field at afield@c4fc.org or (216) 325-9431.
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Upcoming clinics & events
Pro Bono Week Oct. 23-29
For a calendar of CMBA and Legal Aid Pro Bono Week activities, click here.
CMBF 10th Annual Halloween Fun Run Oct. 29
Legal Aid Society of Cleveland Clinics
For a calendar of Legal Aid brief advice/intake clinics, please visit the Legal Aid website at www.lasclev.org.
Cleveland Lawyers' Initiative on Reentry (CLIR)
Brief Advice/Intake Clinics
North Star Neighborhood Reentry Resource Center, 1:00-4:00 p.m.2011: Oct. 14, Nov. 11, Dec. 9
Periodic training sessions for new volunteers TBA - call Brian Lamb at (216) 566-5590 for more information.
Ohio Ex-Offender Reentry Coalition Meetings The Coalition will meet at the State of Ohio Library in Columbus on Oct. 19 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m..
The format for the all-day meetings will be general coalition business in the morning, and in the afternoon presentations by the National Institute of Justice as a part of the Ohio Learning Laboratory Series.
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In the News
Foundation Send $190,000 in Aid to Disabled Vets in Ohio and Eastern New York
On Sept. 9, MarketWatch reported that the Disabled National Veterans Foundation (DVNF) announced the delivery of more than $95,000 worth of supplies and aid to Volunteers of America Greater Ohio based in Columbus August 29th, along with $95,418 in aid to the Eastern New York Homeless Veterans Coalition last week. Needed supplies targeted to help area veterans who are homeless included everyday necessities many American households take for granted such as blankets, food, sanitizer and laundry detergent. Volunteers of America Greater Ohio provides services to more than 16,000 people each year in Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton and Mansfield. The group based in Columbus also provides shelter for homeless veterans.
Click here for full article.
New Veterans Docket of Cleveland Municipal Court Emphasizes Treatment On Sept. 9, the Plain Dealer reported a special session of Cleveland Municipal Court's new Veterans Treatment Docket was held that Thursday at the Louis Stokes Cleveland Veterans Affairs Medical Center. This second session of the docket was moved for the day from Cleveland Municipal Court's usual 12th-floor perch at the Justice Center downtown to Wade Park as a way of showcasing how the Veterans Treatment Docket links veterans with local resources. The docket convenes each Thursday to handle veterans charged with misdemeanor offenses involving such issues as substance abuse, domestic relations, mental health and housing. Instead of getting jail time, the veterans are placed on probation for periods that can run from six months to a year or longer. They also are referred to in-court representatives of local rehabilitative resources, and are required to return to court for compliance reports. Additionally, defendants are assigned to volunteer peer/mentors: fellow veterans who assist in the search for help and track their progress.
Click here for full article.
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Volunteer Spotlight 
Brian Davis
Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless (NEOCH)
Brian was the director of NEOCH from 1995 until 2011 when he became the organization's Director of Community Organizing. As a Board member of the National Coalition for the Homeless, Brian helped draft the Bringing America Home Act, a comprehensive bill to address homelessness introduced in the 2003 U.S. House of Representatives.
He worked with the state coalition to find a dedicated revenue source for the Ohio Housing Trust Fund in 2003, and worked to create the Ohio Coalition of Homeless Advocates. Brian led in a lawsuit to protect the voting rights of homeless people in Ohio, and settled a lawsuit in 2006 and 2008 to assist those homeless individuals who do not have identification cast a vote in the general election.
Brian can be reached at (216) 432-0540 or by email.
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Halloween Run for Justice
 Join the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Foundation on Saturday, October 29 for a morning of competition and fun for the family. Proceeds benefit the pro bono and public service programs supported by the Foundation, including the Cleveland Homeless Legal Assistance Program and The 3Rs · Rights-Responsibilities-Realities.
Activities include 5-Mile, 5K and One-Mile runs, 5K walk, costume competition and family-friendly entertainment, including Flower Clown, a bouncy house, and pumpkin-decorating. All activities begin and end at the Galleria at EERIEVIEW.
Click here for more information, or here to register through Hermes Sports and Events.
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Find out more
For the most current list of community events and resources, check out the CHLAP page of the CMBA website by clicking here.
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Archived CHLAP Newsletters
Issue 11 - August 2011
Issue 10 - June/July 2011
Issue 9 - May 2011
Issue 8 - April 2011
Issue 7 - March 2011
Issue 6 - February 2011
Issue 5 - January 2011
Issue 4 - December 2010
Issue 3 - November 2010
Issue 2 - October 2010
Issue 1 - September 2010
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Cleveland Homeless Legal Assistance Program
This partnership between the CMBA and the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless aims to serve those in the community in need of help but least able to access legal assistance. Volunteer lawyers staff regularly scheduled sessions at many locations throughout Cleveland, including homeless shelters, to provide legal advice and assistance to homeless or at-risk individuals. Attorneys volunteer at varying levels of commitment, from helping with intake interviews and providing brief advice to accepting referrals for direct extended representation.
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