Southeast Louisiana Legal Services

Annual Report | 2015

49 YEARS OF ASSURING JUSTICE THROUGH CIVIL LEGAL AID WWW.SLLS.ORG WWW.LOUISIANALAWHELP.ORG LIKE US ON FACEBOOK

Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Message fromSLLS Board President, Warren McKenna III Thank you for reviewing the 2015 Annual Report of Southeast Louisiana Legal Services, Inc. (SLLS). We fight for a level playing field by providing civil legal aid to low-income people who could not otherwise afford legal representation. In 2015, we marked the tenth anniversary of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. While we are proud of how far we have come towards restoring the rights and interests of people in our affected communities, we can never forget the devastating effects these hurricanes had on our region. Thus, our work continues. As we look towards the future, next year marks the 50th Anniversary of SLLS. Originally started as the New Orleans Legal Assistance Corporation (NOLAC), SLLS now renders services in 22 parishes from offices in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Houma, Harvey, Hammond, and Covington. Our everyday work saves domestic violence victims from abuse, safeguards abused children, preserves housing for hard-working families, combats homelessness for people with disabilities, protects veterans and elderly consumers, removes barriers to medical care, and much more. Please stay tuned for more information as we mark this special year. I invite you to review this 2015 Annual Report to learn how SLLS is continuing its mission as we expand our reach. As always, thank you for your interest and continued support. Warren P. McKenna III President, Board of Directors

Message from Executive Director, Laura Tuggle Every year, we reflect back on what a difference our work makes in the daily lives of the people and communities we serve. As SLLS approaches its 50th Anniversary , ensuring that civil legal aid remains available to people at the times in their lives when they need help the most is paramount in our minds. I am deeply honored to lead our dedicated team of justice warriors to lay the foundation for ensuring SLLS will be there for fifty more years. Last year, SLLS delivered legal services to over 11,000 households composed of over 26,000 people. The economic impact of our work topped $17.7 million. Every dollar invested in civil legal aid generated nearly three dollars of economic benefit. Some results have no price tag, such as lives saved through our work with domestic violence victims,families stabilized, or children protected from abuse. Pro bono attorneys and volunteer law students donated 14,535 hours of free civil help with an in-kind value of almost $1,000,000. About 12,050 people attended community legal education events with almost 109,000 people using our legal information website to get resources. With your support, SLLS staff, volunteer attorneys, and law students will make the dream of equal justice for all a reality.

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Our Mission To achieve justice for low-income people in Louisiana by enforcing and defending their legal rights through civil legal aid, advocacy, and community education.

Justice One Client at A Time

Impact Cases

Policy Advocacy

Community Legal Education

Our History For over 49 years, Southeast Louisiana Legal Services (SLLS) has provided a legal safety net. We serve 22 parishes covering half of Louisiana’s low-income population from our offices in Baton Rouge, Covington, Harvey, Hammond, Houma, and New Orleans. SLLS attorneys and support staff are complemented by pro bono attorneys, law students, and other volunteers. We work in partnership with other community stakeholders. SLLS provides legal help for indigent and other vulnerable people who cannot afford a lawyer. We protect livelihoods, health, housing, and families. Programs like ours are essential to assuring fairness for all in the civil justice system. SLLS Service Area

Ascension, Assumption, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Jefferson, Lafourche, Livingston, Orleans Parish, Plaquemines Parish, Pointe Coupee Parish, St. Bernard Parish, St. Charles, St. Helena, St. James Parish, St. John the Baptist, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa,, Terrebonne, Washington, West Baton Rouge, and West Feliciana Parish

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Our Priorities • Foreclosure Prevention • Landlord-Tenant • Successions for Homes • Fair Housing Rights

• Domestic Violence • Family Law • Child in Need of Care • Elder Law

Protecting Families and Children

Preserving Housing

Economic Stability

Legal Help for Special Populations

• Employment Law • Public Benefits • Education & Health • Consumer & Tax

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• Homeless Advocacy • Rights of the Disabled • Disaster Survivors • Veterans Project

Working to Increase Access to Courts, Legal Information, and Self-Help SLLS operated and/or supported three court-based Self-Help Desks in 2015:

Pictured: Jocelyn Pinkerton , Metropolitan Center for Women and Children and Hannah Groedel, SLLS Staff Attorney/Lutz th Fellow at the 24 Judicial District Self-Help Desk

 Washington Parish Self-Help Desk in Partnership with the 22nd Judicial District.  Jefferson Parish Domestic Violence Project in Partnership with the 24th Judicial District Self-Help Desk and Metropolitan Center for Women & Children.  East Baton Rouge Parish Self-Help Desk in Partnership with the 19th Judicial District and the Baton Rouge Bar Association.

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

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2015 By the Numbers SLLS handled 11,460 cases in 2015, with a total of 7,809 closed by December 31, 2015. About 40% of our work was in family law and domestic violence cases. The graph below is a breakdown of our closed cases.

2015 Closed Cases

3316

Family 1164

Housing 781

Consumer

721

Child In Need Of Care

523

Wills/Successions

427

Education/Employment/Tax 103

Other Indiv. Rights 0

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Economic Impact in 2015 It is difficult to place a dollar amount on the value of community benefits and societal cost savings produced by civil legal services. The direct economic impact of SLLS’ 2015 work to our clients exceeded $ 17.7 million. This represents income secured, assets or benefits protected, such as the value of homes saved from foreclosure, consumer debt relief, health coverage obtained, housing subsidies preserved, financial support for hard-working families, and much more. No price tag can be placed on the value of lives saved through our domestic violence and Child in Need of Care work.

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Stories behind the Numbers

Survivor Success Story Melissa endured physical and emotional abuse by her husband for several years. He would not let her to work and, as a result, she was 100% economically dependent on him for support. She didn’t have the funds to leave. Then she learned she was pregnant.

With a new baby, she hoped things would improve. They didn’t. Instead, he turned his abuse toward their child too. One day, she walked into the bedroom and saw him slamming their child in her crib. When she confronted him, he began to choke her. He threatened to kill her and take the baby. She decided to get legal help from SLLS. SLLS obtained a protective order granting Melissa use of the family home and car, interim custody, and spousal support of $700 per month. He was ordered to stay away from the home and from any contact with Melissa or the child. Now, she is in counseling, has permanent custody of her child, and is moving on with a brighter future. Saving Hard-Working Families from Homelessness After living in a homeless shelter with her five children, Danika was thrilled when she got a call from the East Baton Rouge Housing Authority. Her number on the voucher waiting list had come up. This was an answer to her prayers. She found an apartment to rent and all went well until an accidental fire damaged the home. Danika’s family was ousted in the middle of the night to a motel through a temporary Red Cross voucher. Danika went to the Housing Authority to ask it to reissue her Section 8 voucher so she could find a new home. She was stunned when the agency refused to offer her another voucher or any sort of emergency housing. Instead, she was told she had to pay the landlord’s $5,000 insurance deductible. She didn’t have the money and knew the fire was not her fault. Danika only had a few days left in the motel through the Red Cross. Once this ran out, she asked to work as a housekeeper at the motel in exchange for the room. She sought SLLS’s help to get her voucher reinstated. We asked for an administrative hearing. When the landlord could not provide any documentation of his alleged costs or information about the cause of the fire, Danika’s voucher was reinstated. Danika is still working for the motel, is no longer homeless with her five children, and has affordable stable housing for her family.

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Helping Seniors Save Homes From Foreclosure Though Luisa didn’t have a high school diploma, she managed to raise four children, bought a home, and inspired her grandchildren. Things changed for her when she became very ill. Louisa suffered severe pain that zapped her energy and her spirit. Her illness made it impossible for her to work full-time anymore which significantly reduced her income. Wanting to keep her home, Luisa applied for a loan modification three times on her own. Each time she was denied.

Pictured above: Dale Sabatier, SLLS Foreclosure Counselor, and Luisa Diaz on the front porch of her home.

After her life savings were depleted and she could no longer pay the mortgage, Luisa was served with a notice of foreclosure. That’s when she came to SLLS. Within months of meeting her, we got Luisa approved for the mortgage modification she deserved. Her payments were lowered to an affordable amount. She no longer fears being homeless in her golden years. She can stay in her home surrounded by memories and pass it on to the next generation.

“[SLLS] not only helped me resolve my issue, they did it knowing I didn’t have the resources to pay them. I know I would have lost my home without their help.” - Luisa Second Chances Made Possible Kevin, his grandmother, and his two siblings live in a New Orleans public housing complex. When Kevin began skipping school and getting into trouble, his grandmother wasn’t sure what to do. She worked all day and couldn’t be with him 24/7. Things got worse when Kevin and his friends were arrested for dealing drugs. Juvenile Court approved a diversionary program at Boys Town. His grandmother was relieved because this could help him get a new start. However, she wound up facing eviction when the property manager sent her a vacate notice. The lease violation? An occupant being absent from the unit for over 90 days. She sought civil legal help. SLLS convinced the landlord to give the family another chance. Now Kevin is home, back in school, and his family still has stable housing. He plans to get his juvenile record expunged so he can get a better job in the future.

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

A New Life Through Civil Legal Aid for the Most Vulnerable D.R. was abused for many years. She suffered in silence until she felt her children were threatened. She finally left her husband to escape the violence and to protect her child from witnessing it. But unresolved custody and financial support issues threatened the new future she had imagined. That’s when she asked for SLLS’ help. Our New Orleans Bar Association Foundation Fellow referred her to victim counseling to help meet her emotional support needs. We successfully convinced a judge to grant D.R. sole custody of her child. SLLS was honored to make this life changing difference in D.R.’s life. We are grateful for the support from the New Orleans Bar Foundation helping us expand access to justice for vulnerable victims. In reflecting on the impact of civil legal aid in her life, D.R. said: “I am able to close a chapter in my life that has been open so long. This legal representation holds a special place in my heart. My attorney sympathized with me and went out of her way to make sure she addressed all of our needs. I am excited to start the next chapter!" -- D.R.

Ending Veteran Homelessness Mr. G proudly served in the US Army from 1977 to 1979. Following his military service, he worked as a fisherman, landscaper, and cook. In 1985, he had an accident resulting in severe head trauma rendering him unable to maintain stable employment. His injury left him with memory loss and severe arthritis. His health problems coupled with the lack of steady income, led to homelessness. He slept on the streets or at various homeless shelters in the New Orleans area. By the time he came to SLLS to seek help with disability benefits and Medicaid, Mr. G had been homeless more than 25 years. We first connected him with a local nonprofit, providing housing support to veterans. Through this linkage as part of the City of New Orleans Mayor's Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness, Mr. G was able to obtain a housing voucher and get off the streets. A few months later, SLLS won Mr. G's disability case providing him with steady income to maintain his housing as well as access to healthcare. After decades on the street, Mr. G now has the resources for a stable home and a healthier life. We were proud to fight for his home and health, as he had once fought for ours.

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Making An Impact Through Appellate Work Keeping Healthcare Coverage For Those That Cannot Afford It Ms. H had her Medicaid Coverage terminated after being a recipient for many years. Without Medicaid, she was in left in a position where she could not afford essential medical care for her chronic health needs. She reached out to SLLS for help. SLLS challenged the termination of Ms. H’s Medicaid in Federal Court. The District Court agreed with SLLS and decided that the state had failed to find that Ms. H’s condition had improved. After the District Court’s decision, the State appealed to the US 5th Circuit. The state argued that the Federal District Court should have abstained because the State Court also had jurisdiction. The 5th Circuit rejected the State’s argument when it held that Federal Courts have the right to enforce the Medicaid statute’s eligibility provisions. SLLS has since won two other cases where the state has failed to show improvement in the medical condition of our clients; and another local law firm won another case regarding the same issue.

Protecting Children SLLS was representing a foster child. The mother successfully completed the steps of the reunification plan. The juvenile court closed the "Child in Need of Care" case but asserted that it would continue to have jurisdiction over future custody questions. The mother's attorney appealed the question of continuing jurisdiction of the court hoping to bring future custody actions in state district court. SLLS researched the statutory history of the case and learned that in 1991 there had been a provision that juvenile courts would lose jurisdiction, but the law was changed in 1992. The history included a comment from the Legislature that concludes with the following: "although a court is relieved of the responsibility for conducting periodic judicial reviews when a child achieves a 'permanent placement'... it does not lose jurisdiction.” The appellate court ruled that the juvenile court would retain jurisdiction, and the Louisiana Supreme Court refused writs. Now, the children in that appellate circuit who were declared to have been previously abused or neglected will have the added protection of continuing juvenile court jurisdiction to oversee the continued custody and placement of the child.

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Ten Years After Katrina: Reflecting on SLLS Impact How Far We Have Come and How Far We Have To Go: On August 29, 2005, Southeast Louisiana was dealt a near death blow by Hurricane Katrina - one of the worst disasters in our country’s history. When the levees broke, flooding destroyed or damaged 80% of homes in the greater New Orleans area. Overnight, the greatest civil legal aid crisis in American history confronted our nation. Since Katrina, SLLS has helped over 82,000 families composed of 379,182 people secure or protect as much as $36 million of economic benefits per year. The systemic advocacy provided by SLLS helped thousands more regain stability.

This is a tribute to the work made possible by the generosity of donors from across the country, pro bono attorneys, armies of law student volunteers, private bar support, foundation grants, government funding, and the incredible dedication of our staff. You came to our aid when we most needed it, sustaining us through dark days and helping us fight for justice. SLLS is eternally grateful. Yet so much remains to be done to help vulnerable families fully recover. Over ten years later, Katrina is still packing a punch to low-income people. The State recently announced it was allocating millions of unspent disaster funding to an Unmet Needs Program targeted to disaster-impacted homeowners who still have been unable to rebuild. We are serving clients who need help with probate work to access this long overdue recovery funding. We still have active contractor fraud cases in litigation for homeowners who were ripped off when they were trying to rebuild their homes. FEMA and the IRS are now putting liens on low-income people’s tax refunds or Social Security payments claiming disaster funds were paid to them improperly. SLLS is still fighting back on these cases after ten years.

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

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SLLS 2015 Honors In April 2015, SLLS was selected to receive the prestigious Alexander P. Tureaud Award for Excellence by the Louis A. Martinet Society Chapter of Greater Baton Rouge. We were selected to be honored with this award based on our continuous work and strides in providing legal services to the neediest citizens.

SLLS Honored with A Pictured above: Warren McKenna III, SLLS Board President, and Rolando Urbina, Community Voice President of the Greater Baton Rouge Katrina Hero Chapter of the Louis A. Martinet Society Award: SLLS was honored with an A Community Voice Katrina Heroes Award at their 10 Year Commemoration event held on August 1, 2015. We were selected for providing outstanding legal services to the poor and fighting for equity in rebuilding of low-income neighborhoods. SLLS was humbled by this recognition. Pictured above: Vanessa Gueringer, A Community Voice Vice President, and Laura Tuggle, SLLS Executive Director

We also received the first ever 2015 Louisiana State Bar Association Innovation in Civil Legal Services Delivery Award. This award was presented at the LSBA Annual Louisiana Justice Community Conference in October 2015. SLLS received the award for its Single Stop Program at Delgado Community College in partnership with Single Stop USA. This innovative project co-locates a lawyer on campus at Delgado as part of a team to support students. SLLS’ role is to help community college students tackle legal barriers posing an obstacle to their ability to graduate or to future employment.

Pictured above: Sachida Raman, Acadiana Legal Services Managing Attorney, and Jay Welch, SLLS Staff Attorney, receiving their awards at the LSBA Annual Louisiana Justice Community Conference

Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Increasing Access to Justice for All through Technology Innovations •

SLLS continued to expand justice to all by operating the statewide free legal information website Louisianalawhelp.org with resources available in Spanish and English, our mobile phone version of LouisianaLawhelp, and legal alerts through our website and Face book page. Statewide Public Information Website

81,489 Unique Site Users

251,916 Page Views

Mobile LawHelp

27,458 Unique Mobile Users

183,633 Page Views

www.slls.org

34,975 Unique Site Visitors

www.LouisianaLawhelp.org

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221,501 Page Views

SLLS’ website coordinator recruits, trains, and supervises "LiveHelp" navigators from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center at Louisiana State University. The navigators help people find information on LouisianaLawHelp.org. Law student volunteers use instant messaging software to communicate in real time with hundreds of visitors to LouisianaLawHelp.org.

Expanding Justice to All Through Self-Help Resources SLLS is developing new automated forms to help the public complete court documents. A new Technology Initiative Grant (TIG) was awarded to SLLS by the Legal Services Corporation to develop automated forms to boost public self-help resources in the areas of expungement, provisional custody by mandate, modification of child support and small claims. Working in collaboration with the Louisiana State Bar Association’s new statewide Library Education and Access Program (LEAP) initiative, we plan to promote the finished product with online resources designed with input from public librarians for their patrons.

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Community Outreach SLLS staff and volunteers participated in 84 community outreach and legal education efforts in 2015 including resource fairs, Ask a Lawyer sessions, Lawyers in Libraries events, Council on Aging outreach sessions for the elderly, workshops, and clinics. About 12,050 people were served through our 2015 community outreach events.

Pictured above: Laura Tuggle, SLLS Executive Director, at Regional Carpenters’ Union Know Your Rights Workshop

Pictured above: Ranie Thompson, SLLS Managing Attorney, at a resource fair

Pictured above: Marie Wright, SLLS Managing Attorney, Cynthia Bordonaro, SLLS Northshore Pro Bono Coordinator, and Maureen Morrow, SLLS Staff Attorney, with Northshore Habitat for Humanity Homeowners

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Making a Difference through Pro Bono The Power of Volunteer Lawyers to Change Lives SLLS works closely with pro bono partner organizations, local bar associations, and private attorneys to expand access to justice. We operate an in-house Northshore Pro Bono Project and a volunteer panel for our statewide Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) Project. We fund the Baton Rouge Bar Foundation and the Pro Bono Project in New Orleans to handle hundreds of referred SLLS cases. We are grateful to all our pro bono partners and volunteers for their dedicated and passionate service to vulnerable people.

Baton Rouge Bar Foundation Pro Bono Project

The Pro Bono Project

1,097 Closed Cases 5,465 Hours Donated in 2015 $888,052 Market Value Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic Project

SLLS Northshore Pro Project

Law Students Make Lasting Contributions SLLS is fortunate to have law clerks assisting in the delivery of civil legal aid from Loyola, LSU, Southern, and Tulane Law Schools. We also host law students from schools across the country during alternative spring and winter breaks. This nationwide interest in volunteering at SLLS started as an outpouring of support after Hurricane Katrina and continues today. In 2015, law students provided over 10,000 hours of service valued at over $150,000. Special thanks to all these dedicated future lawyers and their schools in supporting our work for vulnerable clients.

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

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Cultivating the Next Generation of Justice Leaders New Orleans Bar Association (NOBA) & NOBA Foundation Public Interest Law Fellowship Domestic Violence & Family Stability

Tulane Law School Lutz Fellowships Child in Need of Care & Domestic

Protecting the Most Vulnerable & Developing Future Justice Leaders

Violence

Equal Justice Works Fellowship Medical-Legal Partnership to Improve Housing & Health

Skadden Fellowship Fair Housing for People with Disabilities

With generous support from local and national organizations, SLLS hosts innovative projects staffed by recent graduates to respond to urgent community needs. An Equal Justice Works Fellow Medical-Legal Project focused on improving housing conditions and the health of low income started in 2015. Since the fall of 2014, a Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom Fair Housing Fellowship has been hosted at SLLS to help people living with disabilities fight housing discrimination, and two Tulane Law School Lutz Fellowships were launched to protect domestic violence victims and abused children in the foster care system. The New Orleans Bar Association and the New Orleans Bar Foundation also continued to fund a prestigious Public Interest Law Fellowship to expand legal services to primarily to vulnerable domestic violence survivors to help them break the cycle of abuse through legal intervention.

Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Resources and Finances SLLS receives funding from a wide variety of resources. Without it, we could not have fulfilled our mission of achieving justice resulting in over $17 million of economic impact in 2015. For every $1 invested in civil legal aid, there is almost $3 of community benefit.

Thank You to our 2015 Funders:  American College of Bankruptcy Foundation  Baptist Community Ministries  Capital Area Alliance for the Homeless  Catholic Charities  City of New Orleans  Equal Justice America  Equal Justice Works  Face Forward – Louisiana  Family Justice Center  Franciscan Missionaries of our Lady Health System  Gillis W. Long Poverty Law Center – Loyola Law School

 Greater New Orleans Foundation  Hope Center – Supportive Services for Veteran’s Families  Internal Revenue Service  Legal Services Corporation  Louisiana Bar Foundation  Mississippi Center for Justice  New Orleans Artists Against Hunger / Homelessness  New Orleans Bar Association  New Orleans Bar Foundation  Pennington Foundation  Single Stop

 Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom  Start Inc - Supportive Services for Veteran’s Families  Terrebonne Parish Consolidated Government  Tulane University Law School - Lutz Fellowship  U.S. Dept. of Justice  United Way  UNITY of Greater New Orleans  Volunteers of America Supportive Services for Veteran’s Families  West Tennessee Legal Services

COUNCILS ON AGING SUPPORTING LEGAL SERVICES TO THE ELDERLY – Capital Area Alliance on Aging, East Baton Rouge Council on Aging, Lafourche Council on Aging, Livingston Council on Aging, Plaquemines Council on Aging, St. Charles Council on Aging, St. James Council on Aging, St. John Council on Aging, St. Tammany Council on Aging, and Terrebonne Council on Aging FILING FEES FROM LOCAL COURTS – Orleans Parish Civil District Court, 24th Judicial District Court, Baton Rouge Family Court, Baton Rouge City Court, East Baton Rouge Parish District Court, Livingston Parish District Court, St. Tammany Parish District Court, Tangipahoa Parish District Court, St. Helena Parish District Court, Washington Parish Court, and 34th Judicial District Court

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

You Can Increase Access to Justice in Southeast Louisiana Make a Donation Today Your donation to SLLS helps ensure that families can escape abuse, keep their homes, become self-sufficient, and access health and education services they need to succeed. The demand for our services continues to grow at a pace that outstrips resources. Your support makes it possible for SLLS to respond to urgent needs like helping crime victims, aiding unaccompanied immigrant children, or assisting homeowners with unmet disaster related legal needs. You can join our community of donors by making a gift today at: https://npo.justgive.org/nonprofits/donate.jsp?ein=72-0877422 Or your tax-deductible donation can be mailed to: Deputy Directo r Southeast Louisiana Legal Services P.O. Drawer 2867 Hammond, Louisiana 70404 Volunteer and Make a Difference. SLLS volunteers make an incredible difference in the lives of our clients. We can always use help from pro bono attorneys, law students, paralegals, or other volunteers. We have many opportunities such as Ask-aLawyer events or community education outreach. Volunteers can also use their skills by helping with marketing, event staffing, fundraising, and other business needs. To learn more or to let us know how you want to help, email [email protected]. You can also call us at (504) 529-1000 x 245. Stay in Touch and Learn More about How SLLS Changes Lives Here are two simple ways to stay on top of SLLS news and learn more about how our work affects the lives of our clients and the communities we serve: You can sign up for our email newsletter here. And, you can also like and follow us on Face book to get up-to-date information about our clients’ success stories and SLLS news and events.

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Looking Forward 2016 is shaping up to be a great year! We were recently awarded funding to start new programs throughout our geographic service area. Public Housing Youth Reentry Projects SLLS was 1 of 18 programs in the United States awarded the first ever Juvenile Reentry Assistance Program (JRAP) grants in partnership with a local housing authority. The project is targeted at helping youth living in public housing (up to age 24) get a fresh start by removing legal obstacles to their future success. SLLS was also awarded a grant from Baptist Community Ministries to expand this project so we also can serve youth living in the voucher program to increase the impact of the program. Victim of Crime Act (VOCA) Funding Expands Holistic Civil Legal Assistance to Domestic Violence and Sexual Assaults Victims SLLS received new VOCA grant funding through the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement to advocate for the legal rights of domestic violence and sexual assault victims. Civil legal aid has been proven to be one of the most effective tools to reduce future incidents of violence. New funding in Washington, St. Tammany, Jefferson, and Orleans Parishes is helping even more victims permanently break the cycle of abuse. Two of our new VOCA attorneys are bilingual in English-Spanish. This allows SLLS to help victims overcome language access barriers which has been shown to be a factor in people staying in abusive relationships. Medical-Legal Partnership Project With generous support from Equal Justice Works, the Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System, and the Louisiana Bar Foundation’s Greater New Orleans Community Partnership Panel, SLLS will launch new projects focused on improving patient health outcomes for low-income and other vulnerable people through medical-legal partnerships. This innovative model teams up lawyers and healthcare providers to address social determinants that adversely impact health, but which can’t be addressed by medicine alone. For example, a lawyer may have the fix for a child’s frequent asthma attacks by negotiating with a landlord to fix defective housing conditions or helping an uninsured but very ill patient access Medicaid benefits they need to afford medicine. Projects are in Baton Rouge, New Orleans, and Houma.

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

Thank You to Our 2015 Donors! Thanks to all of our 2015 donors for your generous support. You helped us fulfill our mission of achieving justice for low-income people in twenty-two parishes in southeast Louisiana. Please accept our apologies for any omissions.                                             

Mr. Steve Armbruster Mr. Jesse Babin Mr. Clyde Babylon Ms. Jessica Bach Ms. Christina Baldwin The Big Cheezy Mr. Samuel Brandao Ms. Evelyn Bryant Mr. Douglas Carey Mr. Nathan Cataline Ms. Sidney Cates City Putt Miniature Golf Course Charcoals Gourmet Burger Bar Ms. Johnell Colbert Mr. Charles Delbaum Hon. Bernadette D’Souza Duong Duong Bakery Ms. Mary P. Dwyer Eiffel Society Ms. Rebecca Eisenbrey F & M Patio Bar Dr. Adam Feibelman Ms. Monica Gerhart Mr. Mark S. Goldstein Ms. Amanda Golob Mr. David Gringer Ms. Christina Guillory Ms. Vivian B. Guillory Mr. David Handelman Ms. Amanda Hebert Mr. Joseph Hebert Ms. Tammarin Hennebury Dr. Chin-Chin Ho Ms. Cashauna Hill Ms. Linda Hodge Mr. Gregory Hughes Mr. Jay M. Jalenak Jr. Ms. Andrea Jeanmarie Mr. Leonard Johnson Ms. Susan Caroline Johnson Ms. Rowena Jones Jones Walker LLP Ms. Eliska Juarez Ms. Liz Keith Kelly Hart & Hallman LLP

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Ms. Katheryn Knight Mr. Robert Knights Ladouceur & Ladouceur, LLC LaGarde Law Firm, PC Langford Market Ms. Catherine Lemann Mr. Brian Lenard Liberty Cheesesteaks Mr. Joshua Lichtman Ms. Stephanie Short Lintern Mr. Abel Lopez Ms. Amanda Loring Mr. Brandt Lorio Lowe, Stein, Hoffman, Allweiss, & Hauver LLP Ly’s Supermarket Ms. Janet L. MacDonell Mr. William Magee Ms. Martha Maher Ms. Gwynne Kizer Mashon Mr. Timothy McEvoy The McKenna Law Firm Ms. Sarah McMorris Marcello Mr. Gerard Mendez The Milk Bar Ms. Alexandra Mora & Mr. Walter Wolf Ms. Sarah Morales Ms. Maureen Morrow Mr. Stephen Morrow Ms. Roxanne Newman Mr. & Mrs. Hung & Kin Nguyen Mr. Xuong Nguyen Dr. Vinh Nguyen Noodle & Pie Mr. Jeremy Nusloch Mr. Robert Owens Ms. Marilyn G. Pepper Ms. Jamilah PetersMuhammad Ms. Elena Perez Phelps Dunbar LLP Ms. Rachel Piercey Mr. & Ms. Minor and Jill Pipes Mr. Paul Pugliese

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Mr. William Quigley Mr. Christopher Ralston Reginelli’s Riccobono Peppermill Mr. Nelson Rivers Ms. Bonita Robertson Ms. Theresa Robertson Ms. Wendy Robinson Ms. Haxie Robinson Rodney & Etter LLC Roger Williams University Rosenberg & Clark, LLC Mr. & Mrs. James and Anita Sacher Mr. Michael Schachtman Scheuermann & Jones, LLC Ms. Mary A Sheehan Soul Food Café Stein’s Deli Stone Pigman Ms. Michele C. Stross Mr. Paul A. Tabary Tabaray & Borne, LLC Mr. Greg Terrebonne Thomson Reuters Ms. Lynette Tillis Three Happiness Restaurant Ms. Laura Tuggle Tulane Law School Tulane Law School Student Bar Association Mr. Alexander Urquhart Mr. R. Patrick Vance & the Hon. Sarah S. Vance Vietnamese Buddhist Fellowship Walk-Ons Wayfare Weiler & Rees, LLC Mr. Christian Weiler Mr. Thomas Wicker Whitney/Hancock Bank Winn-Dixie Mr. David Williams Ms. Rachel Wisdom Ms. Jessica Wood

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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services 2015 Annual Report

In Memoriam and In Honorarium Donations The Alpha Kappa Alpha Society – Nu Gamma Omega Chapter in Memoriam of Aleria Cyrus Reed Dr. Terence D’Souza and the Honorable Bernadette D’Souza in Memoriam of Mark Moreau Dr. Chin-Chin Ho In Memoriam of Mark Moreau Mr. Christopher Ralston in Memoriam of Mitchell Ledet Mr. James Vitkus in Memoriam of Mark Moreau

The SLLS Board of Directors Thanks You for Your Support! Lila Arsan, Thibodaux Mary Barrios, Law Office of Mary E. Heck Barrios, Denham Springs Krystal Dillon, Hammond Vivian B. Guillory, Baton Rouge Michael Hill, Baton Rouge Jay M. Jalenak, Jr., Kean Miller, Baton Rouge Regina Joseph, Avondale Brandt Lorio, F A Richard & Associates, Mandeville Warren McKenna, III, The McKenna Firm, New Orleans Joel Miller, Bogalusa Letita J. Parker-Davis, Gretna Christopher Ralston, Phelps Dunbar, New Orleans Mark Suprenant, Adams & Reese, New Orleans Paul A. Tabary, Tabary & Borne, Chalmette Rolando Urbina, The Law Offices Of Rolando R Urbina & Associates, Baton Rouge Jennifer Van Metre, Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development, Gonzales Claudette Warren, New Orleans Patrick Henry Yancey, Law Office of Patrick Yancey, Houma

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