Direct Legal Services

We provide free legal services to low and no-income individuals at clinics located at food pantries and community centers throughout NYC.

Anti-Eviction and Anti-Harassment

The Safety Net Project believes that safe, affordable housing is a human right. We fight to preserve affordable housing and the cultural integrity of neighborhoods by representing individual tenants who are facing an eviction, rent overcharges, or negligent landlords who refuse to make essential repairs to tenant’s homes. Beyond our robust tenant defense practice, we also represent tenants and tenant associations in HP actions to force landlords to make necessary repairs to  buildings and individual units.

The Safety Net Project is a proud member of the Right to Counsel Coalition and is working hard in the Bronx to ensure that the roll out of this important new tenant right is as seamless, smooth, and effective as possible.

Our team operates free legal clinics at community health centers, soup kitchens and food pantries throughout New York City to assist clients on a walk-in basis.

Click here for our housing legal clinics schedules.

Benefits Advocacy

The Safety Net Project’s Benefits and Homeless Advocacy Unit provides free legal services to low and no-income households at legal clinics located at St. Johns Bread & Life, the Westside Campaign Against Hunger, the River Fund, and the New York Common Pantry. We advise, assist, and represent individuals who have questions about or issues with the Human Resource Administration’s (HRA) public benefits programs. We seek to resolve all Public Assistance, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and other HRA issues through direct advocacy with HRA, but also represent clients when necessary at Administrative Fair Hearings.

The Safety Net Project’s Benefits Team are substantive experts in public benefits and are deeply committed to changing how public benefits are talked about and administered. Thus, in addition to our direct legal service work, SNP’s benefits experts author reports to address its concerns with HRA with the hope of improving it; issue public comments, testimonies, and statements to advocate or against policy proposals and/or rule changes; and lobby and protest in Washington DC, Albany, and on the steps of City Hall when necessary to fight against cuts and to expand access to crucial public benefits.

Click here for our SNAP and public assistance legal clinics schedules.