Ex. Housing Justice: The Right to Counsel in Housing Court

Course Information

Course Number
L6789
Curriculum Level
Upperclass
Areas of Study
Civil Procedure, Litigation, and Dispute Resolution, Lawyering, Racial, Economic, and Social Justice
Type
Externship
Additional Attributes
Experiential Credit

Section 001 Information

Instructor

Section Description

Students in the Housing Justice Externship will explore the Right to Counsel model used in summary proceedings in NYC Housing Courts. In 2017, NYC enacted the first legislation in the country establishing a Universal Access to Counsel program (UAC) also known as the Right to Counsel (RTC) for all income-eligible tenants facing eviction. During an unprecedented pandemic, NYC amended the legislation to fully implement RTC in Housing Court eviction proceedings and termination hearings at The New York City Housing Authority more than a year earlier than the original effective date. The original five-year phase-in was accelerated to provide a free attorney in Housing Court beginning in June 2021. The focus of the seminar will be to delve into the RTC model in New York City while using a critical racial lens to examine the systemic racism and inherent bias of the court system especially in its high-volume courts and how the system can be improved to provide low-income New Yorkers better access to justice. We will also explore the historical significance of RTC, its implementation and compare and contrast it with other jurisdictions

Evaluation Method: Paper/presentation and Field work and seminar contribution

School Year & Semester
Fall 2023
Location
JGH 908
Schedule
Class meets on
  • Tuesday
4:20 pm - 6:10 pm
Points
2
Method of Evaluation
Paper
J.D Writing Credit?
No

Learning Outcomes

Primary
  • At the end of the course, students will have acquired understanding of and/or facility in a specific body of law, including major policy concerns
  • At the end of the course, students will have acquired understanding of and/or facility in statutory and regulatory analysis, including close reading of statutes and regulations, and application to facts
  • At the end of the course, students will have acquired understanding of and/or facility in ethical and professional issues
  • At the end of the course, students will have acquired understanding of and/or facility in comparative law analysis of legal institutions and the law
  • At the end of the course, students will have acquired understanding of and/or facility in various lawyering skills, for example, oral advocacy, legal writing and drafting, legal research, negotiation, and client communication
Secondary
  • At the end of the course, students will have acquired understanding of and/or facility in the historical development of law and legal institutions
  • At the end of the course, students will have acquired understanding of and/or facility in judicial, legislative and/or administrative processes

Course Limitations

Instructor Pre-requisites
None
Instructor Co-Requisites
None
Recommended Courses
None
Other Limitations
None

Other Sections of Ex. Housing Justice: The Right to Counsel in Housing Court

Section 002

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