Senator Hassell-Thompson Announces Website That Helps Low-income New Yorkers Solve Legal Problems

State Senator Ruth Hassell-Thompson (D-Bronx/Westchester) today announced that low-income New Yorkers are just a few keystrokes away from getting the help they need to work through legal issues they might encounter.

"Lawhelp.org/NY offers New Yorkers referrals to free legal service programs, information about your rights, links to social services and government agencies and information about the court system. The website is the result of the work of several great organizations whose mission is to assist low- and moderate income New Yorkers with legal issues," Senator Hassell-Thompson said.

The website www.lawhelp.org/NY, has detailed referral information on a dozen areas of civil law, including consumer issues, immigration, disability, individual rights, education, life planning, family and juvenile, public benefits, health, taxes, housing and workers’ rights.

Information on the website is available not only in English and Spanish, but several other languages, including Chinese, Russian, Hindi, Undu, Punjabi, Bengali, Farsi, Arabic, Creole, Korean, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Japanese, Italian, French, German, Portuguese, Armenian, Polish and others.

"This website has already proven itself to be of great assistance to countless New Yorkers who have saved themselves time and money simply by logging on. The legal process can be complicated, but lawhelp.org/NY can simplify some of the steps by pointing those in need in the right direction. I encourage all of my constituents to visit Lawhelp.org/NY, and experience the benefits of this site," said Senator Hassell- Thompson.

Lawhelp.org/NY is a collaborative project of The City Bar Fund, Legal Services for New York City, Pro Bono Net, The Legal Aid Society, Volunteers of Legal Service, The Greater Upstate Law Project and the Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York. Assisting with the website are the IOLA Fund of the State of New York, Legal Services Corporation, New York Community Trust, Open Society Institute, Charles H. Revson Foundation, and the State Justice Institute.