Community Justice Connect is a network of neighborhood storefront sites that trains community volunteers to provide free legal information, resources, and referrals to their neighbors.
The program provides support to people facing civil legal challenges in areas like housing, public benefits, employment, family law, and immigration before they’re facing crisis.
Our mission is to empower residents through accessible, upstream support that prevents issues from escalating into court cases, as well as in-depth training for community volunteers who want to learn how to navigate complex legal systems.
When civil legal problems with housing, family instability, and government benefits go unresolved, people can face serious harm— eviction, family separation, and devastating financial burdens. Too often, people navigating civil court are not guaranteed legal counsel, and get access to free legal services only after a lawsuit has been filed. Though New York City offers many public resources, navigating the process of accessing them can be difficult.
At Community Justice Connect, visitors receive assistance to have their questions answered and address civil legal issues across multiple areas. Services include navigation of the social services system, completion of online legal forms, facilitated workshops with local community organizations, and connections to public benefits and other resources.
Samiha Meah visits Community Justice Connect in Jamaica, Queens. Volunteers okay with being photographed. Photo releases from the 2 clients noted.
Empowering Through
Education
Trained volunteers—often students, retirees, and
neighborhood residents—receive in-depth instruction and ongoing supervision from on-site managers, associates, and an attorney. Volunteers are trained to address critical access to justice gaps. This includes knowledge of tenant rights across different housing types, identifying the correct court forms for adjusting child support orders, navigating public benefits systems, and understanding how to access the different civil courthouses throughout New York City. This empowers them to provide their neighbors with free access to legal information and assistance.
Samiha Meah visits Community Justice Connect in Jamaica, Queens. Volunteers okay with being photographed. Photo releases from the 2 clients noted.
Empowering Through
Community
Free walk-in assistance is provided to community members with civil questions, regardless of their residence, status, or income. When visitors need more specified assistance, such as legal advice or representation, volunteers make targeted referrals.
Storefront sites facilitate workshops, events, and partnerships with local community organizations based on community need: responding to trends and concerns that visitors raise, helping ensure timely and relevant services.
Visitor Highlight"The volunteers here…fixed so many things in my life: they helped me to get citizenship, housing, even furniture. They pushed me to solutions to all these issues. I didn’t know how to figure out everything at once…I’d come here every week, [and] they helped me with all the steps so I could succeed."
Legal Hand Bronx workshop offers tips to elevate your resume
Our Legal Hand program hosted a resume workshop in the Bronx to help residents craft strong resumes and boost their career skills. Topics included how to structure and format a resume, write compelling bullet points, tailor resumes to job descriptions, and succeed in interviews. The "Elevate Your Resume" workshop was led by Rachelle Brown, who specializes in workshop development, and gave residents the opportunity to ask questions and offer feedback.
Free, delicious, and fresh food and canned goods galore at this Jamaica, Queens Pop-Up Pantry, until supplies last! Come stock up for dinner with help from Community Justice Connect and the Jamaica Community Partnership.
