6-Hour Program

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Overview

 

Why You Should Attend
“It is hard to argue that housing is not a fundamental human need. Decent, affordable housing should be a basic right for everybody in this country. The reason is simple: without stable shelter, everything else falls apart.” (Matthew Desmond, Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City.) In California, where the cost of housing is on the rise every year, more and more low-income families are rent-burdened to the point that they are at high risk of eviction. For those who are evicted, finding other stable and affordable housing becomes increasingly difficult, and the risk of homelessness looms. Even if they are lucky enough to find new housing, evicted tenants’ lives are often disrupted and altered in myriad ways: they are displaced from their communities, jobs, health care, and places of worship; they are driven into debt by moving costs and higher rents; their children lose time in school.

In this context, protecting low-income tenants from evictions is increasingly critical. Attorneys who have a basic understanding of California eviction defense and housing law can advance justice for low-income tenants and prevent harm from unnecessary displacement. Housing advocates and more local governments around the state recognize that representing tenants makes a difference in tenants’ lives. 

This training is designed to help mitigate California’s housing affordability crisis by providing attorneys with an understanding of key procedural issues in eviction defense and protecting tenants’ rights.  Participants will have an opportunity to connect with non-profit legal service agencies able to facilitate pro bono representation of low-income families facing this predicament.

What You Will Learn
  • Civil procedure tools in the accelerated unlawful detainer context;
  • When and how to use pre-Answer motions to protect tenants;
  • Tips for conducting discovery for maximum effect;
  • How to best utilize affirmative defenses and when to consider affirmative lawsuits;
  • Best practices for drafting settlement agreements to protect tenants;
  • Tenant rights to jury trial and tools to consider in your trial strategy;
  • When and how to file a post-trial motion or appeal.

    Who Should Attend
    Practitioners who handle or are interested in handling eviction defense matters should attend.  The training will prove helpful for new attorneys and for those with experience who want to deepen their use of California procedure and explore new tools to include in their practice.  The sessions will touch on avenues for affirmative litigation to protect low-income tenancies.

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