Politics & Government
City Of New Orleans: City Of New Orleans Eviction Diversion Project Wins The 2021 Legal Service Innovation Award
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October 15, 2021
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NEW ORLEANS — Mayor LaToya Cantrell announced that the First City Court Eviction Diversion Project has been selected as winner of the 2021 Legal Service Innovation Award from the Louisiana State Bar Association.
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The award was presented to Chief Judge Veronica Henry on behalf of the exemplary collaboration with the City of New Orleans and Southeast Louisiana Legal Services to provide on-demand legal assistance for tenants, an information desk for landlords and tenants, prioritization for tenants facing eviction for emergency rental assistance programs and early notification at the time of filing.
The City of New Orleans initiated the partnership in January 2021 and provided funding to Southeast Louisiana Legal Services (SLLS) for legal aid and utilized U.S. Treasury Emergency Rental Assistance Funds to cover rental arears thereby preventing evictions. Judge Henry played an invaluable role in the process, providing early notification at the time of filings.
"Congratulations to Chief Judge Veronica Henry; I am proud of the partnership with the City of New Orleans, First Circuit Civil Court and Southeast Louisiana Legal Services that led to a model Eviction Diversion Program which prevented hundreds of vulnerable households from being displaced through eviction," said Mayor LaToya Cantrell. "Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, there were many illegal evictions happening and we were fighting to make sure residents were armed with tools and services to prevent that from happening. I'm glad we have another tool in our toolbox to prevent evictions and keep people in their homes."
“The unprecedented pandemic required an innovative approach to stabilizing housing. Even as we move on from the pandemic, we will use the same aggressive approach to prevent evictions and spare as many as possible from going through the very traumatic experience,” said Marjorianna Willman, Director of the Office of Housing Policy and Community Development.
This press release was produced by the City of New Orleans. The views expressed here are the author’s own.