Volunteer
Top Resources
- A Guide to Legal Protections Amidst Anti-Trans Executive Orders
- Tenant Background Checks and Your Rights
- Financial Literacy Resource Webinar - Consumer Protection and Scams!
- Minimum Wage Increase
- New Changes in Workplace Rights for Parents and Caregivers
- NEW LAW in January: Up to 90% wage replacement for paid family leave for low-income workers, up to 70% for other workers!
- NEW LAW in January: 10 days for tenants to file responses in eviction cases
- NEW LAW in January: Most medical debt should not be reported on credit reports!
- Eviction Response Tool
- Know Your Rights as a California Tenant: Evictions
LawHelpCA- LiveChat Volunteer Program
LAAC (The Legal Aid Association of California) regularly staffs volunteers to run our LawHelpCA LiveChat program. Volunteers work remotely on our LawHelpCA website, providing person-to-person help for low-income and modest-means Californians in what can often be stressful and alienating legal situations.
What do Volunteers do?
Volunteers work on our LiveChat platform to provide legal assistance to individuals utilizing LawHelpCA to search for legal help. Volunteers are trained on how to navigate our legal directory and provide resources such as legal aid organizations (free or sliding scale help), court self-help center information (free help), and private attorney referrals services, with "modest means" help where you and the attorney set the fee amount and fee type together, and general legal information that does not replace legal help from an attorney.
Volunteers will learn to sort through complex legal subjects and learn how to communicate with members of the public using plain language and trauma-informed methods. Once trained, volunteers can participate from any computer with internet access, making this a flexible option for a variety of individuals.
Who is Eligible?
Anyone who is 18 years of age and older interested in learning more about the legal landscape of California and has a passion for or interest in LAACs mission and work is encouraged to apply! We also offer pro bono credit for JD and LLM students.
What is the Application and Onboarding Process?
Once you have completed the application for the LiveChat volunteer position, your application will be reviewed and you will be contacted with an update. For all accepted applicants, LAAC provides training (one 2-hour Zoom training, a follow-up Zoom call with each individual volunteer, and hands-on practice with legal issue spotting). Once trained, volunteers can participate from any computer with internet access, making this a flexible option for volunteering or earning pro bono hours.
Hours may be done between 9 AM-4:30 pm PM Monday-Friday. The minimum commitment is 2 hours per week but volunteers are permitted to do a maximum of 10. The commitment is for one semester or a 3-month minimum period with the option to volunteer for longer.
Applications for volunteer positions are currently open. Please submit your application via this linked form no later than 9am on May 19th.
Questions?
For questions regarding the LiveChat Volunteer Program and applications, please contact our Equity and Community Programs Manager, Theo-Ser Ramin at tser-ramin@laaconline.org
For questions about resources, please contact our Senior Technology and Program Associate, Linda Fernandez at lfernandez@laaconline.org