Seven Golden Gate Law students recently traveled to Watsonville, California, to work at a foreclosure rescue scam clinic. Students worked with staff attorneys at the Watsonville Law Center to provide low-income rural clients with much-needed legal services. The Watsonville community, largely populated by Spanish-speaking migrant farm workers, has seen an increase in loan modification and foreclosure related scams. Law students provided legal assistance to 14 households and helped clients file claims with the State Bar of California, Department of Real Estate, and the Santa Cruz County District Attorney's Office.In a post-trip survey, 100 percent of students rated their overall experience as positive and said they would recommend the Project to other law students. In addition, 85.7 percent said they improved their legal skills and learned substantive law.
"It's a great way to get out of the city and really use some legal skills and connect with clients. It reminds me why I wanted to go to law school in the first place. Work like this makes you realize how inaccessible this information is to the public and how many people are lacking real honest legal service." - Participating 3LMore info: The Justice Bus Project is coordinated by the Public Interest Clearinghouse (PIC). The Project's mission is to expose law students to the great need for legal services in rural areas of California and to inspire them to provide pro bono work once they become lawyers.
