Legal Aid MKE

We had a great turnout for this year's Children's Court Summer BBQ. Many thanks to attorney and grillmaster Andrew Boden for hosting!

Check out this article from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about a free event this weekend that combines two great things: dogs and democracy.

Comedy Central is hosting a free voter registration and dog adoption event on July 14 in Cathedral Square Park. Adoptable dogs from Milwaukee Area Domestic Animal Control Commission (MADACC) will be onsite, as will representatives from HeadCount to assist attendees with voter registration.

MADACC is offering dramatic discounts on adoption fees as well as foster-to-adopt opportunities for interested families.

Share widely!

https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/events/2024/07/10/comedy-central-hosts-voting-pet-adoption-event-before-milwaukee-rnc/74344670007/

Legal Aid MKE will be closed for in-person services Monday, July 15 through Friday, July 19 due to the Republican National Convention. Regular in-person services will resume Monday, July 22.

Online intake forms will still be accepted at https://legalaidmke.com/ and https://www.evictionfreemke.org/

Thank you!

This summer has kept us busy welcoming several new faces to our staff!

A few weeks ago, we welcomed Sophia Flood Elyafi as a new Staff Attorney on our Family Court Guardian ad Litem team.

Here's why Sophia says she's excited to be a part of our staff: "I am excited to be joining Legal Aid, particularly as a part of the Guardian Ad Litem team, because of my background in childcare and education. I have always wanted to be in a career and space that serves the community, and Legal Aid provides an amazing opportunity to do just that!"

Please join us in extending a warm welcome to Sophia.

Legal Aid MKE offices will be closed Thursday, July 4 - Friday, July 5 in observance of Independence Day.

Enjoy the holiday weekend!

We are partnering with Milwaukee Rental Housing Resource Center to help individuals currently looking to remove past evictions from their CCAP Search.

Our next free clinic is tomorrow, July 2nd from 9am-4pm, at the Community Advocates building on 728 N James Lovell Street. This event is currently open to individuals with dismissed evictions and completed payment plans only, and for Milwaukee County evictions only. If you can't make tomorrow's clinic, we have another coming up on August 6th.

** Appointments Preferred** Please request your appointment at https://legalaidmke.com/events

Walk-ins available.

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Our Immigration project is growing!

Legal Aid MKE recently welcomed Staff Attorney Cesar O. Contreras to the Immigration team. In Cesar's words, "I am excited to work for Legal Aid because I know that through my work, I will be able to positively impact a lot of people's lives."

Please join us in welcoming Cesar to Legal Aid!

Legal Aid MKE is excited to introduce Yaneli Olmos, who joined our Children's Court team as a Bilingual Assessment Professional earlier this month.

Yaneli is looking forward to advancing the important work done by our Children's Court team. She says, "I am excited to work for Legal Aid because it will allow me to continue to make a difference in the lives of those who are underrepresented! I've always wanted to work in a field where I would be able to advocate for children and families who may be going though social or legal proceedings and Legal Aid has allowed me to continue to excel in this area."

Please join us in welcoming Yaneli to Legal Aid MKE!

Evictionfreemke was featured on yesterday's episode of Lake Effect on WUWM 89.7 FM - Milwaukee's NPR. Click below to hear Executive Director Colleen Foley and Housing Attorney Lillian Cheesman share more about the Eviction Free MKE program.

Wednesday on Lake Effect: Eviction Free MKE, Fathers Making Progress, 'Markie in Milwaukee', They Might Be Giants We learn about Eviction Free MKE, a program that helps people facing eviction. We look at the organization, Fathers Making Progress. We hear from the filmmaker of Markie in Milwaukee. Plus, we speak with one half of the alt-rock duo, They Might Be Giants.

Legal Aid offices will be closed on Wednesday, June 19, in honor of Juneteenth.

Legal Aid is excited to introduce Staff Attorney Mike Dubinski, who joined our Children's Court Guardian Ad Litem team earlier this month.

We asked Mike why he was excited to join our team, and he responded, "My goal through law school was to begin my legal career in a place where I could utilize both my social work and my legal training to serve the public interest. I am so lucky to have found that place here at Legal Aid."

Please join us in welcoming Mike to Legal Aid!

Legal Aid is excited to introduce Staff Attorney Monika August Allis, JD, who joined the Children's Court Guardian ad Litem team last week.

When asked why she's excited to join the Legal Aid team, Monika said, "I'm thrilled to be part of LAS due to our rich history of social justice advocacy and impactful work. Joining the GAL team at Children's Court is particularly exciting for me, as I can leverage my ten years of experience in child welfare within a legal context."

Please join us in welcoming Monika to the Legal Aid team!

Legal Aid Society joins the Milwaukee community in mourning the passing of Attorney José Olivieri.

Prominent attorney, civic leader José Olivieri passes away at 66 - Milwaukee Business Journal On a weekend when metro Milwaukee began mourning the death of Marquette University president Mike Lovell, the area lost another civic and education leader — José Olivieri. Learn more about how the Milwaukee attorney impacted the community in this story.

Legal Aid and the Milwaukee Fire Department celebrate Pride!

Have an open garnishment case?

We are offering a free clinic to support individuals with active garnishments. This free clinic will be held from 9am-4pm. This event is currently open to individuals with garnishments filed with a Wisconsin court. RSVP is recommended. Learn more today https://legalaidmke.com/events/garnishment-clinic

Legal Aid offices will be closed on Monday, May 27, 2024 in observance of Memorial Day. We will reopen for our regular hours on Tuesday, May 28.

We are partnering with Milwaukee Rental Housing Resource Center (located inside of the Community Advocates Building) to help individuals currently looking to remove past evictions from their CCAP Search.

Our next free clinic is Tuesday, June 4th from 9am-4pm. This event is currently open to individuals with dismissed evictions and completed payment plans only.

** Limited Slots** Please request your appointment at https://legalaidmke.com/events

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Legal Aid attorneys attended conferences near and far last week!


-2024 GAL Training - State Bar of Wisconsin – Madison [Guardian ad Litem]

-2024 ABA/NLADA Equal Justice Conference - Detroit [American Bar Association/National Legal Aid & Defenders Association]

-2024 NOSSCR Conference - Nashville [National Organization of Social Security Claimants’ Representatives]

Legal Aid is in the news! Our Executive Director, Colleen Foley, was quoted in the Journal Sentinel about this week's George Sessler conviction. Read more below.

Long-time Milwaukee landlord George Sessler convicted of felony racketeering George Sessler, a longtime Milwaukee landlord, is convicted of felony racketeering, a crime that carries a maximum penalty of up to 15 years

Come join our team! Legal Aid MKE is actively recruiting a bilingual (Spanish/English) Social Worker for our Guardian ad Litem team. This position will report to our offices in the Vel R. Phillips Juvenile Justice Center in Wauwatosa, WI.

Scan the QR code below or click the link below for more information.

https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/3904248489/

Legal Aid staff proudly wore denim today in honor of the 25th annual , which supports survivors of sexual violence.

Visit the Denim Day website (linked below) to learn more about their important advocacy work.

https://denimday.org/

We're happy to share that we've added more Eviction Sealing Clinics!!

We are partnering with Milwaukee Rental Housing Resource Center (located inside of the Community Advocates Building) to help individuals currently looking to remove past evictions from their CCAP Search.

Our next free clinic is Tuesday, May 7th from 9am-4pm. This event is currently open to individuals with dismissed evictions and completed payment plans only.

** Limited Slots** Please request your appointment at https://legalaidmke.com/events

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Attorney Al Foeckler of Cannon & Dunphy presented a terrific CLE to Legal Aid staff today titled: “Client Management: Recognize and Control Your Superpower (and Practical Tips)”.

https://www.cannon-dunphy.com/attorneys/allan-m-foeckler/

Congratulations to attorneys Jourdan Ofori-Anim and Riad T. El-Azem on their graduation from the State Bar of Wisconsin's G. Lane Ware Leadership Academy!

Due to popular demand, we are excited to announce another free Eviction Sealing Clinic!

We are partnering with Milwaukee Rental Housing Resource Center (located inside of the Community Advocates Building) to help individuals currently looking to remove past evictions from their CCAP Search.

This free clinic will be held on Thursday, April 4th from 9am-4pm. This event is currently open to individuals with dismissed evictions and completed payment plans only.

** Limited Slots** Please request your appointment at https://legalaidmke.com/events

Happy !! Today, we encourage you to give the inspiring women in your life their flowers.

Leave them a special message and share how they inspire you.

Today was amazing thanks to you all helping to spread the word. We are happy to share that we were able to help over 90 individuals at our eviction sealing clinic! We could not let the day go away without thanking our amazing team and partners for helping to both promote and facilitate this event!!

Psst.. due to such high demand, we are coordinating another clinic VERY soon so please stay posted and connected!

Be sure to follow Legal Aid MKE for more details on our next event!

We are proud to announce that we have partnered with Milwaukee Rental Housing Resource Center (located inside of the Community Advocates Building) to help individuals currently looking to remove past evictions from their CCAP Search. This free clinic will be held on Thursday, March 7th from 9am-4pm. This event is currently open to individuals with dismissed evictions and completed payment plans only.

Walk-ins welcome. Appointments preferred. To book an appointment, please visit https://legalaidmke.com/events/evictions-sealing-clinic

We are proud to announce that we have partnered with Milwaukee Rental Housing Resource Center (located inside of the Community Advocates Building) to help individuals currently looking to remove past evictions from their CCAP Search. This free clinic will be held on Thursday, March 7th from 9am-4pm. This event is currently open to individuals with dismissed evictions and completed payment plans only.

Walk-ins welcome. Appointments preferred. To book an appointment, please visit

Free Evictions Sealing Clinic — Legal Aid Society of Milwaukee Get Help Removing Past Evictions from Online CCAP Searches We have partnered with the Rental Housing Resource Center (located inside of the Community Advocates Building) to help individuals currently looking to remove past evictions from their CCAP Search. This free clinic will be held on Thursda