Legal Organization Directory

The Attorney Search Network helps people find private attorneys.

The Attorney Search Network helps people find private attorneys.

Balance (formerly Consumer Credit Counseling Service of San Francisco), is a free consumer credit counseling service based in San Francisco, but available to people nationwide.

Balance helps with: budgeting, debt management, reviewing and understanding credit reports, identity theft, bankruptcy, student loans, home ownership, and foreclosure prevention.

Conflict Intervention Service (CIS) helps low-income SF tenants and their landlords mediate disputesthat jeopardize housing stability. CIS can help the parties with issues such as late rent, neighbor conflicts, hoarding issues, and others.

CIS offers guidance and assistance through its helpline, plus mediation to the parties when appropriate. CIS cannot assist when an eviction proceeding is pending.

The Tenant Advocacy Project (TAP) assists low-income tenants in San Francisco to avoid eviction by negotiating with landlords, rent boards, master tenants and property managers. TAP does NOT assist with eviction lawsuits.

TAP is able to support with: rent disputes, rental assistance (ERAP) advice and help, housing conditions/ repairs, income re-certifications, subsidy terminations, disability accommodations, other disputes with landlords/property managers.

JDC’s Immigration “Attorney of the Day” program offers free phone consultations and some limited services for immigrants in the removal proceedings in SF Immigration Court (services include helping clients to lodge asylum applications (I-589s) and fill out applications for employment authorization). Staff will also screen for any possible referrals to other immigration legal providers for full-scope representation.

Bay Area Legal Aid provides legal services to low-income residents across the region. Their Consumer Rights Clinics help clients harassed or sued by debt collectors, who need help with paperwork in a debt collection suit, who have questions about student loans, who need help with a wage garnishment or bank account levy, who have credit report issues preventing them from getting housing or affordable credit, who have questions about foreclosure, liens, or bankruptcy, who are targeted by solar or home improvement scammers, have been a victim of scams promising to settle debts, or other consumer debt issues.

Bay Area Legal Aid provides advice to youth people ages 13–25 experiencing issues with homelessness, foster care entry, probate guardianship, school (enrollment, discipline, and special education), and public benefits.

California Human Development (CHD) is a non-profit organization that provides legal immigration services to low-income Californians.

Legal assistance is offered to low-income individuals and Tribes on a wide variety of issues involving Federal Indian law including Indian Child Welfare, land, student rights, cultural resource protection, public benefits, Indian Wills and probates, unsealing birth records and more.

The Sacramento Office prioritizes the following cases: drafting Indian wills, expungement services (CA convictions only), unsealing birth records to establish tribal connection, Fair Chance Act issues, veterans eligible for the Military Discharge Upgrade Project (change of status for veterans with less than honorable discharge status to become eligible for benefits).

California Lawyers for the Arts (CLA) provides alternative dispute resoluution/mediation services for creative artists, arts organizations, inventors — or anyone with an arts or innovation-related legal question.

California Lawyers for the Arts (CLA) provides referrals to attorneys.

California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation (CRLAF) helps low-income people in rural communities with legal issues including immigration, housing, and work issues.

CRLA provides a range of legal services (work, housing, education, health, immigration, environmental justice) to rural Californians. Programs include: Tenant Justice, Agriculture & Farmworkers, and Immigration. CRLA also provides help with public benefits, education issues, and offers a LGBT+ program (name and gender change, etc.). Services may vary by county.