TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Sep 2, 2021

The U.S. Justice Department this week urged attorneys across the legal profession to volunteer their time to assist the surge of tenants expected to be forced out of homes now that a COVID-19 pandemic-related eviction moratorium has ended. In a letter addressed to "members of the legal community," Attorney General Merrick Garland said eviction filings are expected to spike to roughly double their pre-pandemic levels and that lawyers have an ethical obligation to help the most vulnerable. Garland encouraged lawyers to volunteer at legal aid providers or help tenants apply for government emergency rent relief, Reuters reports. A number of law school deans, including Chris Guthrie at Vanderbilt University Law School, signed onto a statement supporting the call.