A local civil defense collaborative now has more resources to continue providing legal services to low-income residents across Monroe County.
The Telesca Center for Justice leverages civil legal services from four different nonprofit law firms: Empire Justice, JustCause, The Legal Aid Society of Rochester and Legal Assistance Western New York. An investment of 80,000 from New York state, secured by Assemblymember Harry Bronson in the fiscal year 2024-2025 budget, will allow the center to hire a joint staff person to help the nonprofits housed there.
"Together, we are part of the community infrastructure that solves root causes of poverty and instability by removing barriers to accessing justice," said Lori O'Brien, executive director of Legal Assistance of Western New York, Inc.
The partnership focuses on the following areas:
- Expanding access to legal services for low-income and underserved populations
- Developing new programs and services to address emerging legal needs
- Advocating for policies that promote justice and equality
- Increasing public awareness of legal rights and resources
- Collaborative fundraising and development efforts
“The Telesca Center for Justice is a unique model of legal services rooted in thoughtful collaboration in an easily accessible co-location. Its partners demonstrate the impact of a community-centered justice organization working to ensure the basic American principle that all people – regardless of income – deserve and should receive fair and equal legal representation," said Bronson.
Last year, all of the Telesca partners handled more than 19,000 civil legal cases.