LASP... Coordinating Efforts and Meeting Community Needs in the Face of Disaster

Legal Aid of Southeastern PA (LASP) partners with ABA Young Lawyers Disaster Legal Services in response to Hurricane Ida Pro bono opportunity to help low-income residents

Submitted by Marion Hoffman Fraley, Communications Director/LASP

Hurricane Ida raged across Delaware County and southeastern PA on Sept. 1, creating a path of destruction of flooding and tornadoes that will be longfelt. Legal issues related to the storms also won’t dissipate overnight. In fact, storm-related legal problems are expected to continue for at least three years after the initial event and provide an opportunity for pro bono involvement to help lowincome residents.

In response to Hurricane Ida and the federal disaster declaration, Legal Aid of Southeastern PA (LASP) is working with the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division’s Disaster Legal Services Program and FEMA to provide disaster legal aid. Since 2007, the ABA YLD program has provided help in 45 states and more than 200 disasters.

In the immediate aftermath of the storm, LASP attorneys staffed legal resource tables. Since the Sept. 10 federal disaster declaration following Hurricane Ida, LASP staff have met weekly with Shrushti Kothari, Project Manager, ABA YLD National Disaster Content and Resources, and former Staff Attorney in the Disaster Relief Unit at Lone Star Legal Aid in Houston, Texas. The weekly disaster legal aid meeting also includes FEMA officials, other Pennsylvania legal aid programs, and a Legal Services Corp. (LSC) representative. Kothari also presented an all-staff training on identifying storm-related legal problems to LASP and other Pennsylvania and New Jersey LSC-funded legal aid programs covered by Hurricane Ida disaster declarations.

In October, LASP activated the legal aid Helpline for Hurricane Ida in PA, in collaboration with MidPenn Legal Services, North Penn Legal Services (NPLS) and Philadelphia Legal Assistance (PLA). FEMA requires one helpline per state per storm. Low-income Montgomery County residents, as well as people in the seven other counties in the federal disaster declaration, can get free legal assistance by calling 877429-5994 Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m., or leave a message. Bedford, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, Northampton, Philadelphia and York counties are included in the declaration.

Sara Planthaber, J.D., M.S.W., LASP’s Hurricane Ida Helpline Specialist, noted that as of Nov. 17, LASP has opened storm-related cases based in Delaware County, including FEMA applications and denials and landlord-tenant matters. Of the four counties LASP serves, Montgomery County has the highest number of Ida-impacted legal aid cases.

Examples of legal help available may include: • FEMA application and other benefits available to disaster survivors. The initial deadline, Nov. 10, was extended to Dec. 10. • FEMA denials • Help with home repair contracts and contractors • Replacement of identity documents (such as birth certificates and Social Security cards) • Consumer protection matters • Mortgage-foreclosure or landlord-tenant problems • Life, medical, and property insurance claims

In response to increased disasters, Legal Services Corp.’s Disaster Task Force developed a 94-page report in 2018-19 to address the legal impact of disasters on low-income survivors. Among the common legal problems in the wake of a disaster are landlord-tenant issues, public benefits, document replacement, title clearing, FEMA appeals, domestic violence, and consumer and fraud issues.

Attorneys and paralegals who wish to volunteer with LASP’s Pro Bono Program in any of these areas may contact Thomas Kerstan, Esq., LASP Staff Attorney and Delaware County Pro Bono Coordinator, at 484-206-7808 or tkerstan@lasp.org.

The LSC report encourages community-wide disaster planning and collaboration between the legal and emergency management communities. It states (on page 12):

“Despite legal aid’s potential in the aftermath of disaster, there can be a significant gap in the disaster-response landscape when there is a lack of a coordinated effort to deal with the legal needs of disaster survivors. Most emergency management and disaster-response organizations are unaware of the legal issues faced by disaster survivors and the particular needs of low-income communities. Legal services providers have deep networks in low-income communities and have experience creating access for people who face barriers to services and information.”

C. Shawn Boehringer, Esq., LASP Executive Director, noted, “This was a case where we responded to an emerging need. LASP is uniquely positioned to address many community needs.”

Kathryn A. Meloni, Esq., P.C.

SERVICES:

• ADOPTIONS • Wills & Probate • Family Law • Deeds • Divorces • ED • Custody • Support • PFAs • Deeds • POAs • Living Wills

LAW OFFICE OF KATHRYN A. MELONI, ESQ., P.C. 117-119 North Olive Street, Second Floor Media, PA 19063 610-565-1260 Kmeloni@KMeloniLaw.com www.KMeloniLaw.com

Disaster legal aid resources:

• “Report of the LSC Disaster Task Force,” Legal

Services Corp.: https://www.lsc.gov/our-impact/publications/otherpublications-and-reports/lsc-disaster-task-force-report • Disaster Legal Services Program, American Bar

Association Young Lawyers Division: https://www.americanbar.org/groups/young_lawyers/ projects/disaster-legal-services/ • National Disaster Legal Aid Resource Center: https://www.disasterlegalaid.org/ • Legal Aid Disaster Resource Center: https://www.ladrc.org/ • LASP’s Hurricane Ida page with local, state and U.S. resources: https://www.lasp.org/hurricane-ida •

Note: Hurricane Ida, one of the most powerful and rapidly intensifying storms to hit the United States, delivered days of misery and destruction — from the time it made landfall in Louisiana on the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina to the torrential rains that pummeled the Northeast. Ida is the sixthcostliest tropical cyclone on record, and the fourth-costliest Atlantic hurricane in the United States (tied with Hurricane Sandy), having caused at least $65.25 billion (2021 USD) in damages.