Advances: Clinic Students Advocate for Tenants’ Rights

Each year, a small group of St. John’s Law students have an unrivaled opportunity to learn the law hands on while helping New Yorkers in need as participants in the Law School’s Tenants’ Rights Advocacy Clinic.

One of 10 clinics offered at St. John’s Law, this one-semester housing rights clinic is run in partnership with the Legal Aid Society’s Queens Neighborhood Office (QNO). Under the guidance of Professor Amee Master, a supervising attorney with Legal Aid’s Housing Justice Unit-Group Advocacy, students represent income-eligible Queens tenants who are facing eviction and asserting their rights to safe and habitable conditions, proper rents, and freedom from harassment.

Sadia Shamid ’21 was one of the clinic’s first students. “When I heard about the Tenants’ Rights Advocacy Clinic, I knew I wanted to apply,” she says. “The clinic’s mission aligns with my belief that everyone should have access to safe and affordable housing. It’s a basic human need. Plus, I grew up not far from St. John’s in Jamaica, Queens. So, this was a chance to give back to my home community.”

Along with her fellow student clinicians, Shamid worked at least 14 hours a week at QNO. “When I was in the office, I assisted in case investigations and drafted stipulations and motions,” she explains. “I also had opportunities to observe housing court hearings, watch landlord and tenant lawyers interact, and engage with clients.” Shamid also took Professor Master’s weekly seminar course, where she and her classmates discussed their experiences in the field, grew their knowledge of housing law, and honed interviewing, negotiation, oral argument, and other key lawyering skills.

The time she spent working directly with clinic clients inspired Shamid to pursue a career in the public interest. “I saw how my work played a big role in determining whether a person was able to remain in their home or had to leave it,” she shares. “I wanted to

keep serving the public in that way.” Shamid’s desire to be of service only deepened during the pandemic, as it upended jobs and increased housing insecurity for many New York City tenants. Today, she is a full-time law graduate in the Housing Unit at Manhattan Legal Services, a program of Legal Services NYC, the nation’s largest civil legal services provider.

While Shamid charts her career path, students in the Tenants’ Rights Advocacy Clinic continue their vital work. “As we move into the third year of this unprecedented pandemic, New Yorkers are still contending with its immediate impacts,” Professor Master says. “This semester, on the heels of the end of the state’s eviction moratorium, our students are working with tenants at risk of eviction and displacement from their homes. As with so many aspects of our lives and our society, the pandemic has made clear the need for long-term, robust, and equitable housing solutions.”

Doing her part to help New York City tenants navigate the ongoing housing crisis, Shamid is proud to carry on the work she started as a clinic student. “It was such a formative experience,” she says. “I’m grateful to St. John’s Law and to Professor Master for equipping me with the skills and knowledge I now use on a daily basis.”