Major developments

The Supreme Court of Alaska extended the law as to situations where parents have a constitutional right to counsel in custody cases.

The Kentucky Court of Appeals held that the failure to appoint counsel in a dependency proceeding required reversal of the termination order.

The North New Jersey DSA is pushing for the city to join the ranks of cities adopting a right to counsel for tenants facing eviction.

A Michigan Court of Appeals held that respondents in Michigan civil commitment proceedings are entitled to effective assistance of counsel.

In May 2022, Detroit became the latest city to enact a right to counsel for tenants facing eviction.

In April 2021, Washington State became the first state with a statewide right to counsel for tenants facing eviction.

The Philadelphia City Council has enacted a right to counsel for tenants.

A 2022 ballot initiative, Proposition D, creates a 1-year pilot to provide a right to counsel for San Francisco victims of domestic violence.

An enacted 2022 bill creates a task force to study implementation of an immigration right to counsel, with a report due in 2023.

A joint report by the ACLU and NCCRC reviews the data on the widepsread consequences of evictions and right to counsel's impact on the problem.

A new report found evictions in Lancaster County often violate the law and that counsel makes a huge difference.

In May 2022, the New Orleans City Council enacted an ordinance to provide a right to counsel for all tenants facing eviction.

A report from the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center urges the state to fund a right to counsel for tenants statewide.

A 2022 law changed appointment of counsel for birth parents in adoption cases from mandatory to discretionary.

In 2022, Colorado added the right to client-directed counsel for older children in abuse/neglect cases.

NYC is the first jurisdiction in the country to establish a right to counsel for low-income tenants in eviction cases, and is looking to expand.

An ordinance introduced in Lakewood Ohio aims to make the city the third in Ohio to provide a right to counsel for tenants facing eviction.

The City of St. Pete is considering providing a right to counsel for tenants facing eviction.

The City of Toledo has enacted legislation to guarantee counsel to low-income tenants facing eviction.

In May, Maryland became the second state to provide a statewide right to counsel for indigent tenants facing evictoin.

CityHealth, which ranks cities on their policies, is making a push in conjunction with the NCCRC for cities to adopt a tenant right to counsel.

A proposed ballot initiative for November 2022 would establish a right to counsel for Multnomah County tenants facing eviction.

Building off of NYCs success, a new bill would guarantee counsel for low-income tenants across New York State in a variety of situations.

In Nov 2020, voters in Boulder Colorado approved a ballot initiative establishing a right to counsel for tenants facing eviction.

The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts declined to answer whether indigent defendants are entitled to counsel in protection order cases.

A ballot initiative passed in June 2018 guarantees counsel for San Francisco tenants in eviction cases regardless of income.

A report by a working group created by the Supreme Court of California Chief Justice calls for a statewide tenant right to counsel.

A bill guarantees counsel to Cleveland families with children facing eviction who are at or below 100% of the federal poverty level.

In January 2022, We celebrated the eviction right to counsel movement and its leaders.

The Colorado Court of Appeals has ruled that indigent parents in child support contempt cases pursued by the government have a right to counsel.