The Impact of Legal Counsel on Outcomes for Poor Tenants
in New York City's Housing Court: Results of a Randomized Experiment
in New York City's Housing Court: Results of a Randomized Experiment
By Carroll Seron et. al.
In case you couldn't tell, that was a bit of sarcasm there in the title. Of course legal representation is good when you have to go to court. Essentially, this study researched the legal outcomes of two groups of low-income tenants living in NYC. The control group had little or no representation, while the treatment group were assisted by The Pro Bono Project against Homelessness, and more than 56% of the clients received legal representation in court.
According to the study's conclusion and discussion, those clients who received representation were a lot more successful in their court appearances than the control group. The treatment group had about 32% of their cases make judgements against them, while the control group had 52% of their court appearances swing in the landlord's favor.
Considering what we have discussed thus far, this does not surprise me. We know that the legal system is a game, a competition that requires the knowledge and know-how of a professional. Of course those that have representation are going to fair better and not be taken advantage of as easily.
The article largely reminded of the struggle between the RPs and OSs that we have encountered time and time again in our studies. For example, most landlords, who usually have more knowledge of the law, have representation nearly 95% of the time, while poor tenants do not, and usually have legal aid only 5% on the time. The difference in power between the two groups is honestly frightening, and largely exemplifies the problems within our legal system that this study was trying to address.
When it comes to encounters with the law, legal know-how and representation are actually very, very important. I keep bringing this up because it's the most recent example in my mind, but in the fall I had to meet with the city prosecutor regarding a violation of the local noise ordinance. My roommate and I had both received citations, yet I met with the prosecutor on our behalf to discuss our options. When I told him this, he asked me, "are you representing your roommate?" I thought this was a weird question, since I was there on his behalf I guess, but I said yes. Apparently, this was not the answer I should have given.
Even though I was sort of representing him in my mind, there is a very different definition of representation in the eyes of the law, in which I was appearing for my roommate in legal terms. My understanding of the term was very different from that of the law, and I was immediately informed about this. This is just a simple example of how easily ignorance of the law could lead to trouble, and eventually a ruling against you.
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I really liked this article--although the outcome seemed obvious. Of course those with legal representation were more likely to have a positive outcome. If you never come to court and know nothing about housing law (I'm sure that's not the correct term) then you're not likely to win when facing the landlord who goes to court often and knows much more about housing law.
ReplyDeletePart of me wishes law wasn't so convoluted and hard to understand, but then lawyers would be out of work and those in power wouldn't be able to keep their power.