New York's Legal Aid Society formally launched its Emergency Response Team Sept. 21; the unit aims to respond within 24 hours to tenants already evicted or facing imminent eviction. Legal Aid says it has helped prevent or reverse housing loss in 111 cases, with 59 still pending.
The team began operating in June 2025. It can ask a court to halt an eviction, stop a landlord from re-renting an apartment while a case is unresolved, fight lockouts and sometimes help tenants return home. It also obtained nearly $2 million in housing assistance, primarily through One-Shot Deals and other emergency rental-assistance programs.
Munonyedi Clifford, Legal Aid's Citywide Housing Practice attorney-in-charge, said the team aims to help people eligible for legal services under the right to counsel who never received a lawyer. She said many tenants contact Legal Aid only after their housing situations have become more severe.
