A day in the Bronx walk-in clinic
Reaching women in their own communities
Each month women come to the Her Justice walk-in clinic—many accompanied by their children—hoping to find a way to end abusive marriages, secure desperately needed child support, obtain orders of protection or simply learn about their legal rights.
Our walk-in clinic, usually held on the second Saturday of the month, is open to low-income women living in the Bronx who have questions about child custody and visitation, child and spousal support, domestic violence, divorce or immigration issues. Women can drop by between 10:00 am and 1:00 pm to seek advice from members of our legal staff and clinic volunteers.
Here are the stories of just a few of the women who walked through our doors at a recent clinic. Names and identifying details have been changed to protect their identities.
Alejandra—Contested divorce
Alejandra, an undocumented immigrant and mother of three children from Ecuador, came to the clinic with many questions about the divorce papers she had recently received.
During her intake interview with a bilingual volunteer, Alejandra explained that after suffering years of physical and psychological abuse by her husband, she had gone to court on her own, without a lawyer, to petition for an order of protection and legal custody of their children. In retaliation, her husband served Alejandra with divorce papers and threatened to have her deported.
A Her Justice staff attorney met with Alejandra to advise her how to respond to the divorce papers in time to avoid a default judgment. An appointment was setup the following Monday for Alejandra to return to our office for assistance in preparing a pro se answer.
A few weeks after helping Alejandra file her response in court, Her Justice placed Alejandra's case with a team of volunteer attorneys at Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP who will represent Alehandra in her contested divorce and child custody matters. Alejandra's legal team will also help her file for legal residence under protections offered through the Violence Against Women Act.
Yasmine—Order of protection and child custody
Yasmine, a scared 19-year-old mother of twin toddlers, explained to the walk-in clinic intake volunteer that she was being stalked and physically threatened by her children's father.
Yasmine came to the clinic to find out how to get an order of protection against the children’s father and legal custody of the twins. Her Justice gave Yasmine referrals to several agencies that could assist her immediately with safety planning, supportive counseling and emergency shelter.
Within several days of meeting Yasmine at the clinic, Her Justice referred her order of protection and custody cases to a volunteer team of attorneys at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP.
Serita—Child support and custody
Serita knocked on the door just as the clinic was about to close for the day. Serita is physically disabled and does not speak English. She had just been served with custody papers by the father of her seven-year-old daughter and did not know where else to turn.
Serita met with a bilingual staff attorney and explained that the child’s father rarely saw their daughter and had not paid any child support since the child’s birth. In the custody papers, the father alleged that Serita could not take care of their daughter because of her physical disabilities.
Serita and the staff attorney discussed in detail the living arrangements Serita had put in place for herself and her daughter, as well as her child’s terrific progress in school.
The following week, Her Justice found a Spanish-speaking pro bono attorney to represent Serita in her child custody and child support cases.
Clinic volunteers needed
Looking for something worthwhile to do one Saturday a month? We are always searching for bilingual volunteers to assist at our walk-in clinics. Sign up today!
As a clinic volunteer, you can provide invaluable assistance to our clients—helping with everything from intake interviews to making copies of our clients’ legal papers to serving as an interpreter or translator for women who do not speak English.
We have a tremendous need for bilingual volunteers. If you speak Spanish or another foreign language, we hope you will consider volunteering.
Sign up to volunteer at our next legal clinic.
(Registration form no longer available)