Blog / Legal Clinic

Bread for the City, a direct services agency in Washington, DC, that serves over 32,000 DC residents living on low incomes, has received $750,000 in immediate support of its Legal Clinic’s housing law efforts. Bread for the City’s attorneys work to increase access to affordable and stable housing for residents of Washington, DC in the face of redevelopment, displacement, and discrimination. They prevent or delay eviction, prevent termination from critically-needed subsidy programs, and represent tenants and tenant associations.

In a case we brought in partnership with Alston & Bird on behalf of Bread for the City and two individual Legal Aid clients (and consolidated with a case brought by almost two dozen state and local attorneys general), the federal District Court of the District of Columbia vacated a Trump Administration rule that would have cut off food stamps for nearly 700,000 Americans.

Children’s Law Center and Bread for the City co-hosted this event during D.C. Pro Bono Week (October 2020) to discuss our respective legal services work East of the Anacostia River and to highlight the importance of pro bono in serving our D.C. neighbors.

The DC Council recently passed a few laws that give DC renters new rights. For example, no landlord can serve a 30-Day Notice on a tenant until at least 60 days after the end of the Public Health Emergency. In DC, the 30-Day Notice generally has to come before the filing of an eviction case, so this added protection will give folks a little more time before their landlords begin the process to evict them.

Today Bread for the City celebrates Purple Thursday, a day dedicated to showing support for survivors and ending domestic violence. Domestic violence has always been an issue, but since the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a tremendous spike in incidents of abuse. Even though we’re all facing unprecedented times, we must continue the fight to end domestic abuse. We got the chance to speak with Bread for the City Family Attorney, Astrid, about how the organization shows its support for survivors.

Bread for the City won a recent lawsuit against the Trump Administration, barring the implementation of a harmful change in the Agriculture Department’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as Food Stamps, that would cut more than 13,000 DC residents and 700,000 individuals nationally from relief. This lawsuit was filed by The Legal Aid Society of DC and the law firm Alston & Bird LLP on behalf of Bread for the City and residents of D.C. who receive food stamps. In March, the District Court issued a decision that temporarily stopped the government from implementing its new restrictions. Yesterday, the Court issued a final decision on a summary judgment motion in our favor.

On Thursday, October 1st, Amy Gellatly, Supervising Attorney at Bread for the City, was recognized for her incredible work in the community. American University Washington College of Law presented Gellatly with the Peter M. Cicchino Award for Outstanding Advocacy in the Public Interest.

Team Encounter goes behind the work of Bread for the City to introduce you to our dedicated staff. This week, we learn more about and welcome Astrid,  a new Staff Attorney.