The Homeless Advocacy Project (HAP) is honored to have received the donation of a work of art by Marlene Aron, a local artist and poet who was tragically killed by a vehicle in a crosswalk in San Francisco in September…
Bridging a Justice Gap in Immigration Court
A Day in the life of JDC’s Attorney of the Day Coordinator A woman in her forties arrives in the lobby of the San Francisco Immigration Court with her six children in tow, all of whom are under the age…
Working Toward Fairness, One Saturday at a Time
The Justice and Diversity Center recognizes Richard Roisman for his dedication to our Legal Advice and Referral Clinic (LARC) program. Richard regularly spends Saturday afternoons counseling and guiding people. His service with JDC is only part of Richard’s lifelong work…
Holistic Advocacy at Work: JDC’s Medical-Legal Project
Providing legal services to low-income clients is one of the goals of the Justice & Diversity Center’s (JDC) Medical-Legal Project. Supervising Attorney Marie Appel meets with clients facing legal issues weekly at Southeast Health Center in the Bayview District and…
California Supreme Court Grants Request to De-publish People v. Gonzalez
In October 2018, the Bar Association of San Francisco and the Justice & Diversity Center joined more than 30 public defenders, organizations and law school professors in signing a letter to Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye and Associate Justices of…
JDC to Host Law & Language Poetry Slam with SF High School Students
In celebration of the American Bar Association’s 2019 Law Day theme—Free Speech, Free Press, Free Society—the Justice & Diversity Center (JDC) will host a Law & Language Poetry Slam on May 9, 2019. The idea of a slam emerged…
Virtual Reality at the Bar
Take a moment and think back to the first time you appeared in court. Most of us remember very clearly how stressful and uncertain that experience felt. Where should I sit? Who goes first? What do I say? And even…
U.S. Supreme Court Permits Enforcement of Transgender Military Ban While Court Challenges Continue
In a 5-4 ruling on Tuesday, January 22, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to temporarily enforce its restrictions on transgender people serving in the military while lower court challenges continue. The ruling lifts two injunctions against the…
Students, Mentors Benefit from Law Academy’s 21-year Partnership
Hundreds cheered when Balboa High School senior Kitty Zeng stepped up to the podium in the Bently Reserve Building’s boisterous banquet hall. Zeng was nervous. She had never given a speech before, let alone in front of a crowd this…
Bay Area Minority Law Student Scholarship Program Now Accepting Applications
The 2019 Minority Law Student Scholarship Application is now available online. Students can download the application at www.sfbar.org/scholarships. The 2019 application deadline has been extended to May 8, 2019. Thanks to the generosity of the legal community, the Justice…
UPDATED: The Impact of the Partial Federal Government Shutdown
Update: January 18, 2019 – It is day 28 of the now longest partial government shutdown in U.S. history and there is no end in sight. In the seven days since we published the article below, on the impact of the shutdown…
Volunteers Needed for San Francisco Mock Trial Competition
The Justice & Diversity Center’s Mock Trial committee is gearing up for this year’s High School Mock Trial Regional Competition and would love for each of you to consider volunteering to be a presiding judge or scoring judge. Orientation begins…