The Justice and Diversity Center (JDC) would like to recognize Patrick Doyle for his excellent work defending tenants and upholding the right to housing in San Francisco.  Patrick is a volunteer with both our Eviction Defense and Housing Negotiation Projects.

JDC’s full-scope Eviction Defense Project provides representation to clients during their eviction proceedings. The Housing Negotiation Project (HNP) is JDC’s limited-scope project for eviction defense. Through this project, volunteer attorneys represent low-income individuals and families being evicted during their mandatory settlement conferences.

A California native, Patrick was born in Watsonville and grew up near Point Arena.  He is an alumnus of both UCLA and UC Hastings.  Patrick has lived in San Francisco for sixteen years and his ties to the city run deep; the Tenderloin National Forest in Cohen Alley is named after his relative, A.A.Cohen, an attorney for the Big Four.  Working as a union organizer for over a decade and living as a tenant in San Francisco for some years equipped Patrick uniquely well to deal with the particular challenges inherent in representing his clients.

While the Eviction Defense Project and HNP have provided him valuable experience, he has certainly faced challenges.  As the Housing Negotiation Project is a limited-scope project, attorneys have only a short period of time to develop an attorney-client relationship.  However, in his first full-scope case, his client had little written evidence of a tenancy and underlying family dynamics. The parties reached a settlement where his client received additional time and a payment sufficient to rent other housing in the Bay Area.

In his free time, you can find Patrick riding his bike, playing basketball in Dolores Park, surfing, or snowboarding.  He also collects records ranging from the 70s to the present day.

JDC is always looking for more volunteers attorneys for our Eviction Defense and Housing Negotiation Projects.  For more information about volunteering with the Eviction Defense Project, or any of our other pro bono projects, please contact the volunteer coordinator at probono@sfbar.org.