The Justice Bus is part of a new initiative by Neighborhood Legal Services, Inc. to bring free legal counsel to underserved communities throughout Western New York. In an effort to further legal access for the poor and people with disabilities, the bus will bring attorneys to them.
The plan was unveiled in front of local residents at a Kensington-Bailey neighborhood community center.
“It means a lot,” Said local resident Judith Brown. “It gives residents and other people information on their rights and how they can go about to do it functionally.”
Brown said dealing with municipal housing can frustrate those residents who often have to go to court to get living situations straightened out and that preparedness can make ease the process.
But the Justice Bus is not limited to the inner-city.
“In rural areas, the public transportation is even more challenging than in our urban service areas,” Said Neighborhood Legal Executive Director Lauren Breen. “In Genesee, Orleans and Wyoming Counties, and even part of Niagara County, there are huge rural areas where there really is no ability for public transportation for people to get to our offices.”
Breen says NLS hopes to partner with libraries to get the message out about their services.
Breen says a ribbon cutting will take place in the fall to formally introduce the Justice Bus and the opening of their offices in the Main Seneca Building in downtown Buffalo.
