Cooley Free Legal Clinic helps homeless in Lansing

On Saturday, Sept. 29, WMU-Cooley Law School Lansing campus students, faculty, staff, and alumni went to Reutter Park in downtown Lansing, Michigan, to offer legal assistance to the city’s homeless. The “Street Law Stand Down” clinic was held in collaboration with Lansing-based Cardboard Prophets, a street based ministry. In addition, Volunteers of America/ Holy Cross Services assisted at the event to help with questions regarding housing.

During the five-hour outreach program, 35 individuals received legal guidance with issues such as criminal expungement, Social Security and Social Security Disability Insurance, state identification forms, living wills, landlord and tenant issues, wage disputes, and other miscellaneous legal issues.  Information regarding local assistance agencies were also made available to those attending the “Street Law Stand Down.”

WMU-Cooley students also took part in a tour of a nearby day shelter with Mike Karl, founder of Cardboard Prophets, where they handed out sack lunches and met with families and children affected by homelessness.