Bet Tzedek Legal Services – The House of Justice

Bet Tzedek is an American nonprofit human and poverty rights organization based in Los Angeles, California.

Bet Tzedek

Founded	1974 (1974), Los Angeles, California, United States
Type	NGO non-profit organization
Focus	Civil rights, Humanitarian aid
Headquarters	Los Angeles County
Website	bettzedek.org

Bet Tzedek's commitment to human rights stems from a central tenet of Jewish law and teaching: "Tzedek, tzedek tirdof – Justice, justice you shall pursue." Its name means "House of Justice."

The organization provides pro bono person-centered legal services that integrate with social support services, educates community members with the powerful knowledge of their legal rights, and uses its collective voice to reform systems through policy advocacy and impact litigation.

From its humble beginnings at a small office on Fairfax Blvd. with a staff of part-time volunteers, Bet Tzedek has grown into one of the largest legal aid organizations in Los Angeles County. They are a nationally recognized leader in providing legal assistance to low-income seniors, adults, and their families; leaders in promoting economic security through their employment rights and small business efforts; and one of only two major agencies in the nation to offer free legal services to aging Holocaust survivors.

Throughout its 50 years of providing free legal services, Bet Tzedek has helped nearly 1 million people in the Los Angeles region and beyond.

History

Bet Tzedek was founded in 1974 by a group of Jewish attorneys concerned about human rights issues and humanitarian needs in Los Angeles. The group's volunteer attorneys provided free legal representation to low-income residents of Los Angeles. As the need skyrocketed throughout the mid-1970s, Bet Tzedek rapidly evolved from a part-time, volunteer-run organization into a comprehensive, full-service center providing free legal aid to all of Los Angeles.

In its early years, most of Bet Tzedek's services were provided to low-income Jews in need of assistance writing wills or obtaining unemployment benefits. By the 1980s, their services had grown enough for them to move into a larger office, where they began to focus on unlawful eviction cases. About half of Bet Tzedek's cases in 1980 were landlord-tenant disputes. Many of their clients during this period were elderly and/or immigrant residents in the Fairfax district.

In 1984, Bet Tzedek won a landmark decision that provided support to thousands of low-income, elderly Holocaust survivors. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit ruled in favor of Felicia Grunfeder, a Bet Tzedek client and Holocaust survivor who had been denied disability benefits because she received a small Holocaust reparations payment. And in 1987, after a four-year legal battle, Bet Tzedek successfully negotiated a settlement ensuring elderly, long-term residents of an old hotel could remain in their current accommodation for the rest of their lives. This agreement preserved their current low rent and shielded them from further eviction threats. Additionally, in 1989, Bet Tzedek established a Home Equity Task Force to combat the increasing incidence of con artists targeting elderly homeowners for property theft.

Bet Tzedek extended emergency legal aid during and following the 1992 Los Angeles riots, which erupted after the acquittal of four LAPD officers involved in the beating of Rodney King, a black motorist. The organization initiated a program to support businesses affected by the riots. Mayor Tom Bradley praised Bet Tzedek for their assistance during and after the social upheaval. Additionally, in the same year, Bet Tzedek partnered with the Alzheimer's Association to create the El Portal Project, aimed at supporting Spanish-speaking families caring for a loved one with Alzheimer's disease, thanks to a grant from the federal Health Resources Services Agency.

In the early 1990s, Bet Tzedek sued a national HMO alleging fraud and deceptive sales practices in the HMO's racially targeted victimization of elderly Spanish-speaking enrollees. Ensuing media coverage prompted a federal investigation and a stockholder suit against the company and Bet Tzedek successfully settled the underlying case.

After the 1994 Northridge earthquake, Bet Tzedek offered urgent aid to those affected by the disaster, addressing housing challenges, cases of home improvement fraud, and assisting with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) claims. Additionally, in the same year, Bet Tzedek broadened its Housing Conditions Project to actively support low-income families residing in substandard living conditions, utilizing litigation and public policy advocacy as part of their efforts.

In 1995, Bet Tzedek initiatives revealed grossly negligent conditions in Los Angeles area nursing homes, leading to several high-profile deaths of patients. To address this, Bet Tzedek sponsored major state legislation that provided new standards and protections for low-income elderly residents who were most at risk for elder abuse. In 1999, Bet Tzedek's lawsuit against Hillhaven, one of the largest nursing home chains in the country, resulted in the company agreeing to change business practices that violated state and federal law and led to financial hardship for residents and their families.

In 1996, California law enforcement, the Federal Trade Commission, and the United States Justice Department utilize two training videos created by Bet Tzedek to prevent home equity fraud.

In 1997, three members of Bet Tzedek's staff and Board contribute to the Mayor's Blue Ribbon Committee on Slum Housing, whose suggestions are adopted by the L.A. City Council as the most thorough code program ever implemented locally.

In 1998, Bet Tzedek brought a major class-action suit with pro bono counsel against 16 European-based insurance companies who refused to honor insurance policies purchased by Jews who perished in the Holocaust. Bet Tzedek continues to assist survivors with issues centered in the governments of former Nazi nations.

In 1999, Bet Tzedek represents over 100 tenants residing in an abandoned downtown building, utilizing local statutes to clear titles and eliminate millions of dollars in liens. This legal action paves the way for a new owner to acquire and renovate the building.

In 2000, Bet Tzedek launches the Kinship Care Project, aimed at aiding relative caregivers who serve as custodians, legal guardians, or adoptive parents to minors. The organization assists in accessing healthcare and education while also facilitating the formalization of custodial relationships. Concurrently, in the same year, Bet Tzedek, along with pro bono counsel, achieves victory in an eight-week trial to reclaim the rights to the life story of Irene Gut Opdyke, a "righteous gentile" who saved numerous Jews during World War II.

In 2001, it was reported that 61% of Los Angeles apparel contractors were violating wage and hour laws. Bet Tzedek opened the Employment Rights Project in the San Fernando Valley in response to the growing numbers of "working poor" in Los Angeles, who remained in poverty despite working full-time as garment workers, day laborers, domestics, car wash employees, and gardeners.

In 2002, Bet Tzedek investigated the city's most-convicted slumlord, discovering multiple fraudulent practices. After filing a lawsuit, Bet Tzedek obtained a major settlement requiring the slumlord to pay $1 million to the City of L.A. and submit to ongoing monitoring of his business practices by Bet Tzedek.

In 2003, Bet Tzedek engages in international litigation for the first time by representing victims of Nazi persecution within the German court system, advocating for Holocaust survivors appealing denials of restitution payments. Concurrently, in California, State Treasurer Phil Angelides collaborates with Bet Tzedek to persuade U.S. banks to waive wire transfer fees for payments to indigent survivors.

In 2004, Bet Tzedek helped pass a new state law and established a new legal precedent protecting garment workers, ensuring the safety and proper treatment of hundreds of thousands of workers in L.A. alone.

In 2004, Bet Tzedek collaborates with the city of Los Angeles in opposing the "Landlord's Solution," which seeks to permit landlords to evict tenants who refuse intrusive requests for information aimed at disrupting their tenancy. The Superior Court concurs and upholds a law that prohibits such practices. Simultaneously, Bet Tzedek resolves a case on behalf of garment workers employed by a contractor to a national retailer. Notably, due to a new state law, this settlement marks the first instance where a retailer agrees to compensate workers for labor violations committed by a manufacturer. Bet Tzedek played a crucial role in advocating for the passage of this law.

In 2012, Bet Tzedek moved from its longtime headquarters in Los Angeles' historically Jewish Fairfax District to a new headquarters on Wilshire Boulevard in Koreatown. The move was motivated in part because Bet Tzedek's services were no longer being provided primarily to Jews, and because the organization desired a more centralized location.

In 2014, Bet Tzedek's Board of Directors appoints Jessie Kornberg as President & CEO, making her the first woman to hold this position in the agency's history. Recognized as a rising star in the legal field, Kornberg brings her dedication to social justice, litigation, and pro bono service to guide the agency's future endeavors. Through its Kinship Care Program, Bet Tzedek advocates for the consistent application of probate laws to lawmakers, especially concerning unaccompanied minors. This effort leads to the passage of SB 873 and Bet Tzedek's groundbreaking victory in the appellate court, preserving the rights of immigrant minors to fair treatment in guardianship proceedings. As a prominent advocate for the legal needs of Holocaust survivors in the United States, Bet Tzedek testifies before Congress in 2014, shedding light on the detrimental impact experienced by frail elderly survivors when their reparations payments are incorrectly counted against them in determining eligibility for public benefits. The Social Security Administration's procedural manual undergoes revision, providing stringent guidelines to eligibility workers and safeguarding benefits for survivors.

In 2015, Bet Tzedek's Economic Justice Program achieves a groundbreaking milestone by securing a $22.7 million settlement for unpaid wages in a case involving 2,000 workers, marking the largest settlement ever awarded in California's Inland Empire region. Their efforts to safeguard the rights of low-income tenants, garment workers, and individuals living with HIV earn recognition through three State Bar of California President's Awards. In the same year, Bet Tzedek and its Kinship Care Program collaborate to co-sponsor AB 900, aimed at facilitating the ability of children to remain in safe and supportive homes with legal guardians.

In 2016, Bet Tzedek's commitment to pro bono service is recognized as Teodora Manolova, a volunteer with the Rapid Response program, receives the State Bar of California's President's Pro Bono Service Award. Manolova's dedication helps several unaccompanied minors, who were victims of gang violence and parental neglect in their home country, obtain Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, enabling them to remain in the United States. Additionally, Bet Tzedek's Low-Income Tax Clinic achieves a significant milestone by surpassing the million-dollar mark, securing a total of $1.1 million in refunds and savings for its clients since its inception in 2014. Furthermore, Bet Tzedek's impact continues to expand as it now offers assistance to approximately 70% of all conservatorship filings in Los Angeles County.

In February 2017, Bet Tzedek played a pivotal role in the successful co-sponsorship of Assembly Bill 900 (AB 900). This ensured that survivors of human trafficking in California would no longer be denied access to critical resources from the Victim's Compensation Fund. Bet Tzedek's efforts extended beyond legislative advocacy. They represented numerous senior citizens, including many aged 90 and older, as well as Holocaust survivors, in a protracted legal battle against Watermark Retirement Communities. This battle ensued when Watermark, the new owner of the Westwood Horizons building where these individuals resided, issued eviction notices to all 152 elderly residents. Bet Tzedek intervened on behalf of the residents and, by June 2017, secured permanent protection for the building, designating it as a rent-controlled residential hotel. This designation meant that residents could not be evicted without valid cause. Subsequently, in July 2017, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors publicly praised Bet Tzedek's Elder Justice Program for its exceptional leadership in combating elder abuse. This commendation came after Bet Tzedek organized a statewide symposium on financial elder abuse, which attracted over 200 service providers. Additionally, the Judicial Council of California recognized Bet Tzedek's contributions with its Distinguished Service Award. This award honored Bet Tzedek's four decades of dedication to providing free legal services, with particular acknowledgment of its Family Preparedness Project, which assists undocumented parents.

In 2018, Bet Tzedek collaborated with the L.A. City Attorney's office and local organizations to secure restitution exceeding $1 million for about 60 car wash employees who were allegedly victims of wage theft. This restitution represents the largest ever paid to car wash workers in Los Angeles. Since its establishment in 2001, the Employment Rights Program has garnered nearly $40 million in judgments and settlements for workers. In the same year, Bet Tzedek, alongside Irell & Manella LLP and Public Counsel, initiated twin class action lawsuits on behalf of thousands of L.A. County homeowners. These lawsuits alleged financial elder abuse by two companies involved in the county's Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program, which finances environmentally friendly home improvements. Despite the program's noble intention of facilitating energy-efficient upgrades that should benefit consumers and the environment, its implementation has adversely affected thousands of elderly and vulnerable homeowners in Los Angeles County and beyond, reminiscent of the subprime lending crisis. It's estimated that 15,000 homeowners in Los Angeles County alone have PACE loans. On April 13, 2018, the Los Angeles LGBT Bar Association recognized Bet Tzedek with their Community Service Award for the pioneering efforts in promoting transgender equality. Since its establishment in 2016, Bet Tzedek's Transgender Advocacy Project has assisted 994 individuals and trained over 60 volunteer attorneys and advocates. Additionally, in 2018, Bet Tzedek launched the Harbor-UCLA MLP, providing integrated medical-legal services to some of the county's most marginalized low-income patients. Many of these individuals were burdened with medical bills they couldn't afford.

In 2019, Bet Tzedek collaborated with the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) to offer immigration legal assistance to undocumented children in L.A.'s foster care system. Within the initial six months, the initiative served more than 290 unaccompanied immigrant children. Bet Tzedek advocate Kim Selfon testified before the Assembly Health Committee about the significance of AB 1088 in aiding elderly Californians to retain Medi-Cal and home care services. The bill was subsequently enacted into law during the autumn of 2019, representing a pivotal advancement for California seniors and their caregivers.

In June 2019, Governor Newsom approved a budget that allocated millions of dollars to eliminate the prolonged waitlist for victims of wage theft seeking restitution. The Garment Worker Center, Bet Tzedek, and the UCLA Labor Center advocated for this budget allocation on behalf of garment workers, with support from the Western Center on Law & Poverty. In collaboration with the California Low Income Consumer Coalition, Bet Tzedek effectively campaigned for the passage of SB 616. Enacted into law on October 8, 2019, SB 616 exempts $1,724 from levy, safeguarding the ability of low-income Californians to meet basic living expenses if their bank accounts are levied by debt collectors. This adjustment aligns California with 16 other states that have similar exemptions. Although the exemption does not erase the debt, it prevents a levy from depriving individuals of reserve funds crucial for rent, medication, transportation, and other urgent needs, thereby averting further debt, unemployment, and potential homelessness.

In October 2019, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill AB 629 into law. This legislation establishes equity within California's Victim Compensation Program (VCP) and seeks redress for victims of human trafficking, enabling them to receive compensation for economic losses incurred directly due to trafficking. The bill also incorporates an updated formula for restitution. This achievement culminates over three years of advocacy efforts by Bet Tzedek and their partner organization, CAST.

Services and programs

Bet Tzedek's services include legal advice, counseling and representation at trials, administrative hearings, and appeals. Bet Tzedek also offers educational programs to clients and other service providers. Services at Bet Tzedek are provided through the following programs:

Previous categories of areas of focus

Consumer fraud

Bet Tzedek's Consumer Protection Unit litigates consumer fraud cases in a variety of areas, including home equity fraud, telemarketing, automobile financing, and health care marketing, and door-to-door sales. Additionally the Consumer Protection Unit provides educational programs throughout Los Angeles County to help residents recognize and avoid fraud. Bet Tzedek also collaborates with various law enforcement agencies and legal services providers to target the most notorious scam artists.

Employment rights

Bet Tzedek's Employment Rights Project advocates on behalf of a variety of low-wage workers, including Day Laborers, domestic workers, and those working in the garment, construction, car wash, restaurant and janitorial industries. The Project represents low-wage workers, regardless of their immigration status, who have been illegally denied wages that they have earned. Client services range from brief advice, counseling and informal advocacy, to representation in hearings before the California Labor Commissioner and litigation in state and federal courts.

Family Caregiver Project

Janet Morris provides essential services to family caregivers.

AARP and the National Alliance for Caregiving estimate that 4.3 million adults in the State of California provide unpaid care to an adult relative or friend. The total value of familycaregiving is estimated at $276 billion. Caregivers usually do not quit their jobs, or leave their personal relationships, to offer care to their relatives. The Family Caregiving Project at Bet Tzedek responds by providing expert legal counsel, advice and representation to English, Spanish and Chinese speaking adults who care for a loved-one afflicted with Alzheimer's disease, dementia or other debilitating illnesses.

Director of the Bet Tzedek Legal Services Family Caregiver Project, Janet Moris, serves caregivers throughout Los Angeles County with essential education, referrals and legal services. Bet Tzedek Legal Services staff make presentations to over 2,000 family members, social workers, and service professionals annually.

Government benefits

Bet Tzedek represents clients on a range of state and federal government benefits, including Social Security, Medi-Cal, Medicare, SSI/SSDI (Disability), in-home supportive services, veterans' benefits, CalWORKS, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (food stamps), WIC, and Adoption Assistance, KinGAP. Bet Tzedek represents clients in appeals, helps clients to apply for benefits, and identifies appropriate programs.

Holocaust reparations

Bet Tzedek Legal Services is the only agency in the world that offers free assistance to Holocaust survivors applying for reparations, pensions and other benefits from Germany and other European countries. Bet Tzedek has also worked on other survivor issues, including Holocaust-era insurance coverage, the effect of reparations on eligibility for public benefits, and the waiver of wire transfer fees for survivors who receive reparations.

Housing

The Housing Law Project provides legal assistance to tenants in Los Angeles County facing eviction actions and illegal housing conditions. The elderly and persons with disabilities are the focus of much of the service because they are often targeted for eviction in order to circumvent the rent stabilization laws and bring in new tenants at higher rents. The project's attorney represents these clients, develops solutions to systematic housing legal problems, and recruits, trains, and supervises a network of volunteer attorneys.

Sydney M. Irmas Housing Conditions Project

Bet Tzedek's Sydney M. Irmas Housing Conditions Project is underwritten by a grant from the Irmas Family Foundation to help low-income families secure safe, affordable housing. In 2001, the Irmas Project brought landmark litigation on behalf of tenants' rights group Inquilinos Unidos against one of the most notorious landlords in Los Angeles. The lawsuit was later joined by the Los Angeles City Attorney's office, and the law firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher served as pro bono counsel on the suit. This case represented a landmark victory in the battle against landlords who subject their tenants to substandard health and safety conditions and set a significant precedent in the ability of tenants' groups to successfully prosecute owners attempting to hide behind a web of business identities.

Eviction Defense Project

The Eviction Defense Project at Bet Tzedek Legal Services provides advice, counsel and representation those in need of assistance. Bet Tzedek accepts eviction cases on an individual basis, and screens all cases for merit. Annually, Bet Tzedek serves as counsel for 100 families who face illegal eviction from their apartments, with a success rate of over 90 percent.

Kinship care

Bet Tzedek Legal Services created the Kinship Care Project in 2002 to address the needs of the more than 88,000 children in Los Angeles County who live with their grandparents. The Kinship Care Project offers a variety of services to grandparents and others who are raising their young family members. For the last five years, Bet Tzedek has offered free legal services to these families.

Bet Tzedek's Kinship Care Project is unique in Los Angeles County, as no other service provider focuses on this population. Additionally, Bet Tzedek Legal Services published Southern California's first comprehensive guide for relative caregivers, Caring for a Relative's Child. The guide is available in both English and Spanish, and is the primary resource of its kind used by social workers throughout Los Angeles County.

Nursing Home Advocacy Project

The Nursing Home Advocacy Project (NHAP) has been a signature program that has shaped the development of Bet Tzedek's elderlaw practice. The project was established in response to a need for effective legal assistance for residents of nursing homes. Today, Bet Tzedek works to improve the quality of care for the institutionalized elderly and provides legal protection against abuse and neglect through advice, education, advocacy, and litigation. Among the many milestones in NHAP's history are:

• Comprehensive legislation to reform admissions and discharge practices and financial responsibility and billing practices by nursing homes.

Senior legal services

For more than two decades, Bet Tzedek has served the legal needs of low-income seniors in Los Angeles. Bet Tzedek is the exclusive provider of free legal services to low-income seniors through contracts with the City and County of Los Angeles. Bet Tzedek staff address legal issues that affect seniors such as consumer fraud and elder abuse, nursing homes and residential care facilities, public benefits, family and kinship caregiver needs, and housing. Bet Tzedek staff regularly meet with clients at more than 30 senior centers in Greater Los Angeles County. In addition to providing one-on-one services, Bet Tzedek has developed four new legal clinics designed to help seniors help themselves. Each clinic provides an overview of a particular legal issue and guides seniors in the preparation of the appropriate legal documents.