Pro Bono Legal Help

The Help Center exists to assist those persons who have received a summons or violation to appear at OATH and do not have a lawyer or representative and will represent themselves.

The Help Center can and will provide legal information but cannot provide legal advice. To put it more simply, the Help Center can tell someone how to do something (legal information) but not what to do (legal advice).

Since 2018, OATH has facilitated the work of five organizations that pro bono (no cost) legal work at OATH’s Hearings Division. These organizations provide free legal representation on a wide range of cases heard in all parts of the New York State Unified Court System and NYC Civil and Housing Courts. *These organizations are independent and separate from OATH. OATH does not screen the volunteer lawyers from these organizations and OATH does not give these lawyers any special certification or preferential treatment when they appear on cases at the OATH Hearings Division.* Download a flyer about Pro Bono volunteers appearing at OATH.

Pro Bono Attorney Program for DOB Summonses

The nonprofit Access Justice Brooklyn is the provider of pro bono (no cost) legal representation for eligible residents of Brooklyn who receive a Department of Buildings summons. If you qualify, you can be represented at your summons hearing by one of their attorneys or get help in settling the case. To access this service and to see if you are eligible, please contact and speak with someone in our Help Center at 212-436-0845 or email the Help Center.

There are similar providers that offer free (pro bono) legal representation for eligible residents who receive Department of Buildings violations in the other boroughs. These providers and the boroughs they serve are:

Bronx and Queens -- New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG)

Staten Island --  Staten Island Legal Services (SILS)

Manhattan -- Volunteers of Legal Service (VOLS)

If you receive a DOB violation and you live in one of these boroughs, you can check if you qualify for legal help from one of these service providers by contacting OATH’s Help Center at 212-436-0845 or by sending an email to the Help Center asking for assistance with Pro Bono services.

Pro Bono Attorney Program for TLC and PAPD Summonses

Legal assistance provider Mobilization for Justice is the pro bono (no cost) legal service provider citywide for taxi and vehicle-for-hire drivers and owners who receive a violation from the Taxi and Limousine Commission or from the Port Authority Police Department. If you qualify, you can be represented at your summons hearing by an attorney at no cost or they can negotiate a settlement for you. To access this service and to see if you qualify, please contact the OATH Help Center at 212-436-0845 or email the Help Center.

Pro Bono Attorney Program for Vehicle Seizure Cases at OATH’s Trials Division

The law firm of Cleary, Gottlieb, Stein and Hamilton is the legal service provider that represents at no cost eligible vehicle owners at OATH’s Trials Division who are seeking release of a vehicle that is seized by police pursuant to an arrest. To see if you qualify and to access this provider, please contact OATH’s Help Center at 212-436-0845 or email the Help Center.

For legal help regarding other types of summonses that are heard at OATH you may seek out other attorney services through online help by searching “Free Attorney Services” or by calling the Attorney Bar Association in the borough that you live or by contacting the New York State Bar Association.