Legal

California Department of Fair Employment & Housing (DFEH)
The state agency charged with enforcing California’s civil rights laws. The mission of the DFEH is to protect the people of California from unlawful discrimination in employment, housing, businesses, and state-funded programs, and from bias-motivated violence and human trafficking.

  • Criminal History in Employment
  • Discrimination at Business Establishments
  • Discrimination Involving State-Funded Programs
  • Employer Resources
  • Employment Discrimination
  • Hate Violence
  • Housing Discrimination
  • Housing Provider Resources
  • Human Trafficking, U Visas & T Visas
  • Sexual Harassment Prevention Training

California Hispanic Resource Council
Helps the Spanish-speaking population by educating the public about consumer fraud, immigration and citizenship, and with referrals to other government or community services. Phone: (916) 451-7151

California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation – Sacramento
A statewide non-profit civil legal aid organization providing free legal services and policy advocacy for California’s rural poor. Focused on some of the most marginalized communities: the unrepresented, the unorganized and the undocumented. Engaged in community education and outreach, impact litigation, legislative and administrative advocacy, and public policy leadership at the state and local level. Seeks to bring about social justice to rural poor communities by working to address the most pressing needs of our community:

  • Labor
  • Housing
  • Education Equity
  • Health Care Access
  • Worker Safety
  • Citizenship
  • Immigration
  • Environmental Justice

Capital Pro Bono
The premier independent legal aid nonprofit organization in the Sacramento area where volunteer attorneys, paralegals, and interpreters can donate their time and expertise to further our mission of promoting access to justice for the low income members of our community. Services include:

  • Debt collection defense & bankruptcy
  • Employment law
  • Estate planning & probate
  • Family law
  • Guardianship & conservatorship

Central California Legal Services
A private, not-for-profit, public interest law firm established for the purpose of providing free civil legal assistance  to low-income individuals, families, organizations and communities. Legal advice and referral lines available Monday thru Friday from 9:00 a.m. to noon and 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. excluding holidays and training days.

  • General Help Line: 1-800-675-8001
  • Health Help Line: 1-800-675-8001, ext. 1271

Coalition of California Welfare Rights Organizations
The Coalition of California Welfare Rights Organizations, Inc. (CCWRO) has been providing advocacy in the public benefits field since the early 1980s. CCWRO is a statewide nonprofit organization that provides back-up services to qualified legal service field programs funded by the Legal Services Trust Fund Commission and pro-bono attorneys referred to CCWRO by such legal services field programs. CCWRO provides consultation, information, training and representation on issues relating to public benefit programs such as Aid to Families With Dependent Children (AFDC) aka CalWORKs/TANF, Refugee Assistance, Medi-Cal, Welfare Employment Programs, Food Stamps, General Assistance, Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants.
Phone: (916) 736-0616

Community Legal Services – University of the Pacific – McGeorge School of Law
Legal clinics are available to community members who are facing legal challenges in the areas of Immigration, Bankruptcy and Elder & Health Law, who unable to afford representation from private attorneys. You’ll work with students in a faculty-supervised, law-office setting.
Phone: (916) 340-6080

Disability Rights California
Advocates, educates, investigates, and litigates to advance the rights, dignity, equal opportunities, and choices for all people with disabilities.
Phone: (916) 504-5800

Family Protection & Legal Assistance Clinic
The FPC is currently providing full legal representation only to petitioners in Domestic Violence Restraining Order cases (DVROs) filed in Yolo County. They are limited in the number of individuals they represent and do not accept new cases during the summer. For more information about services and to complete an intake, call (530) 752-6532.

🌈 GLBTQ Advocates & Defenders
Through strategic litigation, public policy advocacy, and education, GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders works in New England and nationally to create a just society free of discrimination based on gender identity and expression, HIV status, and sexual orientation.

G.I. Rights Hotline (1-877-447-4487)
A private, nonprofit, nongovernmental organization that answers thousands of calls from military personnel and their families on the following issues:

  • Article 138 Complaints
  • AWOL or UA
  • Conscientious Objection Discharges
  • Delayed Entry Program (DEP) Discharges
  • Dependency or Hardship Discharges
  • Entry Level Separation
  • Harassment or Discrimination
  • Medical or Disability Discharges
  • ODPMC or Psychological Discharges
  • Reservist Mobilization
  • Reservist Unsatisfactory Participation

🌈 Immigration Equality
The nation’s leading LGBTQ immigrant rights organization.

  • If you are in detention, call (917) 654-9696, Monday – Thursday, 9:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
  • For all other inquiries, call (212) 714-2904, Wednesday, 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Justice For Vets
Dedicated to transforming the way the justice system identifies, assesses and treats our veterans, leading the national effort to put a veterans treatment court in reach of every veteran in need.

🌈 Lambda Legal
A national organization committed to achieving full recognition of the civil rights of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender people and everyone living with HIV through impact litigation, education and public policy work.

Legal Services of Northern California (LSNC)
LSNC provides crucial civil legal services to tens of thousands of needy and vulnerable individuals, while also engaging in complex, sophisticated advocacy—through litigation, legislation, administrative advocacy, and community development work—which has a significant positive impact for our entire client community in the areas of affordable housing, public benefits, health, education, and civil rights. 

Military Law Task Force (MLTF) of The National Lawyers Guild
MLTF assists those working on military law issues as well as military law counselors working directly with GIs. It trains and mentors counselors and beginning military law attorneys in all aspects of military law through training materials and direct communication. It tracks changes in military law and policy. The National Lawyers Guild Military Law Task Force includes attorneys, legal workers, law students and “Barracks lawyers” interested in draft, military and veterans issues.

🌈 National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR)
A national legal organization committed to advancing the civil and human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and their families through litigation, legislation, policy, and public education.

🌈 National LGBT Bar Association
A national association of lawyers, judges and other legal professionals, law students, activists, and affiliated lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender legal organizations. The LGBT Bar promotes justice in and through the legal profession for the LGBTQ+ community in all its diversity.

National Organization of Veterans Advocates (NOVA)
A not-for-profit educational membership organization incorporated in the District of Columbia in 1993. NOVA is a national organization of attorneys and other qualified members who act as advocates for disabled veterans.

National Veterans Legal Services Program
A nonprofit organization that has worked since 1981 to ensure that the government delivers to our nation’s 22 million veterans and active duty personnel the benefits to which they are entitled because of disabilities resulting from their military service to our country.

  • Lawyers Serving Warriors®
    Provides free legal representation to veterans and active duty personnel through a national network of major law firms and corporate legal departments. Through this program, veterans receive free representation in proceedings before military administrative discharge boards, military medical and physical disability evaluation boards, military discharge review agencies, VA regional offices, the Board of Veterans’ Appeals, and the courts that review the decisions of these agencies.
  • Individual Representation
    By using their legal expertise, advanced advocacy skills, and extensive knowledge of veterans law, National Veterans Legal Services Program attorneys help veterans free of charge in their battle to secure the proper disability benefits from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs and the military service departments.
  • Class Actions
    Since its founding, the National Veterans Legal Services Program has used its expertise in veterans law to change the lives of veterans and their families. Through class action lawsuits, NVLSP brings claims on behalf of large groups of individuals who have been wrongfully denied the benefits they have earned through their service to our country.

Public Advocates
A nonprofit law firm and advocacy organization that challenges the systemic causes of poverty and racial discrimination by strengthening community voices in public policy and achieving tangible legal victories advancing education, housing, transportation equity, and climate justice.

🌈 Sacramento Lawyers for the Equality of Gays & Lesbians (SacLEGAL)
Sacramento’s LGBT Bar Association is comprised of attorneys, professionals and legislative advocates affiliated with the Sacramento County Bar Association. The mission is to promote equality for members of the LGBT community through strong leadership, legislative advocacy, education, and participation in civic and social activities within the legal community and community at large.

Swords To Plowshares
A community-based not-for-profit organization dedicated to supporting nearly 3,000 homeless, low-income and at-risk veterans in the Bay Area every year.  STP offers employment and job training, supportive housing programs, permanent housing placement, counseling and case management, and legal services.

🌈 Transgender Law Center (TLC)
The largest national trans-led organization advocating for a world in which all people are free to define themselves and their futures. Grounded in legal expertise and committed to racial justice, TLC employs a variety of community-driven strategies to keep transgender and gender nonconforming people alive, thriving, and fighting for liberation.

🌈 Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund (TLDEF)
Committed to ending discrimination based upon gender identity and expression and to achieving equality for transgender people through public education, test-case litigation, direct legal services, and public policy efforts.

Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program
Provides assistance to unrepresented veterans or their family members who have filed appeals at the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court); and to recruit and train attorneys in the then fledgling field of veterans’ law.

  • Assistance with filing an appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans claims
  • Assistance with a discharge upgrade through TVC’s Discharge Upgrade Program

Western Center on Law & Poverty
Western Center has advocated on behalf of Californians experiencing poverty in every branch of government—from the courts to the Legislature. Through the lens of economic and racial justice, we litigate, educate and advocate around health care, housing, and public benefits policies and administration.

  • Access to justice
  • Financial security
  • Health care
  • Housing & community stability

🌈 Women Escaping A Violent Environment (WEAVE)
The primary provider of crisis intervention services for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault in Sacramento County.  Through a multi-disciplinary effort with Sacramento County, law enforcement, the Commercially Sexually Exploited Children Court, Child Protective Services, and the District Attorney’s Office, WEAVE also provides 24/7 response, outreach and services for victims of sex trafficking.

  • Sexual assault
  • Sex trafficking services
  • Children’s counseling
  • LGBTQ services
  • American Indian/Alaskan Native resources
  • Stalking