Success Stories
Perseverance, Through the Years
By Cheryl Bigos, Senior Attorney Clarissa (fictitious name) was born in Egypt where she worked as an anesthesiologist. In 2012 she met and married her husband, Joe (fictitious name), and [Continue Reading]
Taking Thorough Action for Health Consumer
by Sara Lee, Supervising Attorney, Health Unit Our client Russell (fictitious name) is a recipient of Medi-Cal and received his services from Orange County Mental Health Plan (OC MHP). He [Continue Reading]
Working Towards a Favorable Decision
When Teresa (fictitious name) came to Community Legal Aid SoCal in August of 2022, she was a 55-year-old immigrant from Mexico whose education ended at 4th grade. She was recently [Continue Reading]
Making a Positive Impact for a Veteran Facing Eviction
Housing Unit client Alan Jackson (center) surrounded by Housing Unit staff attorneys Efrain Partida and Sunny Park (left) and Housing Unit staff paralegal Pafracio Vallente (right) From the [Continue Reading]
Clearing the Credit Record of a Senior Targeted for a Scam
Darleen McClintock (fictitious name) is a senior citizen who survives on her retirement savings under strict budget constraints. She is careful to live within her limited resources, watching free TV [Continue Reading]
Records Expungement Helped Me to Change My Life
By Gavin Montague, former client From 2009-2015, I was arrested and convicted of more than six cases, including possession of drugs, drug paraphernalia, and even sales of drugs. I was [Continue Reading]
Defending a Victim of ID Theft and Fraud
By Andrew Deeley, Supervising Attorney, Consumer Defense Unit Approximately 11 years ago our client Becky (fictitious name) was a victim domestic violence. Her former boyfriend, Sam (fictitious name), was verbally abusive, [Continue Reading]
From the Family Law Unit Case Files…
The client, Linda Lopez (fictitious name), is a monolingual Spanish speaker who did everything she could to do right by her five minor children. Deciding that she and her children [Continue Reading]
Supporting Survivors of Domestic Violence, four vignettes of successful advocacy
By Roxanne Hernandez, Staff Attorney, Family Law Unit In recognition of Domestic Violence Awareness Month... #1 My client Gustavo (fictitious name) had enough of the physical abuse perpetrated by his [Continue Reading]
Citizenship for Disabled Former Foster Care Youth
By Sarah Yanez, Senior Attorney, Immigration Unit Our client, Roberta (fictitious name), is a disabled former foster care youth. She needed our assistance with her naturalization application. Her case was [Continue Reading]
Against the Odds: Overturning a Disability Denial
By Eric Michael, Supervising Attorney, Public Benefits Unit In terms of public benefits advocacy, the statistically rarest form of victory is when the Social Security Administration’s (“SSA”) Appeals Council overturns [Continue Reading]
Clearing the Path to Accessing Critical Testing for Child with Rare Genetic Disorder
By Joan Chang, Senior Attorney, Community Legal Aid SoCal Health Unit My client is a nine-year-old child, Jackie (fictitious name), who suffers from Periodic Fever syndrome, a rare genetic disorder. [Continue Reading]
