The South Asian Bar Association of Northern California launched its third free legal clinic location Sept. 15 at the Sunnyvale Senior Center in Sunnyvale, Calif., according to a press release. The new legal clinic will be held on the 3rd Saturday of every month from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon.
To celebrate the launch of the Sunnyvale Senior Center legal clinic, SABA-NC held a free “Know Your Rights” legal seminar on elder care issues from 12:30-1:30 p.m. Sept. 15, which was attended by a number of South Asian and other seniors.
SABA-NC has operated a free legal clinic at the India Community Center in Milpitas since 2004, where volunteer attorneys provide advice and counsel on Sundays from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, and SABA-NC recently opened a legal clinic on the 2nd Saturday of every month at the Sunnyvale Columbia Neighborhood Center.
By offering free legal clinics on multiple days and at multiple locations without any income, community or other restrictions, SABA-NC hopes to make legal services more accessible to members of the South Asian community and the larger community, said the release. As people struggle to understand and navigate complex and sometimes bewildering legal requirements, access to basic legal services becomes all the more critical, it added.
In addition to the legal clinics, SABA-NC continues to offer periodic free legal seminars on a variety of topics. In July and August, the SABA-NC “Know Your Rights” seminars covered family and employment based immigration and the application process for citizenship. The September seminar was focused on elder care issues such as Medicare/Medical eligibility and long-term care because those issues are of particular concern to seniors/
Suchitra Narayen, SABA-NC Pro Bono Committee co-chair, noted that “SABA-NC is an all volunteer organization that works closely with a number of community organizations. Our legal clinics are only possible with the help and support of our dedicated volunteers as well as the Pro Bono Project, the India Community Center, the City of Sunnyvale and many other organizations.”