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Dennis.Harrison@jaxlegalaid.org

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So far Dennis Harrison has created 317 blog entries.

JALA and the City of Jacksonville save the home of a cancer patient from foreclosure

“Lynda” came to JALA after getting behind on her mortgage due to a prolonged battle with stage 4 cancer. She had applied for a modification with her mortgage company but was informed that she had already exhausted all applicable modifications. She had also applied for Social Security disability but was faced with a five- month waiting period. In the meantime, she was worried about losing her home, where she had lived for the last 20 years. Carmen Curtis-Skowronski, a HUD Certified Housing Counselor at JALA, helped Lynda obtain over $10,000 from the City of Jacksonville Foreclosure Intervention Program to bring her mortgage current, and now she is no longer in fear of foreclosure.

2026-04-08T16:25:55-04:00April 8th, 2026|Client Stories, Fair Housing|

Councilman pushes to bring rental registry to Jacksonville. What it could mean for renters

The issue of absentee or neglectful landlords continues to be an ongoing problem for many renters across Jacksonville, with residents telling News4JAX they often struggle to get responses when maintenance issues arise. Now, a Jacksonville city councilman is pushing for a new tool he says could help tenants get answers. Councilman Jimmy Peluso is working to create what he calls a “Rental Registry,” a system designed to help residents identify who owns a rental property and review a landlord’s history of code violations and other information before signing a lease. In recent months, the News4JAX I-Team has spoken with dozens of residents who said they weren’t sure who to contact or where to go when they experienced problems in their apartments and felt their landlords were not responding. Peluso said the goal is to give renters more power and more clarity. “I want to give people the tools to make sure they’re not trapped anymore,” Peluso said.

2026-02-01T10:37:10-05:00February 1st, 2026|Fair Housing|

Jacksonville, Florida’s Eviction Diversion Program Increased Housing Stability for Participants

In October, the Jacksonville, Florida City Council’s Neighborhoods Committee heard from facilitators of the city’s Eviction Diversion Program, who reported on the program's outcomes. The Jacksonville Eviction Diversion Program, established in January 2024, operates by providing landlords with payment for up to three months of past-due rent to avoid filing an eviction or to withdraw a filing against an eligible household that has applied for assistance through the program. The program’s primary goals are to reduce evictions and keep participants housed for at least six months. Melanie Patz, CEO of United Way of Northeast Florida, one of the organizations implementing the program, shared that of the 383 families that participated in the program since its inception, 84% remained stably housed six months after receiving assistance. Melanie added that the program has saved the city roughly $5.2 million in spending programs supporting unhoused individuals, compared to the $1.8 million spent by the program thus far. 

2025-11-18T10:46:17-05:00November 18th, 2025|Fair Housing, News|

Commentary: Lawyers should be required to give back

The importance of pro bono legal work has increased and will continue to do so. By Stacey DeVall | Jacksonville Area Legal Aid deputy pro bono director | November 6, 2025 “Have-tos before want-tos.” That is a pretty common saying in my house. My kids always want to do the fun things first—the activities that bring instant joy—before tackling homework, laundry or dishes. I get it. But without tending to the “have-tos,” the foundation crumbles. We fail ourselves and our communities. The same principle applies to our profession. Many lawyers think about pro bono work as a “want to.” They really want to help the community, and they want to be able to report it to the Bar and they want to put it on their website. But what if we reframed pro bono not as a “want to” but rather as a “have to,” because in reality, it is.

2025-11-06T10:12:20-05:00November 6th, 2025|Pro Bono|

Runners, walkers and bikers can support Jacksonville Area Legal Aid’s Shelter for Elders initiative through the Nov. 22-23 Freed to Run

Gunster Shareholder and endurance runner Mike Freed and Jacksonville Area Legal Aid – joined by several event directors from the Northeast Florida community – are gearing up for the Freed to Run Challenge Nov. 22-23 to benefit JALA’s Shelter for Elders endowment, which supports housing-related legal assistance for indigent seniors. “We are thrilled with the success of Freed To Run and can’t wait to continue to build on it,” Freed said. Individual runners, relay teams, walkers and bikers will raise funds for the endowment through peer-to-peer fundraising based on a challenge to complete as many half-mile laps around the Duval County Courthouse as they can in a period of either 12 or 24 hours. Other options are to run a 5k or to bike from the St. Johns County Courthouse to the Duval County Courthouse. Those businesses, organizations and individuals wanting to participate, donate to the endowment or lend their in-kind support to the event can contact the appropriate director:

2025-10-23T11:30:39-04:00October 23rd, 2025|Freed To Run, News, Shelter for Elders, Uncategorized|

JALA pro bono legal clinic helps grandparents raising grandchildren

Jacksonville Area Legal Aid will hold a free legal clinic on Tuesday, October 21 from 9 a.m. to noon at Charger Academy, 7050 Melvin Road, in Jacksonville. Participants will meet one-on-one with an attorney for guidance on civil legal matters, such as family law, temporary custody, and housing. The event was created to address a need identified by community partners, who found that several local children being raised by their grandparents don’t have legal orders identifying their grandparents as temporary custodians. “This can impact a child’s ability to get medical treatment and impact their ability to be enrolled in school,” says Stacey DeVall, deputy director of Pro Bono for JALA. So far, 17 families have signed up for the pro bono clinic.

2025-10-23T11:31:56-04:00October 20th, 2025|Uncategorized|

JALA housing counselor prevents foreclosure for a woman in major health crisis

Jane (not her real name) has dealt with severe health problems since 2017. Most recently, she was hospitalized for atrial fibrillation, which is an irregular and rapid heart rhythm that can lead to blood clots in the heart. Ms. Williams’ hospital bills were costly, and it meant that she had to pay those expenses instead of her mortgage. She had issues with her bathroom faucet at the same time and received a major water bill on top of the damages to her bathroom caused by the plumbing issues. JALA housing counselor Carmen Curtis-Skownronski was able to obtain over $4,000 from the City of Jacksonville’s Foreclosure Intervention Program. This brought her mortgage up to date, and Ms. Williams is no longer in fear of foreclosure. Ms. Williams expressed her sincere gratitude, saying, “I felt overwhelmed and stressed, but your support made a real difference.” 

2025-09-24T10:33:32-04:00September 24th, 2025|Client Stories, Fair Housing|

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