Legal Aid & Record Relief
The Bronx Defenders
Bronx
Public defender for Bronx residents in criminal, family, housing and immigration court plus benefits; reentry and ATI advocacy. 24-hour emergency hotline 347.778.1266.
Legal Aid & Record Relief in the Bronx
Legal help for reentry covers record sealing, certificates of relief and good conduct, parole and probation questions, housing court, family court and the immigration consequences of a conviction. Most services here are free for people who can't afford a lawyer.
New York's Clean Slate Act, in effect since November 2024, seals many eligible convictions automatically, generally 3 years after sentencing or release for misdemeanors and 8 years for felonies. Not every conviction qualifies and older records are being sealed in stages, so ask a legal aid provider where yours stands.
Tip: request a copy of your own criminal record from the NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services before your first appointment. Fee waivers are available, and it saves time.
If a Bronx program has a waitlist, the citywide services below can often see you sooner, by phone or at an office in another borough.
11 services based in the Bronx, plus 97 citywide
Based in the Bronx
Family & Reunification
Center for Family Representation (CFR)
Manhattan · Bronx · Queens · Staten Island
Free legal and social work help for parents contacted by ACS, aiming to keep children at home; also represents youth 7-17 facing criminal charges.
Housing & Shelter
Neighborhood Association for Inter-Cultural Affairs (NAICA)
Bronx
Offers eviction prevention and rental assistance application services to single adults, families, and older Bronx tenants, including help submitting Family Eviction Prevention Subsidy (FEPS) applications and free legal representation.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
Bronxconnect
Bronx
A faith-based community organization offering alternatives-todetention and -incarceration to court-involved youth in the Bronx and Manhattan.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
Center for Appellate Litigation (CAL)
Manhattan · Bronx
Represents people appealing criminal convictions from Manhattan and the Bronx.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
Center for Justice Innovation - Bronx Community Solutions
Bronx
Provides alternative sentences, social service assessments and short-term counseling for people with cases in Bronx courts.
Housing & Shelter
Destination Tomorrow
Bronx
Bronx LGBTQ+ center with housing support, job training and HSE classes.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
Girl Vow
Bronx
Provides services within secure and non-secure facilities, foster care agencies, and for homeless LGBTQ+ and underserved youth.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
Mercy Center - Immigration Services
Bronx
Offers free legal assistance with naturalization applications for legal permanent residents, DACA renewals, and Green Card renewals. Makes referrals to partner organizations for other legal immigration matters.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
Office of the Appellate Defender (OAD)
Manhattan · Bronx
Handles criminal appeals and post-conviction work, including the Reinvestigation Project for wrongful convictions.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
The Children's Village
Bronx
Provides services including residential treatment centers, shelters for undocumented children, foster homes, mom/baby boarding homes, runaway/homeless shelters, foster care related services, residential programs, community centers, after-school programs, mentoring initiatives for court-involved youth, and daycare...
Citywide services
These serve people from every borough, often by phone, online or at more than one office.
Housing & Shelter
Housing Court Answers
Citywide
Information for tenants, landlords and advocates: housing court procedures, landlord-tenant rules, code violations, referrals to free legal help and back-rent assistance.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
LawHelpNY
Citywide
Online directory of free legal services across New York with plain-language rights information, court info, and live chat Mon-Thu 9am-9pm.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
Legal Services NYC
Citywide
Free civil legal services in housing, benefits and immigration, plus representation for conviction-history employment discrimination.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
Mobilization for Justice
Citywide
Provides free legal assistance to low-income New Yorkers on housing, civil rights, disability rights, aging rights, bankruptcy, tax, consumer, employment, government benefits, and kinship care matters, including advice, counsel, and representation to help people with past criminal records re-enter the workforce.
Family & Reunification
NYC HRA - Office of Child Support Services (OCSS)
Citywide
Help with child support orders, license suspensions, lowering or eliminating child support debt owed to the government, paternity, DNA testing, mediation, and free financial counseling.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
Prisoners' Legal Services of New York (PLSNY)
Citywide
Provides free legal services to people incarcerated in NYS DOCCS prisons on matters including mental health and medical care, discrimination, disciplinary hearings, excessive force, conditions of confinement, sentence calculation, and immigration. A Pre-Release and Re-Entry Program (PREP) offers counseling and planning for people within 6-18 months of release, and an immigration unit represents noncitizens in removal proceedings. Case acceptance is decided individually and does not extend to county, federal, or out-of-state facilities.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
The Legal Aid Society
Citywide
Free legal representation and advice on criminal, civil and juvenile issues: policing, bail, benefits, housing, immigration, parole, sealing and more.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
Community Justice Connect
Citywide
Free legal information, assistance and referrals from trained non-lawyer volunteers supervised by an attorney: benefits, employment, housing, family, immigration, health, divorce, domestic violence.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
NYC Bar Legal Referral Service
Citywide
Referrals to screened, experienced lawyers; initial consultation of up to 30 minutes for $35 or free depending on case type.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
Public Access Law Libraries
Citywide
Operates public law libraries in each borough where people can access legal research materials; librarians cannot give legal advice, interpret legal materials, or draft legal language. Remote reference help is also available through the Ask a Law Librarian online chat, text, or email service.
Legal Aid & Record Relief
Board of Elections in New York City
Citywide
Handles voter registration for NYC residents, including people whose voting rights have been restored after parole, and provides voter registration forms, absentee ballots, and registration information by phone.
Family & Reunification
NYC Mayor's Office to Combat Domestic Violence - Family Justice Centers (FJC)
Citywide
Provides free and confidential legal, counseling, and supportive services for survivors of domestic violence, gender-based violence, elder abuse, and sex trafficking, with immediate assistance regardless of language, immigration, or economic status. Centers operate in all five boroughs.