About the Katrina Legal Fellowships Program

Equal Justice Works has established the Katrina Legal Fellowships program to send nine experienced public interest lawyers to the Gulf Coast for up to two years, working in the areas hardest hit by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This new Fellowships program has placed lawyers at organizations located in Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas in order to help the hundreds of thousands of people left without homes, jobs and social services due to the damage from the hurricanes.

Equal Justice Works Katrina Legal Fellowships will:

• Provide immediate direct legal assistance for hurricane survivors;

• Promote short- and long-term stabilization and community rebuilding efforts;

• Help communities and individuals solve problems related to hurricane relief;

• Encourage the use of varied strategies to address and advocate for the legal needs of hurricane survivors;

• Ensure legal assistance reaches communities and hurricane survivors who are most in need or facing special barriers to accessing services;

• Encourage collaboration among the affected legal community, disaster relief legal services providers and Fellows; and

• Continually assess the impact and effectiveness of the Katrina Legal Fellowships in the community.

This program is part of the Equal Justice Works Katrina Initiative made possible through the support of a $1 million matching grant from the JEHT Foundation. For more information about the Katrina Legal Fellowships Program, please contact: