Archie Roundtree, Jr.

The Project

Archie provided coordinated, comprehensive legal services to senior homeowners who are victims of fraud and elder abuse to preserve their homeownership and home equity.

His project helped stabilize local communities by helping lower-income seniors to preserve their assets and financial independence while also preventing homelessness among older adults.

Archie further expanded Bet Tzedek’s capacity to provide victim-centered direct legal services in historically underserved areas of Los Angeles County, including in rural areas such as Palmdale and Lancaster. In addition to providing direct legal services, he conducted presentations on elder abuse and fraud impacting homeowners, home equity protections, crime victims’ rights, civil legal options (e.g. administrative complaints, criminal charges, and affirmative litigation), and social service resources.

Fellowship Highlights

During the two-year Fellowship, Archie:

• Provided full representation and general advice to an underserved population who sought guidance with housing-related issues.
• Provided outreach and training throughout Los Angeles County and Antelope Valley to effectuate change within the community through presentations. His outreach created opportunities to present on housing matters with community stakeholders, including the White House, the National Center on Law & Elder Rights / Justice in Aging, high schools, law schools, and many more. Archie impacted around 2,000 people in total during his two-year Fellowship in the middle of a pandemic.
• Completed a co-project scan to asset map LA County, Antelope Valley, and the High Desert. The goal was to aggregate and depict growth sectors and define resources for resource allocation.
• Helped launch and facilitate support to the Housing Clinic for expansion within Antelope Valley.

Next Steps

After the completion of his Fellowship in 2022, Archie joined Justice in Aging on the Equity Team. Justice in Aging is a national organization that uses the power of the law to fight senior poverty by securing access to affordable health care, economic security, and the courts for older adults with limited resources. Since 1972, Justice in Aging has focused its efforts primarily on those who have been marginalized and deprived of equal justice, such as women, people of color, LGBTQIA+ individuals, and people with limited English proficiency. Archie continues to support and mentor high school, college, and law school students. He is on the Seattle University School of Law Alumni Board, where he further supports students on campus through mentorship.

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