PROJECTS

FAIR HOUSING

The Law Center's mission under this agenda is to eliminate discriminatory and unlawful barriers to free choice in housing through a comprehensive set of enforcement strategies, including education and outreach, complaint intake and investigation, testing and legal action, and collaboration with key community organizations.

Legal action, or the threat of legal action, is one of the most effective means of combating housing discrimination. Towards this end, the Law Center provides free legal representation to victims of housing discrimination, in connection with the rental or sale of property, accessibility, mortgage lending, advertising, and other contexts. We also provide legal assistance in connection with administrative investigation and enforcement, aiding the complainants with complaint preparation and presentation of claims.

A key component of this project has been the provision of legal and technical support to key community and housing organizations throughout the area that provide housing-related assistance and counseling. The Law Center has leveraged its limited ability to undertake systemic fair housing enforcement through these partnerships which included Tenants' Action Group, the Housing Consortium for Disabled Individuals, and the Fair Housing Council of Montgomery County. Through this collaboration the Law Center was able to engage in outreach, training and education work on the scope of fair housing laws. Currently the Law Center has contracted with the Fair Housing Rights Center to give it support and assist it with discrimination complaints and its training activities. In addition, we support the work of Steve Gold, Esq. and Liberty Resources in assisting persons with physical disabilities in obtaining accessible housing.

An added benefit of these relationships is that we can obtain the assistance of these groups in investigating and seeking to resolve complaints prior to litigation. Through the Fair Housing Rights Center we can arrange for the conduct of tests to help build evidence of discrimination in support of complainants.

LAW CENTER FIGHTS FOR FAIR HOUSING FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC ABUSE
In October 2009, the Law Center filed a complaint with the PA Human Relations Commission on behalf of “Ms.J.” (name withheld to protect her identity), a survivor of domestic violence, and the Fair Housing Rights Center of Southeastern PA. The complaint alleged that the Days Inn Horsham and their management company violated the federal Fair Housing Act and the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act by denying a room to Ms. J based on her status as a victim of domestic violence.

Ms. J fled her abuser in June of 2009 with her four disabled children and sought shelter at the well-known hotel. The family stayed at the hotel a few days, but when Ms. J. tried to renew the room she states she was told there was no availability and the hotel was a “business, not a shelter.”

Ms. J. contacted the Fair Housing Rights Center of Southeastern Pennsylvania and an investigation found that there were indeed rooms available. Even though the hotel was informed that they could not discriminate against Ms. J, the family was still unable to secure a room. In order to seek out shelter, the family was forced to separate. Even the family dog was sent to a foster home.

Under the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act and the federal Fair Housing Act, a public accommodation cannot deny services based on gender. This constitutes gender discrimination. In some states, gender discrimination has extended to domestic violence victims through disparate impact theory. In Pennsylvania, it has not.

In late January 2010, the parties resolved their differences. A monetary settlement was reached and the Days Inn agreed to provide their employees with addition training on domestic violence and discrimination.  Sandra Wang, who handled the case as a volunteer attorney for the Law Center said, "This has been so difficult and heart-wrenching for Ms. J. It almost shows why women don't leave their abusers."

More on the relationship between domestic abuse and housing discrimination

 

 

LAW CENTER AMICUS BRIEF SEEKS TO PRESERVE THE RIGHT TO FEDERAL REDRESS WHEN HOUSING DISCRIMINATION DOES NOT RESULT IN THE VICTIM LEAVING THE PROPERTY
On February 27, 2009 The Law Center filed an amicus brief in Bloch v. Hirschholz, with the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals en banc which covers Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin, seeking to reverse a panel decision that would limit the federal fair housing act to incidents prior to sale or lease of a property. The panel decision would deny federal redress for harassment based on race or gender unless the harassment resulted in the victim leaving the property.

Read the brief

 

LAW CENTER HALTS BRIDGEPORT, PA ORDINANCE PROHIBITING HOUSING FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
In December 2006 the Borough of Bridgeport agreed to suspend implementation of ordinances prohibiting the rental of housing to illegal immigrants or their employment in the Borough. When challenged by the Law Center, the Borough agreed to halt enforcement of the ordinances pending a final decision in litigation against similar ordinances adopted by Hazelton, PA in response to the Law Center’s willingness to file suit and seek a preliminary injunction. As of February 2009, the Hazelton case is pending in the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. The law firm of Reed Smith is acting as co-counsel with the Law Center on this matter. This case was referred to the Law Center through its relationship with the Fair Housing Rights Center.

AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN ALLEGING SEXUAL HARASSMENT BY THEIR LANDLORD VINDICATED
The Law Center vindicated the rights of four African American women to rent apartments without fear of sexual harassment from their landlord in another case referred to it by the Fair Housing Rights Center (read more about this partnership above). A suit filed in federal court in 2002 was quickly settled with compensation for the women and an agreement that a professional agent would be hired to manage the properties.

 

History of the Fair Housing Project

In the 1970s, the Law Center brought the first administrative action before the Federal Reserve Board to end a bank's redlining practices that were causing disinvestment in the city's minority neighborhoods. The Fair Housing Project was later established to address, through impact litigation and advocacy support for community organizations dealing with housing issues, the very significant problem of housing discrimination in the Delaware Valley. Strategies employed as part of the Fair Housing Project have enabled the Law Center to address successfully such systemic problems as redlining by a major homeowners' insurer which resulted in an extensive agreement by the insurer with ACORN to change its practices; discriminatory real estate advertising by the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News which resulted in their investment of nearly $500,000 in re-training workers, advertising of fair housing practices, and sponsorship of educational conferences; discriminatory sales practices (race-based steering) by one of the area's largest real estate developers; and numerous successful race and familial-status based actions against area rental property owners including one case, (Shammouh v. Karp), in which the Law Center obtained a settlement award of $725,000 and extensive injunctive relief against one of Philadelphia's largest landlords and another, (Heyward v. Stouffer), which settled on the eve of trial for $102,000 in damages and injunctive relief. In another case, (Lane v. Cole, 88 F. Supp. 2d 402 (E.D. Pa. 2000), the Law Center established the right of a white tenant and her African-American guests to sue when she was harassed by her landlord on account of their race. The Law Center also has represented or filed amicus briefs on behalf of numerous clients of group homes for the developmentally disabled or homeless persons facing hostile zoning ordinances seeking to restrict their access to housing.