José de Diego Clinic Celebrates a Decade of Access to Neighborhood Legal Services

For the past ten years, the Katten Legal Clinic at José de Diego Community Academy has provided an approachable legal services access point for hundreds of low-income residents of Chicago’s Humboldt Park and Wicker Park neighborhoods. Among the first school-based clinics in the nation, the Katten Legal Clinic is housed within the Chicago Public School’s building and managed in partnership with Legal Aid Chicago (formerly the Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago).

Since 2013 and through the COVID-19 pandemic, the Katten and Legal Aid Chicago attorneys have worked with clinic clients on civil legal matters involving issues including family law, housing disputes, public benefits and immigration matters. When the pandemic disrupted the traditional in-person operation, the Katten/Legal Aid Chicago team adeptly shifted to video meetings. In-person clinics resumed this year.

“The willingness of Katten’s attorneys and paralegals to return to our community legal clinic in person made it possible for us to resume providing critical legal services to the José de Diego community,” said Legal Aid Chicago’s Executive Director John Gallo. “We are so grateful for their recognition of the need to offer this service in this community and are proud to partner with them.”

Katten’s commitment to José de Diego goes beyond and pre-dates the legal clinic. The firm supports an annual backpack drive, providing much-needed school supplies distributed to elementary school students during a back-to-school BBQ. Since 2011, Katten also has organized holiday book drives and participated in the Lawyers in the Classroom program to help students better understand the legal system and learn about law-related careers.

The Katten Legal Clinic at José de Diego is featured in Katten's 2022 Pro Bono Annual Revew. Read the full issue.