Volunteer Guide

Whitman-Walker Health - Legal Services Program

  • Location:
    1377 R Street NW
    Suite 200
    Washington, DC 20009
  • Phone:
    (202) 939-7630
  • Fax:
    (202) 939-7651
  • Contact methods:
    Drop-in, Email, Fax, Mail/Letter, Phone calls, Website
  • Appointments accepted:
    Yes

As the nation's oldest medical-legal partnership, the Legal Services Department at Whitman-Walker Health (WWH) specializes in providing free wrap-around legal assistance for patients, people living with HIV, and members of the Lesbain, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) communities. WWH provides counseling, advocacy, legal clinics, direct representation, and pro bono placement/mentoring on a wide range of civil legal services including immigration, health insurance issues, work disputes, discrimination, disability applications and appeals, public benefits appeals (ADAP, Medicaid Medicare, SNAP/food stamps, TANF), powers of attorney and wills, elder issues, and identity documents for transgender and gender expansive clients. immigration matters, including asylum and other humanitarian forms of relief based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and/or HIV status. WWH also assists transgender and gender-expansive immigrants in filing name change petitions to be able to update their name and/or gender marker on various identity documents, including immigration documentation.

State served: District of Columbia

Services Provided

Are immigration legal services provided? Yes
Areas of immigration legal assistance: Adjustment of Status, Asylum applications, Consular Processing, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), Employment authorization, Family-based petitions, NACARA, Naturalization/Citizenship, Removal hearings, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, T visas, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), U visas, Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) petitions
Types of immigration legal services provided: Help completing forms, Filings with USCIS, Representation at Asylum Interviews (Credible Fear Interviews, Reasonable Fear Interviews), Representation before the Immigration Court, Representation before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA)
Other areas of legal assistance: Civil Rights, Consumer, Debt/Credit/Bankruptcy, Disability, Elder Law, Employment, Health, HIV/AIDS, Life Planning, Public Benefits
Non-legal services: Administrative advocacy (CIS/ICE/CBP), Health services, Legislative advocacy (state or national), Psychological or psychiatric services, Referrals to other services
Populations served: Domestic Violence Victims, Human Trafficking Survivors, Individuals who are not in legal immigration status, Individuals with criminal histories, Individuals with physical/mental disabilities, Juveniles, Lesbian, gay, bisexual & transgender, Torture survivors
Languages spoken: Amharic, English, French, Spanish
Access to a commercial interpreting service or language bank: Yes
Nominal fee charged? No
Other information: Provides medical, dental, behavioral health, public benefits and insurance navigation, and free legal services to patients who live in DC, VA and MD area

Staffing Information

Number of attorneys on staff: 8
Is organization BIA recognized? Yes
Number of fully accredited BIA representatives on staff: 0
Number of partially accredited BIA representatives on staff: 1
Number of paralegals/legal workers on staff: 3

Additional Details

Pro Bono opportunities? Yes
Network affiliations: American Immigration Lawyers Association, Immigration Advocates Network

Volunteering

Volunteer Coordinator
Lee Hicks
(202) 939-7627