English
EspañolAppeals
Advocates who work at local domestic violence or sexual assault programs can help victims and survivors who need emotional support, help with making a plan to stay safe, shelter, accompaniment to court or to the police, and more. On these pages, you can find contact information for these non-profit statewide and local programs.
*CA & WA ONLY* Family Violence Appellate Project ("FVAP")
Phone: (510) 858-7358 Fax: (866) 920-3889
URL: https://fvaplaw.org/
Email: info@fvaplaw.org
FVAP appeals California and Washington family law, civil, guardianship, and Hague Convention cases on behalf of survivors of domestic violence. They prioritize cases in which children are placed in dangerous situations by court orders regarding custody or unsupervised visitation. They will work with survivors of abuse who are either appellants or respondents and where the survivor does not have the funds to hire an appellate attorney. Please note that they do not handle criminal or juvenile dependency cases.
*DC, IL, MD, MA, NY, TX, VA ONLY* Domestic Violence Legal Empowerment and Appeals Project (DV LEAP)
URL: https://www.nvrdc.org/dv-leap Email: info@nvrdc.org
DV LEAP represents domestic violence survivors on appeals from the following states: Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Texas, Virginia, and The District Of Columbia. They consider all kinds of DV-related appeals, including civil protection order issues, family law (custody, divorce, property, etc.) Hague Convention issues, and criminal issues (e.g., self-defense, admissibility of expert testimony, etc.). They sometimes provide friend-of-the-court (amicus) briefs in appeals if the party already has a lawyer.
*NEW YORK ONLY* NYLAG’s Domestic Violence Appellate Representation Project
Phone: (212) 613-5000 URL: https://nylag.org/
New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) has a Domestic Violence Appellate Representation Project, which specializes in family law appeals on behalf of domestic violence victims and their children in NYC. Please note that NYLAG prefers referrals through a legal or social service agency.
