Legal Services
Whitman-Walker
Clinic offers free legal services to Whitman-Walker Clinic clients. In 2008, the legal services
program provided services to nearly 2,400 new clients, and referrals for those
not eligible for the Clinic’s services. In
addition, the Clinic engages in legal reform efforts and provides public
education, training and technical assistance to other attorneys working on
HIV-related cases.
All
services are available to the Spanish-speaking community through bilingual
staff and volunteers. We also serve
many Amharic, French and Portuguese-speaking clients with the aid of skilled
interpreters.
Whitman-Walker
Clinic has developed a national reputation in several specialized practice
areas of HIV/AIDS law:
o
Planning
documents: Counseling, preparation of simple wills; general
powers of attorney; advanced medical directives and living wills; arrangements
for future care of minor children; and declarations of wishes for funerals,
memorial services and burial arrangements.
o
Insurance:
Counseling, advocacy and representation involving health,
life and disability insurance.
o
Discrimination:
Counseling, advocacy and representation in proceedings
involving employment, health care, education and housing discrimination.
o
Public
benefits: Counseling, advocacy and representation for
clients seeking access to Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare and local benefit
programs.
o
Immigration:
Counseling, advocacy and representation on behalf of clients
whose seropositive status forms the basis for denial of immigration benefits or
relief; preparation of HIV-waiver applications and asylum applications.
o
Medical
privacy: Counseling and representation to safeguard the
right to confidentiality of medical information in the workplace, and to
vindicate the rights of individuals whose HIV status or other sensitive medical
information was unlawfully disclosed without their consent.
o
Debtors’
rights: Assistance to individuals with consumer or
medical debt, student loan debt or tax debt, including assessment of options,
advocacy with creditors, assistance in assessing bankruptcy options, and referral
to low-cost assistance in filing bankruptcy petitions.
Because
of Whitman-Walker Clinic’s longstanding mission to the LGBT community, the
Legal Services Program also provides assistance to LGBT individuals in the
following areas, depending on our capacity: relief under the immigration laws for
foreign nationals facing persecution in their countries of origin because of
sexual orientation or gender identity or presentation; discrimination based on
transgender status or sexual orientation; and wills, powers of attorney, and
advance health care directives for lower-income LGBT individuals and couples.