Mission, Vision, & Values
Mission
PILP advances justice for low income people and communities by building the capacity of legal services organizations through impact litigation, trainings, and publications, and by advocating for low income community groups and individuals.
Vision
We envision a world where all people have the housing, income, supportive services, food security, and health care that they need to live with dignity.
Values
A just society must guarantee basic social and economic rights to all persons and communities:
- Affordable housing and sufficient income, supportive services, food security, and health care
- Freedom from all forms of discrimination
- Freedom from forced displacement
- A fair and just legal system with full and equal access to all
Collaboration between California legal service programs and state support centers with extensive expertise in litigation and policy is essential to meeting these goals.
History
Since 1996, the Public Interest Law Project (PILP) has provided crucial litigation and advocacy support to local legal services and public interest law programs throughout California. Responding to the elimination of federal funding for state and national legal services support centers, PILP was established to ensure that local legal services programs could continue to participate in major litigation and advocacy on behalf of low-income persons.
The need to defend low income families’ rights to subsistence aid, health care, and affordable housing continues to escalate despite the beginnings of economic growth. Rising rents and new development displace thousands of lower income families, and even with rising revenue government continues to slash safety net programs.
As an IOLTA funded non-profit state support center, PILP spearheads major litigation for legal services programs throughout California to address these issues. Our seasoned attorneys have litigated over 200 high impact cases, drafted key legislation protecting lower income families and are recognized experts in the fields of public benefits and affordable housing.
The primary purposes of PILP are to assist local legal services programs in rendering legal services to lower income persons who are financially unable to afford legal assistance, and to provide technical assistance, training, research and litigation support to public interest law programs and community based organizations on law and policy issues related to housing and community development, public benefits, health, education, welfare, and civil, consumer and economic rights.