The South Carolina Supreme Court has authorized the South Carolina chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (South Carolina NAACP) to begin a pilot Housing Advocate Program.
The ruling allows the NAACP to train volunteers who are not lawyers to give limited legal advice to tenants facing eviction.
The program will be on a provisional basis for three years and finding vetted volunteers would not be engaged in unauthorized practice of law.
"Our state has too few lawyers, and too many tenants who are being evicted," Brenda Murphy, president of the South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP, said in a statement. "This ruling will allow us to redouble our efforts to make sure tenants have the advice they need to respond to their evictions."
NAACP officials said the Court’s order follows the federal and state court litigation brought by Robynne Campbell, Marvin Neal, and De’Ontay Winchester, three SC NAACP members who sought to provide helpful and accurate advice about the law.
"We are proud to have represented the South Carolina NAACP in this case and thrilled that the South Carolina Supreme Court has approved the Housing Advocate Program," said William Powell, attorney with the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection. "This Program will offer essential legal assistance to tenants facing eviction in South Carolina. People who know their rights have a much better chance of keeping their homes."
NAACP officials believe the ruling builds on the group's legacy of activism both inside and outside of the courtroom.