Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2022.Penelope Chaffer was fighting for child support for her two children when the COVID-19 pandemic struck in March 2020.
“There was no guidance, no opportunity to interact with the court, no way of understanding what your rights are,” she said.at the height of the pandemic, moving all but the most urgent court proceedings online. Even today, most court business in New York City continues to happen remotely. That can leave people like Chaffer, with limited computer and internet access, or just little legal know-how, vulnerable to getting swallowed up by the system.
“The court system is reliant on documents, how and when they're filed, if they’re in the right order and format, and they don’t make it easy for you if you have no idea how to do that,” said Chaffer. As case delays snowballed, Family Legal Care officials said demand for their services spiked, with calls to their helpline, legal team, and pro bono consultations all rising dramatically. They hired more staff to keep up with that demand.