Provides free 45-minute to 1-hour appointments with an attorney for advice on civil legal issues such as: consumer, finance/debt, employment, housing, benefits.  Appointments are required. Clinics are currently telephonic.

Attorneys at the clinic are not able to provide representation.

General Legal Clinics offered at Eastside Legal Assistance Program

Provides free 45-minute appointments for advice on civil legal issues. Attorneys at the clinic do not typically provide representation. Serves low-income residents of East, Northeast and Southeast King County (does not serve Seattle residents.)

Programs that provide assistance on an individual or group basis for people who want to draft a Last Will and Testament which leaves instructions for the disposition of their property following their death and need assistance in ensuring that the document is properly written. Also included are programs that provide copies of the Last Will and Testament form that is valid in their jurisdiction.

Will Preparation Assistance

Programs that provide assistance for people who need to file a petition to establish the validity of a will, to contest the validity or terms of a will, to interpret a will whose terms are ambiguous or to determine the heirs when there is no will.

Estate Entitlement Assistance

Programs that provide assistance for people who are in favor of or want to oppose the appointment of a guardian to protect adults from physical danger and improper treatment and/or to protect their estate from exploitation or waste when they have been found by the courts to be incapable of managing their own affairs due to Alzheimer's disease, alcoholism, mental illness or other incapacitating conditions. Adult guardianship programs are involuntary and are generally only available in states which have no arrangements for conservatorships, whose conservatorships are voluntary covering powers and property designated by the conservatee or whose conservatorships address only the individual's estate.

Adult Guardianship Assistance

Programs that accept and, where possible, attempt to resolve complaints regarding the clarity of conditions of warranties, product guarantees and service agreements; problems with obtaining repair services, replacements or refunds as promised by the warranty or guarantee; or other similar problems.

Warranty Complaints

Programs that provide assistance for people who believe that they have been denied equal access to employment or that they have been treated unfairly as employees, i.e., that they were sexually harassed or denied equal pay for equal work, passed over for a promotion, denied training opportunities or fired on the basis of their age, gender, race or ethnic origin, nationality, religion, disability, sexual orientation or marital status. Also included are programs that provide assistance for job applicants who feel they have been denied employment because of a military service obligation or help restore job seniority and pension rights which have been withheld from military service personnel because of an absence from work due to a service obligation.

Employment Discrimination Assistance

Programs that provide a third, impartial person who is selected by the parties to a labor dispute or appointed by an outside body to facilitate discussion between the two parties as a means of helping them reach their own settlement decision (mediation), or to preside over a hearing in which both parties present their case and issue a decision which both parties have agreed in advance to accept as final (arbitration).

Labor Arbitration/Mediation

Programs that provide information and guidance and/or representation in court proceedings for individuals who have been abused in an intimate relationship and/or for people who are facing a summary conviction offence or criminal charge for perpetrating abuse. Included are domestic violence law clinics and other legal assistance programs that represent victims of domestic abuse at restraining order hearings or in other civil or criminal actions involving charges against an abuser. Most also represent the person's interests in complexities that arise as part of the legal process such as restitution, payment of debts or child support, custody and visitation and property control. Some programs may also represent victims of domestic abuse who have been charged with a crime and/or handle cases involving accusations of child abuse filed by one parent against the other, abuse of an elderly person by an adult child or abuse of an adult child by a parent.

Domestic/Family Violence Legal Services

Programs that accept and, where possible, attempt to resolve complaints regarding the companies that manufacture, sell, service or repair automobiles.

Automobile Complaints

Programs that are staffed by lawyers who appear on behalf of their clients in criminal, civil and/or administrative actions and proceedings in addition to offering legal advice and guidance.

Legal Representation

Programs such as local consumer complaints offices that respond to a range of consumer issues rather than specializing in handling a particular type of complaint. These programs register complaints by consumers and, when possible, attempt to find a satisfactory resolution.

General Consumer Complaints

Programs that provide legal assistance (including advice and representation in administrative hearings) for individuals whose application for public or subsidized housing has been denied or whose rent subsidy benefits have been terminated in situations where they believe that their rights under applicable housing laws have been violated.

Public/Subsidized Housing Appeals Assistance

Programs that provide advocacy services for people who have an ongoing tax issue with the IRS or other tax collection agencies that they have been unable to resolve through normal procedures. Included are agencies within the IRS or other tax collection agencies tasked with this responsibility and independent organizations that offer this form of assistance.

Taxpayer Advocate Services

Programs that provide information and/or assistance for individuals and organizations who need advice regarding the establishment or operation of their corporation or who want to initiate or respond to litigation which pertains to the area of law governing corporate entities.

Corporate/Business Law

Programs that provide advocacy and/or other forms of legal assistance for students, their families, advocates and others who have issues that have an impact on the learning environment in public and private educational institutions and affect the ability of students to attend and succeed in school. Specific issues may include school choice, student discipline and dismissal, search and seizure, privacy rights, freedom of expression, religion in schools, student testing, student achievement, promotion and retention policies, graduation requirements, student use of the Internet and other technologies, bullying on campus, student-to-student sexual harassment and school safety. General education advocacy relates to issues that have relevance for all students rather than focusing more narrowly on those related to special education.

General Education Advocacy

Membership organizations that apartment owners and other landlords can join for a yearly fee that provide legal assistance for members who are having disputes with their tenants, copies of forms such as unlawful detainer notices, tenant screening assistance, low cost insurance, political representation and/or a variety of informational services concerning the rights and responsibilities of owners and renters, small claims court procedures, the steps in the eviction process, rent control requirements and other issues that have an impact on landlords.

Landlord Associations

Programs that work to ensure that children and youth with disabilities receive a free, appropriate, public education often by providing assistance for parents who need support in seeking and obtaining needed early intervention, educational, medical or therapeutic services for their children.

Special Education Advocacy

Programs that provide assistance for people who are in favor of or want to oppose the appointment of a conservator to protect adults from physical danger and improper treatment and/or to protect their estate from exploitation or waste when they are incapable of managing their own affairs or are competent but infirm. Conservatorships differ widely among jurisdictions. In some states, conservatorships are voluntary arrangements in which a physically infirm but competent individual petitions the court to appoint the conservator of choice to manage whatever powers and property the conservatee chooses to include in the arrangement. In these jurisdictions, guardianships apply to adults who are found to be incompetent. In other states, conservatorships apply only to an individual's property while guardianships address responsibility for the person.  States having no conservatorship arrangements generally have guardianship provisions which address the needs of adults who have been found by the courts to be incapable of managing their own affairs.

Conservatorship Assistance

Programs that provide legal assistance including consultation and representation for victims of human trafficking who have a case involving issues such as coercion into prostitution, forced marriage, domestic violence, bonded labor or other controlled situations against their will that fall within the jurisdiction of the courts in the United States. Human trafficking is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons by improper means, such as force, abduction, fraud or coercion, for an improper purpose, like forced or coerced labor, servitude, slavery or sexual exploitation.

Human Trafficking Legal Assistance

Programs that provide assistance for people who want to submit a petition requesting that the court order the official and formal sealing or erasure of records related to a particular criminal case maintained by police agencies at all levels, the prosecuting attorney's office, the office of the clerk of the court and/or agencies that are part of the criminal correctional system. Most jurisdictions have laws that permit, even mandate, the sealing or expungement of juvenile records as well as statutes that relate to adult records and the conditions under which they may be cleared.

Criminal Record Expungement Assistance

Programs that provide assistance for people who are having difficulty understanding and/or obtaining the full benefits to which they are entitled by law through their state Unemployment Insurance program. The programs may help people understand the eligibility criteria for unemployment insurance benefits, the benefits provided by the program, and the rights of beneficiaries; provide consultation and advice; help them complete unemployment application forms; negotiate on their behalf with unemployment insurance benefits staff; prepare a written appeal; and/or represent them in administrative hearings or judicial litigation. Included are organizations that offer a range of advocacy services as well as legal aid programs which offer more formalized legal assistance.

Unemployment Insurance Benefits Assistance

Programs that provide assistance for individuals with disabilities who are having difficulty understanding, accessing, and/or are unaware of the full benefits and services to which they are entitled by law. Included are federally mandated programs that are part of the formal protection and advocacy system which includes Protection and Advocacy for Persons with Developmental Disabilities (PADD), Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI), Protection and Advocacy for Individual Rights (PAIR) and the Client Assistance Program (CAP); and independent organizations that provide the same types of services. Protection and advocacy programs provide legal representation and other advocacy services, under federal and state laws, for all people with disabilities and endeavor to ensure full access to inclusive educational programs, financial entitlements, health care, accessible housing and productive employment opportunities. The programs maintain a presence in facilities that care for people with disabilities where they monitor, investigate and attempt to remedy adverse conditions. CAP agencies (many of which are housed within protection and advocacy offices) provide information and assistance for individuals seeking or receiving vocational rehabilitation services under the Rehabilitation Act, including assistance in pursuing administrative, legal and other appropriate remedies.

Protection and Advocacy for Individuals With Disabilities

Programs that provide information, education, advocacy and/or other forms of legal assistance which relate to the rights of people who are patients in a health or mental health care facility, who are residents of convalescent or other long or short-term care facilities including adult residential care homes, or who are incapacitated and are being cared for at home by family members. Services may also be available to significant others of these individuals.

Patient Rights Assistance

Programs that provide assistance for people who believe that they have been denied an opportunity to purchase, lease or rent the home or apartment of their choice due to their age, gender, family composition (including families with children under the age of 18 and pregnant individuals), race or color, nationality, religion, disability, sexual orientation or marital status, actions that are prohibited by the federal Fair Housing Act of 1968 and the federal Fair Housing Act Amendments Act of 1988 in the U.S. Federal fair housing law also extends limited protection to recovering alcoholics who actively and regularly participate in a medically based treatment or AA program, and people with a drug use disorder including those who have prior convictions for illegal drug use (but not for drug dealing or manufacture). Assistance may also be available to other individuals who are protected from housing discrimination by state or local laws with a broader set of protected categories, or which cover properties that are exempt from federal fair housing laws but are protected under state law.

Housing Discrimination Assistance

Programs that provide assistance for people who are having difficulty understanding and/or obtaining the full benefits to which they are entitled by law under state Workers Compensation statutes. The programs may help people understand the eligibility criteria for Workers Compensation benefits, the benefits provided by the program, and the rights of beneficiaries; provide consultation and advice; help them complete Workers Compensation application forms; negotiate on their behalf with Workers Compensation benefits staff; and/or represent them in administrative hearings or judicial litigation. Included are organizations that offer a range of advocacy services as well as legal aid programs which offer more formalized legal assistance. Workers Compensation is a disability insurance program mandated by the state and funded by employer contributions which provides compensation to covered employees for loss of their earnings as a result of an accidental injury or occupational disease sustained during employment, or which compensates dependents in case of a work-related death.

Workers Compensation Benefits Assistance

Programs that provide assistance for people who are in favor of or want to oppose the appointment of a guardian to care for and/or manage the affairs of a child or adolescent during minority. The court may appoint a guardian of the person in situations where there is no parent to meet the child's needs due to death, incapacity, abandonment, military service or other reasons; and/or a guardian of the child's estate. In the latter situation, the guardian is given responsibility for managing the child's funds, collecting and making an inventory of the child's assets, keeping accurate financial records, and regularly filing financial accountings with the court.

Child Guardianship Assistance

Programs that provide assistance for people who are unable to make their mortgage payments and at risk of losing their homes through foreclosure or who are already in the foreclosure process. Services may include information about the foreclosure process, legal timelines and how to contact and negotiate with a lender; assessment of the homeowner's financial situation and development of a plan to address homeownership and financial issues; in-depth financial counseling regarding foreclosure avoidance options and/or options that involve leaving the home; advocacy with lenders, when necessary; and referrals to foreclosure prevention resources. Also included are programs that provide mediation services to negotiate a compromise between the individual and the financial institution that holds their mortgage in order to avoid foreclosure.

Mortgage Delinquency and Default Counseling

Programs that provide assistance for prospective or current public financial assistance recipients who are having difficulty understanding and/or obtaining the full benefits to which they are entitled by law under various income support entitlement programs. The programs may help people understand the eligibility criteria for benefits, how much they can work without affecting their benefits (for some programs), the benefits provided by the program, the payment process and the rights of beneficiaries; provide consultation and advice; help them complete benefits application forms; negotiate on their behalf with public assistance benefits staff; and/or represent them in administrative hearings or judicial litigation. Included are welfare rights organizations that offer a range of advocacy services as well as legal aid programs that offer more formalized legal assistance. Entitlement programs include (but are not limited to) General Relief (GR), Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), Food Stamps/SNAP, Medicaid, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI).

Welfare Rights Assistance

Programs that accept and, where possible, attempt to resolve complaints regarding violations by health plans, health clearinghouses, pharmacies, hospitals and other health care providers of the provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 that address the use of personal medical information or the portability of health care coverage. Complaints may address violations involving patient access to their medical records, notification of patients regarding privacy practices, limits on use of personal medical information, confidential communication upon the request of patients or exclusion from insurance because of pre-existing health conditions.

HIPAA Complaints

Programs that help newly formed organizations determine the legal status under which they will operate; and prepare the paperwork that is required for formal registration with local, state and federal authorities as well as apply for business licenses or permits which provide written authorization for them to operate a business within a specific local jurisdiction.

Organizational Start Up Services

Organizations that support the passage and enforcement of laws that protect children from arbitrary treatment, abuse, neglect, exploitation and other forms of maltreatment; and which promote social measures that are designed to enhance the well-being of children.

Children's Rights Groups

Programs that accept and, where possible, attempt to resolve complaints regarding debt collection practices, misrepresentation, fraud, impersonation of government or law enforcement officials, unethical or improper conduct of personnel or other inappropriate business practices of collection agencies or repossessors.

Collection Complaints

Programs that provide a hotline, website or other mechanisms that people can use to report instances in which someone fraudulently obtains private information about an individual, e.g., his or her Social Security number, uses it to apply for credit in that person's name, runs up large bills and then disappears without paying the bills leaving the victim with ruined credit. Identity thieves may also purchase expensive medical services in the victim's name, or give the victim's name and personal information to a law enforcement officer leaving the individual subject to arrest. Identity thieves may also steal the identities of individuals who are deceased. Also included are programs that help identity theft victims re-establish their identity and credit standing.

Identity Theft Reporting/Recovery Programs

Programs that provide legal counseling and/or representation for low-income individuals who need assistance in routine legal matters, usually in the area of bankruptcy, housing, public benefits, family law, elder law or immigration/naturalization.

General Legal Aid

Programs that provide a hotline, website or other mechanisms that consumers can use to report the activities of telephone and Internet scammers and other con artists who attempt to persuade older adults, individuals who live alone, disaster victims and other vulnerable people to part with their savings. Common scams include fraudulent prize offers, "free" travel packages that have hidden costs or which never materialize, "get rich quick" investments that turn out to be worthless, tax debt/refund scams, phony charities with names that are similar to well-known organizations and schemes involving promises to recover an individual's money following their victimization by another scam. Reports may be filed by consumer fraud victims or by people who have information about individuals they know to be perpetrating these types of scams.

Consumer Fraud Reporting

Programs that provide assistance for people who need to settle a dispute or resolve a problem regarding the negotiation, interpretation or performance of a contract. A contract is a legal agreement between two or more people/organizations which creates an obligation to do (or refrain from doing a particular thing) and which specifies the terms and conditions under which that thing should be done.

Contract Law

Programs that provide legal assistance for people who want to establish employment practices for their organization that will minimize or eliminate problems in the employment area or who need to resolve a dispute or initiate or respond to litigation which relates to their role as employers or employees, their rights and obligations. Labor and employment law deals with a variety of issues including ADA compliance, wage and hour compliance, workplace health and safety, interview and hiring practices, employee contracts, employee benefits, maternity/paternity leaves, medical leaves, supervision and discipline, workplace privacy, workplace violence, sexual harassment, wrongful termination, and worker's compensation cases as well as protection from a range of employer-committed crimes including wage theft, deliberate worker misclassification, evasion of unemployment and workers' compensation laws, labor trafficking, defamation including false statements by an employer during or after the firing process, violation of state laws related to whistleblower protections or other relevant statutes.

Labor and Employment Law

Programs that are responsible for protecting the individual's right to register and vote in all local, state and national elections. Services include accepting and resolving complaints regarding fraud, corruption or discrimination in voting registration, voting or the counting of votes; the location, hours, staffing or equipping of polling places; the drawing of voting precinct boundaries; and other problems in the election process which prevent individuals from exercising their right to vote.

Voting Rights Protection

Programs that provide assistance for people who want to officially authorize another individual (and one or more alternates) to handle important matters such as bill paying, contracts, investments, taxes, estate planning or a business in the event that the individual becomes incapacitated. There are two kinds of power of attorney:  a power of attorney which takes effect immediately upon signing, and a springing power of attorney which does not take effect unless and until the individual becomes incapable of handling his or her own affairs (and expires if the person regains capacity.)

Durable Power of Attorney for Asset Management

Programs that provide information for individuals whose illegally parked cars or other vehicles have been towed regarding the address of the police garage or other location where their cars are being stored and the amount of the fines they will need to pay in order to retrieve them. Also included are programs that provide information about vehicles that have been confiscated or stolen and recovered by the police; the police garages which, in addition to storing impounded vehicles, release vehicles and their contents to their owners once applicable fines have been paid or other conditions met; and the offices of officials who conduct hearings at the request of individuals who believe that their vehicle should not have been impounded to determine whether there was probable cause to impound the vehicle.

Impounded Vehicle Services

Programs that provide assistance for people who want to officially authorize another individual (and one or more alternates) to make health care decisions on their behalf in the event that they become incapacitated and are unable to make those decisions themselves. The appointed agent is authorized to review the medical records of the individual, admit and/or discharge the individual from a hospital or nursing facility, consult with his or her caregivers and sign forms that may be needed to assure that care is provided according to his or her preferences. The agent may also carry out the individual's preferences regarding organ donation.

Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care

Programs that provide information and guidance for individuals who need assistance in the area of law which relates to the rights and needs of older adults, especially in the areas of age discrimination, consumer fraud, estate planning and management, living trusts, trust administration, probate, property law, retirement planning, pension benefits, Social Security benefits, Medicaid and Medicare, disability planning, long-term care alternatives, health care decisions, elder abuse, guardianships and conservatorships.

Elder Law

Programs that provide training, printed materials or other sources of information which introduce participants to the general concepts involved in intellectual property law; help them understand the distinction between copyrights, patents and trademarks; and develop a general idea about how intellectual property protection may benefit their organization. These informational forums are not intended to be substitutes for legal counseling or representation. Nonprofit organizations, small businesses and other groups that need support in preparing applications for copyrights, patents or trademarks or have cases involving infringements of their rights are encouraged to seek legal counsel.

Intellectual Property Law Training/General Information

Programs that provide assistance for people who are being evicted from their apartments or other rental property either wrongfully or with reason, e.g. nonpayment of rent. Included are programs that provide legal support in the form of information on tenants' rights, help to navigate the eviction process, and/or mediation services to negotiate a compromise between the individual and the landlord. Eviction prevention programs can also provide a Housing First approach and include various strategies designed to maintain individuals and families in their current housing, such as rent payment assistance, financial assistance with the cost of utilities, assistance securing other types of income support, third-party money management programs, and referrals to other types of community support.

Eviction Prevention Assistance

Programs that help older adults or younger adults with a physical or mental disability that impairs their ability to care for themselves obtain an order from the court that protects them from physical or financial abuse, neglect or abandonment, isolation, withholding by a caregiver of basic needs or services or harassment/stalking by a caregiver or other person. If the abuser is a spouse or partner, a child or grandchild or other close family member, the individual may also need a domestic violence protective/restraining order.

Elder/Dependent Adult Abuse Restraining Orders

Programs that accept and, where possible, attempt to resolve complaints regarding improper, unethical or illegal practices in the provision of housing.

Housing Complaints

Organizations that work to protect the rights of people guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, and which promote the passage and enforcement of laws and other social measures that extend individual rights or more effectively protect them. These rights include constitutional guarantees, such as the right to bear arms, freedom of speech and freedom of the press, as well as civil rights which protect all citizens from discrimination based on race, color, religion, gender or national origin in the areas of voting, education, employment and housing; in the use of facilities and public accommodations; and in the administration of federally assisted or other public programs.

Constitutional/Civil Rights Groups

Programs that provide assistance for people who have cases involving violations of federal and state statutes governing sales and credit practices involving consumer goods, in situations where appeals to consumer complaints organizations have not resolved the issue. Consumer law cases involve deceptive or unconscionable advertising and sales practices, product quality, credit financing and reporting, debt collection, leases, and other aspects of consumer transactions.

Consumer Law

Programs that help tenants and landlords resolve disputes regarding security and other rental deposits, unsanitary conditions, failure to make repairs, privacy, notice requirements, excessive rent increases, nonpayment of rent, neglect or damage to property, overcrowding or other grievances.

Landlord/Tenant Dispute Resolution

Programs that provide legal assistance that helps individuals who have been convicted of a felony regain the civil rights they lost as a consequence of the conviction following completion of all the terms and conditions of their sentence. The rights felons lose, which may include the right to vote, to hold public office, to serve on a jury, and to hold certain types of state occupational licenses, and the process by which they may be recovered are primarily governed by state law and vary by jurisdiction.

Post Conviction Restoration of Civil Rights

Programs that provide assistance for people who believe that they have been treated unfairly or denied normal privileges by a commercial establishment or other facility that serves the public based on their age, gender, race or ethnic origin, nationality, religion, disability, sexual orientation or marital status. Included are establishments that serve food and drink (e.g., restaurants, bars), places of lodging (e.g., inns, hotels, motels); gathering places (e.g., auditoriums, convention centers, lecture halls); entertainment venues (e.g., theaters, concert halls, sports stadiums); sales or rental establishments (shopping centers, grocery stores, video rental outlets); service establishments (e.g., laundromats, dry cleaners, banks, barber shops, beauty shops, travel services, shoe repair services, funeral parlors, gas stations, offices of accountants or lawyers, insurance offices); public transportation terminals; depots or stations; recreation/exercise establishments (e.g., parks, zoos, amusement parks, gymnasiums, health spas, bowling alleys, golf courses); and social service centers (e.g., child care centers, senior centers, homeless shelters, food banks/pantries, adoption agencies).

Customer Service Discrimination Assistance

Programs that provide information and/or legal assistance for individuals whose driver licenses have been suspended or revoked and want to appeal the suspension or otherwise have their driving privileges restored. Also included are programs that provide a waiver or fine reductions for low or moderate income individuals whose driving privileges are at risk due to inability to pay fines or surcharges related to traffic offenses.

Driver License Retention/Reinstatement Assistance

Programs that provide information and guidance for landlords who need to know their rights and responsibilities regarding leases and rental agreements, deposits, legal eviction procedures, rent control requirements and other issues that are of particular interest to landlords. Landlord rights counseling may also include assistance in completing forms, and advice regarding a particular dispute or regarding contact with offending tenants to notify them that they are out of compliance with landlord/tenant laws.

Landlord Rights Information/Counseling

Programs that provide assistance for people who believe they are victims of unscrupulous lending institutions that have pressured them into signing a loan agreement they cannot afford. Predatory lending tactics include high pressure sales techniques; misleading or fraudulent direct mail campaigns; failure to disclose unusually high interest rates, hidden transaction costs, excessive fees and punitive penalty clauses such as balloon payments; and loan agreements that are based on home equity rather than a realistic ability to repay. Predatory lenders frequently target the most vulnerable consumers including older adults, low income individuals, and people residing in communities underserved by traditional banking institutions.

Predatory Lending Assistance

Programs that are staffed by lawyers who offer information and guidance regarding legal matters, proposed lines of conduct, claims or contentions including opinions on the party's rights, responsibilities and liabilities; and who offer suggestions for an appropriate course of action, but do not represent clients in court.

Legal Counseling

Programs that provide assistance for people who believe they have been denied equal access to student loans or scholarships, or to educational programs at preschool, elementary, secondary, vocational, postsecondary, postgraduate or professional school levels based on their age, gender, race or ethnic origin, nationality, religion, disability, sexual orientation or marital status.

Education Discrimination Assistance

Programs that accept and, where possible, attempt to resolve complaints regarding the licensing, failure to conform with requirements established by statute, unethical or improper conduct or other inappropriate business practices of companies that repossess automobiles or other consumer goods.

Repossession Agency Complaints

Programs that provide assistance for Native Americans who need legal advice or representation regarding federal recognition, treaty rights, fishing and hunting rights, environmental protection, reservation boundaries, land acquisition, land and water rights, Native American gaming, housing, health, taxation or jurisdictional questions. Attorneys who practice in this area are concerned with the treaties, statutes, executive orders, court decisions and administrative actions that define the relationship among the United States, Native American tribes and individuals, and the states. Native American law attorneys are found in federal government bodies such as the Bureau of Indian Affairs and The Indian Claims Commission, which hears and determines claims against the United States on behalf of any Native American tribe. Private law firms also have lawyers who specialize in matters relating to Native American lands and reservations, tribal rights and other legal issues affecting Native Americans. Specific Native American tribes, which are recognized as sovereign entities with the power to regulate their internal and social organization, have lawyers who may be members of the tribe themselves, and/or lawyers who are hired as "general counsel" to handle the legal affairs of their tribe. Public service agencies also serve the Native American community with lawyers who specialize in the Indian Child Welfare Act, and others who serve children, people who are elderly, or indigent members of the Native American community.