OCL, UA to offer legal help

The student-landlord rapport can sometimes be a little rocky. But a new program -- created by the Office of Off-Campus Living -- may help to repair that relationship, as well as provide more support for students living off campus. The OCL obtained funding earlier this month for a legal service that will allow students with a landlord-tenant dispute to seek affordable legal assistance through the University. The policy was generated in response to student need and gained momentum when the Undergraduate Assembly and Graduate and Professional Student Assembly both passed resolutions in February requesting an expansion of University legal services to include landlord-tenant disputes. "[The service] is an attempt to produce more responsible landlords and more responsible tenants? a way of dealing with problems in a successful and fair way," OCL director Mihaela Farcas said. The service will be available to both undergraduate and graduate students and likely other Penn affiliates, Farcas said. A sum of $15,000 has been allocated in the University budget for the Fiscal Year 1999, which begins on July 1. With this money in reservation, services will be available to students at about a 75 percent discount, Farcas said. Farcas stressed that OCL advises many students how to properly interact with their landlords, adding that many steps are taken before a potential dispute becomes a legal matter. Farcas said that sometimes landlord-tenant disputes can be easily resolved by educating both parties on their rights and responsibilities. "We will attempt to assist the student to resolve the matter before it needs to reach the court," Farcas said. The UA and GAPSA currently co-sponsor a service where undergraduate and graduate students can obtain free half-hour consultations with a lawyer, but landlord-tenant disputes are not covered in the policy. The University also does not currently have a legal service to address landlord-tenant problems. Farcas said that OCL is currently looking for a lawyer for the service, but no decision has been made. "We're trying to get somebody who has a lot of experience in this field," Farcas said. "The new legal services should prove extremely useful to students and will, I believe, improve their quality of University and community life," said Vice Provost for University Life Valarie Swain-Cade McCoullum. UA Chair Michael Silver applauded the efforts of OCL and the University in making the legal service a reality. "I'm extremely excited that the University was willing to give money for the project," said Silver, who wrote the UA resolution in support of the program. Silver, a College senior, added that the UA's West Philadelphia Committee will work with the OCL to help refine and evaluate the program.

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