Page 38 - Pierce County Lawyer - March April 2025

TACOMAPROBONO COMMUNITY LAWYERS By Laurie Davenport
BACK TO THE FUTURE –
A STEP IN THE
RIGHT DIRECTION
FOR FAMILY SAFETY –
Our Native American Legal Aid Program is Back!
Through funding awarded by the Legal Foundation of
Washington, Tacomaprobono Community Lawyers has
recently re-established its Native American Legal Aid
Program (NALAP), which works alongside our Housing
Justice Project, Family Safety Project, and Volunteer Legal
Program. NALAP serves Urban Indians in and around
Pierce County who are not eligible for Tribal legal aid
services, such as those provided by the Puyallup Tribe of
Indians. Services are delivered through in-office legal aid
clinics and offsite clinics at Tribal cultural and community
centers. Led by Britt Jones, a member of the Cowlitz Tribe
of Indians, NALAP focuses on civil legal issues affecting
the local Urban Indian community, including Tribal
judgment enforcement, Guardianships, payee programs,
child custody, Estate Planning, and Probate.
More About Britt Jones,
Tacomaprobono
Native American
Legal Aid Program
Managing Attorney
Since 2022, Britt Jones
has been an attorney
with Tacomaprobono’s
Housing Justice Project,
leading a team of attorneys
representing tenants in Pierce County Superior Court
eviction proceedings. Britt, who grew up in Pierce
County, is an enrolled member of the Cowlitz Tribe. She
proudly received her swearing-in as an attorney from
Justice G. Helen Whitener. Britt graduated from Seattle
University School of Law where she was the Community
Service Director for the Native American Law Student
Association. Britt is a member of Tacomaprobono’s
DEI Committee, and also serves as the liaison between
the Pierce County Juvenile Justice Committee and the
Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association. Britt brings
both landlord-tenant expertise and experience gained
working with Tribal clients at Tacomaprobono, the
Native American Unit at Northwest Justice Project, and
the Cowlitz Tribe Legal Clinics. As an Afro-Indigenous
woman from humble beginnings, Britt brings lived
experience into her civil legal aid practice, allowing her to
take a client-centered, trauma-informed approach.
Our Family Safety Project (FSP)
is proud to announce a notable
expansion. Thanks to increased
funding from Pierce County, Lauren
Romero has joined the FSP Dream
Team headed by Managing Attorney Andrea Saunders (a prior
recipient of TPCBA’s Public Service Award in 2023)!
FSP services directly address the unique needs of domestic
violence and sexual assault survivors in Pierce County. Pierce
County has one of the highest rates of reported domestic violence
offenses in the state, with DV constituting nearly half of all
crimes against persons and a significant portion of property
crimes. Survivors often face complex legal and social challenges,
including the need for immediate protection from their abusers,
safe housing, and long-term stability for their families. FSP fills the
‘justice gap’ survivors experience when critical legal intervention
is needed to meet these critical needs. Without timely access to
a free legal aid attorney who can do what is required in court to
assert their rights (begin a Family Law case, file temporary orders,
file a temporary parenting plan, ensure that the correct protection
orders are in place, effect relocation, etc.) survivors face a daunting
uphill battle to safety.
FSP’s services are specifically tailored to help survivors obtain
protection orders and navigate these legal challenges, while
its longstanding partnership with the Crystal Judson Family
Justice Center ensures FSP clients also receive comprehensive
social support. Expanding staff capacity enables FSP to respond
more rapidly to referrals, prioritize
high-risk clients, and reach
populations that are historically
underserved or marginalized,
including immigrants, non-
English speakers, and BIPOC
communities (a significant portion
of the survivors FSP serves (52%)
come from BIPOC communities
-- 11% Black, 15% Hispanic, 8%
Multiracial, and 17% from other
racial backgrounds).
More to come on the FSP Team
and their work in our community!
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