Panel Notes ALRP Enewsletter | November 2014

panel notes ALRP eNewsletter | November 2014

upcoming events in this issue

#Giving Client Spotlight: Taking Action to Keep Our Client Housed Tuesday

December 2 Director's Message: Something to Celebrate ALRP is Past Events: 31st Annual Reception and Summer Street Fairs participating in #Giving Welcoming New ALRP Staff Members Tuesday - and you can, too!

#GivingTuesday is a powerful ALRP 2015 Attorneys from the Heart Calendar national day of giving, raising funds and awareness for New Bob Ross Foundation Law Clerks

important causes everywhere. A simple hashtag goes a long way. (page 7) client spotlight Taking Action to Keep Our REAF Client Housed Holiday

Gala December 8, "I felt like my life was coming down to the Marines wire," said Michael Gallin after he and his Memorial Theatre partner climbed the stairs to their second Get into the holiday spirit at story apartment. A sheet of paper was the REAF Holiday Gala, a star- casually slipped under their door. Lying at studded night with an auction, their feet was a Three Day Notice to pay show, and dessert reception. rent or quit; attached to it was a notice of 100% of ALRP ticket sales default judgment alleging that Michael and proceeds support our programs. (page 8) his partner had not responded to the Three Michael and Kim Day Notice on time. Michael was baffled and frightened; he had consistently paid his rent on time. Michael's mind quickly conjured images of him and his partner Kinsey living on the streets, suddenly struggling to find a place to sleep in the city he Sicks had called home his entire life. Fortunately, Michael found ALRP, and more Holiday specifically, he found our rock star Staff Housing Attorney Kim Shindel. Show December 13, Though evictions are never convenient, this news came at a particularly bad Castro Theatre time for Michael. Michael was finally well enough to return to work after See former ALRP Executive coming to ALRP a few years prior for helping in obtaining long term disability Director Irwin Keller in his farewell Kinsey Sicks benefits. His once debilitating fatigue had finally become manageable, and he performance of "Oy Vey in a was excited to re-enter the work force and return to a life that resembled Manger", a fabulous a cappella normality. “My personal life needed to be in order before I could search for musical. (page 9) new work,” Michael shared. But as anyone can imagine, securing gainful employment while homeless is nearly impossible.

Academy of The Three Day Notice was also troubling because Michael feared it may have Friends been a retaliatory action by his landlord. Michael reported that the unit he and his partner were living in had a myriad of severe habitability issues, Oscar Gala including inadequate heating, electrical issues, shattered windows, and an February 22, SF Design unsafe staircase constructed without permits. Additionally, they were Center concerned about some threatening behavior on behalf of the landlord and his Galleria guests. Because of the poor conditions, the Rent Board mandated that ALRP has been selected as a Michael’s rent be decreased to accommodate for the decrease in housing major beneficiary of the 2015

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AOF Gala celebrating AOF's services – a decision that few landlords would be pleased with. Lowering stress 35th anniversary. Watch the is one of the most important aspects of successfully treating HIV/AIDS, but the Academy Awards in style while anxiety caused by their strained relationship with the landlord eventually enjoying food, wine, and rendered Michael’s partner unable to leave the house. champagne. (page 10)

Our office is no stranger to Three Day Notices, and the number of eviction cases we see is only rising as San Francisco’s housing crisis becomes more and quick links more dire. Kim quickly launched into action to ensure Michael and his partner could avoid homelessness. She argued that, because of the outstanding Donate Now habitability issues, a California Code of Civil Procedure forbade the landlord Volunteer not only to collect rent but also to issue a Three Day Notice to pay rent. ALRP Get Legal Help is proud to say that the court upheld this argument and dismissed the lawsuit, Staff & Board News something that couldn’t have happened without Kim’s late nights in the office Spotlights and Michael’s impressive resilience. “I couldn’t have done any of this without Client Voices ALRP’s support”, Michael said through tears, “and it’s been great to see an Attorney Resources organization that gives me so much confidence grow into what it is today.” While this is just one of the hundreds of unlawful detainer cases ALRP will see visit us online this year, it is no small achievement to say that Michael and his partner are once again able to come home without fear that they will be greeted by an eviction notice upon opening the door.

support us director's message

Online Donations Matching Gifts Something to Celebrate Car Donations United Way Gifts In San Francisco, the frosty air and dazzling window Legal Services Program displays are all you need as proof that the holidays are Travel Planning fast approaching and the whole world will soon be in a whirlwind of celebration. Not to be left out of the excitement, ALRP is excited to share some of the shop for ALRP things we're celebrating this season.

ALRP 2015 Calendar This year ALRP was part of a sustained advocacy effort ALRP Wines for Sale to increase funding from the City to address the Community Thrift Store epidemic of evictions we are facing. One way we iGive.com sought to do this was by expanding the City's homelessness prevention Amazon Smile services. ALRP, along with our colleagues, was able to secure a million dollars UTAC Gold Bracelet in new funding for legal services attorneys to fight evictions. That funding will also support a number of housing subsidy programs, including one that will address the needs of long term survivors of AIDS who face a dramatic drop in special thanks income as their long term disability policies expire. ALRP received a portion of this new funding, and as a result was able to bring on another housing Leadership Sponsors attorney who is already helping to keep people with HIV in their homes. Marylou Hely Jeff Wiggins & Joe Olivo This year delivered more good news in the fight against HIV. San Francisco has long been a model for the rest of the country in how to best respond to the AIDS epidemic, and San Francisco is seeing a reduction in the number of new ALRP Sponsors HIV infections. Additionally, a new prevention tool, PreP, is becoming more widely available to at-risk populations.

The holidays are a time to connect with and appreciate our friends, families, and communities - for ALRP, all of those things are you. We are fortunate to

have an abundance of love, support, and accomplishments to celebrate this season. We hope that we've given our clients something (and somewhere) to celebrate this season, too.

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year.

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past events

31st Annual Reception

Over 300 guests attended the ALRP From the Heart 31st Annual Reception & Auction, held on October 15th in the Julia Morgan Ballroom at the Merchant's Exchange. Hosted by San Francisco Supervisor Scott Wiener, we honored Jim Wood

as the 2014 Clint Hockenberry Leadership Award recipient. Annual Reception Honorees ALRP was also honored to present 2014 Firm of the Year to Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP and 2014 Attorney of the Year to Mary Catherine Wiederhold.

Bolstered by a special appeal to support law clerk scholarships for ALRP's AIDS Housing Advocacy Project (AHAP), this year's reception raised more than $177,000 - a new record for ALRP. The reception featured wonderful wines donated by Viszlay Vineyards and a silent and live auction which, thanks to our friends at Bizzarro's Gala and Event Auctions raised over $21,000 - also a new record. Please join all of us at ALRP in thanking our Reception Advocates & Hosts and our Annual Reception Sponsors, whose generosity and support are the cornerstone of our efforts. Special thanks also go to event vendors Rink Foto, Skona Advertising and . Springer & Roberts LLP

ALRP would also like to extend a special thanks to all of the donors to our auction. Your leadership and community spirit make the difference for hundreds of our clients each year.

Please find below a complete list of our sponsors.

Supreme Court

Circuit Court

A.L. Nella & Company LLP Bob Ross Foundation Cooley LLP Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP

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Seyfarth Shaw LLP van Löben Sels / RembeRock Foundation Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati Foundation

District Court

Arnold & Porter LLP Baker & McKenzie LLP Bryan Cave LLP Creitz & Serebin LLP Davis Wright Tremaine LLP Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP Hanson Bridgett LLP Jones Day Kaiser Permanente Kazan, McClain, Satterly & Greenwood PLC Keker & Van Nest LLP Kilpatrick, Townsend & Stockton LLP Latham & Watkins LLP Lubin Olson & Niewiadomski LLP Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP Murphy, Pearson, Bradley & Feeney Nixon Peabody LLP Nossaman LLP Paul Hastings LLP Perkins Coie LLP Reed Smith LLP Shartsis Friese LLP Union Bank Wells Fargo & Company (Law Dept.)

Community Court

Advanced Discovery AIDS Emergency Fund API Wellness Center B.A.L.I.F. Bingham McCutchen LLP Callaway & Wolf Dickson Geesman LLP Farella Braun + Martel LLP Goldstein, Gellman, Melbostad, Harris & McSparran, LLP Holland & Knight LLP King & Spalding LLP Lewis, Feinberg, Lee, Renaker & Jackson P.C. National Center for Lesbian Rights Positive Resource Center Project Inform Project Open Hand Sedgwick LLP Shanti Project Sidley Austin LLP Silva Watson Moonwalk Fund Springer & Roberts LLP U.S. Legal Support, Inc. Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale & Dorr LLP

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Street Fairs and AIDS Walk 2014

Thanks to the time and efforts of our generous volunteers and supporters, ALRP had a great summer, full of fun and successful community events. As a beneficiary of those events, ALRP will receive thousands of dollars in donations. All of your hard work translates directly into funds that allow ALRP to continue meeting the ever-changing needs of our clients. View more photos on our website.

welcoming new staff to the alrp team

Gina Gemello Gina has joined ALRP as our new HIV Consumer Advocacy Project (HCAP) Staff Attorney. HCAP is ALRP's concerted focus on helping clients access services funded by the Ryan White Care Act and the San Francisco Department of Public Health. Gina received her J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law, where she was the co- recipient of the "Clinical Student of the Year" award, and her B.A. in Sociology and Women's Studies from the University of California, San Diego. Her extensive experience in disability rights, particularly as a Project

Attorney at the Employment Law Center's Disability Rights Program, makes her a perfect addition to the ALRP team.

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Brandon Lawrence Brandon joined ALRP in October as our new Outreach Attorney. Brandon received his J.D. from the University of San Francisco School of Law. Before becoming a Staff Attorney at ALRP, Brandon clerked at ALRP for two years and later worked at the Eviction Defense Collaborative defending tenants in unlawful detainer cases. Brandon brings a passion and dedication to working with underrepresented populations and works hard to bring awareness and sensitivity to those who do not have access to legal representation.

Nienke Schouten ALRP is expanding our crucial immigration work with the addition of UC Davis Law Partnership Fellow Nienke Schouten. Her position is funded through a partnership between ALRP and UC Davis. Nienke will work on expanding the ALRP Panel to include more immigration attorneys who can represent clients in detention centers and removal proceedings, as well as organizing MCLE trainings focused on removal defense and the nuances of HIV as a factor in asylum law.

2015 attorneys from the heart calendar

ALRP is now offering the ALRP 2015 Attorneys from the Heart Calendar for only $10.

Available while supplies last.

To purchase, simply make a secure online donation and the calendar will be mailed to the address listed. Or mail a check for $10 to the ALRP office at 1663 Mission Street, Suite 500 – San Francisco CA 94103.

This is ALRP’s first-ever calendar. This full color calendar includes all the important dates and holidays for 2015, and includes photos and comments from 12 ALRP staff and volunteer Panel attorneys who participated in the

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ALRP Attorneys From the Heart Campaign. This campaign honors the work of ALRP staff and volunteer Panel attorneys as they help our clients stay in their homes, gain access to medical care and prescription drugs, secure disability income, fight job discrimination, and avoid deportation. To see what clients are saying about their ALRP attorney, click here.

The ALRP 2015 Calendar contains 28 pages, measures 5.5″ wide X 8.5″ tall, is printed in 4-color on 80# gloss paper stock, and includes a drill hole for easy hanging.

These calendars make great gifts, and 100% of your purchase price is tax deductible.

Make your 2015 calender the ALRP 2015 Attorneys From the Heart Calendar, and help ALRP help people living with HIV/AIDS resolve their legal issues.

new bob ross foundation law clerks

ALRP is proud to announce the addition of three Bob Ross Foundation Law Clerks to our team: Jeff Dulgar, Esq. (GGU '13), Lisa Heck, Esq. (GGU '13), and 3L law student Nicki Griffin (USF '15). ALRP was honored to receive a grant from the Bob A. Ross Foundation to support our Law Clerk Fellowship Program. Our talented team of law clerks provide essential support to the ALRP Client Services staff by serving as the first, and often main, point of contact for ALRP clients.

Jeff Dulgar, Esq. & Nicki Griffin Lisa Heck, Esq.

upcoming events

This year, ALRP is participating in #GivingTuesday on December 2nd. Join us and be a part of the movement – make a donation to ALRP.

#GivingTuesday is a campaign to add a new date to the national calendar – one powerful national day of giving, raising funds and awareness for important causes everywhere. Giving Tuesday was started in 2012 by the 92nd Street Y as an effort to create a national day of giving during the holiday season. In the same way

Page | 7 that “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday” are intended to launch the holiday shopping season, Giving Tuesday is a movement intended to achieve the same results for charity. The results in the first two years have been astounding, and this year ALRP is joining the movement.

December 2, 2014, ALRP, charities, families, businesses, community centers, and students around the world will come together for one common purpose: to celebrate generosity and to give.

It’s a simple idea. Just find a way for your family, your community, your company or your organization to come together to give something more – perhaps a donation to support ALRP legal services for people with HIV/AIDS. Join us and be a part of a global celebration of a new tradition of generosity.

Everyone who makes a donation to ALRP* on Tuesday, December 2nd, will receive an ALRP Attorneys From the Heart 2015 Calendar (*minimum $10 donation; while calendar supplies last).

“#GivingTuesday is a counter narrative to Black Friday and Cyber Monday because it reminds us that the spirit of the holiday giving season should be about community and not just consumerism,” said Kathy Calvin, CEO of the UN Foundation. “The most meaningful gift we can give our children, loved ones, friends and neighbors is the commitment to work together to help build a better world.”

We hope you will consider participating in Giving Tuesday by making a donation to ALRP, like Giving Tuesday on Facebook or by helping to spread the word on your Facebook page and Twitter feeds.

THANK YOU for caring, for participating, and for giving!

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REAF Holiday Gala December 8, 2014

Get into the holiday spirit at the REAF Holiday Gala. 100% of ALRP ticket sales proceeds support our programs.

ALRP is selling tickets to the Richmond Ermet AIDS Foundation (REAF) Help Is On The Way For The Holidays XIII Gala, to be held on Monday, December 8, 2014 at the Marines Memorial Theatre (609 Sutter Street at Mason) in San Francisco. Post-show gala dessert reception at Hotel Adagio (550 Geary Street – just a block away).

Silent Auction starts at 6:00pm. Show starts at 7:30pm, and Gala Dessert Reception starts at 9:45pm.

100% of ticket proceeds go directly to support ALRP’s free legal services.

REAF’s Help is on the Way for the Holidays XIII Gala currently features the touring Cast of Kinky Boots, plus Jason Brock (X-Factor, Cabaret Star), David Gaines (Phantom of the Opera), LaToya London (American Idol, Actress), Jai Rodriguez (Rent, The Producers, TV’s Malibu), and others to be announced.

Performance-only tickets are $50!

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VIP/Underwriter tickets – including a post-show Cast Dessert Party next-door at Hotel Adagio start at just $120. All but $40 is tax deductible.

Tickets can be purchased at www.helpisontheway.org or on EventBrite (click on the Participate as an Individual link).

Please list AIDS LEGAL REFERRAL PANEL in the order form, under “Other Information” in the “Agency to credit for ticket purchase” field so that your ticket purchase to be donated back to support ALRP programs.

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Kinsey Sicks Holiday Show December 13, 2014

See former ALRP Executive Director Irwin Keller in his farewell The Kinsey Sicks performance.

The Kinsey Sicks, America’s Favorite Dragapella Beautyshop Quartet, return to San Francisco after a sold-out engagement in 2013, for a one-night-only performance of Oy Vey in a Manger on Saturday, December 13, 2014 at the Castro Theatre (429 Castro Street, San Francisco). The holiday spectacular is part of a 10-city tour, with stops in New York, Chicago and Philadelphia. The San Francisco engagement will serve as the send-off performance for Irwin Keller, one of the group’s founding members and the original Winnie. Tickets are $25, $40 and $55 and are available for purchase now at www.CityBoxOffice.com or by phone at 415-392-4400.

The performance will also mark the debut of the group’s new Winnie, San Francisco’s Nathan Marken, and will mark the only time that both Winnies will appear in the same performance. “I can hardly wait to meet myself,” noted Winnie. “Me, too,” agreed Winnie. ”I’ve always wanted to have a Winnie- twinnie.” Original Winnie, Irwin Keller, was ALRP’s third Executive Director. This is his farewell performance.

The Kinsey Sicks formed in December of 1993 in San Francisco. Since then, they have written and performed scores of musicals, starred in their own Off- Broadway show at New York’s legendary Studio 54, an extended run in Las Vegas, toured internationally, recorded 8 albums and been the subject of 2 feature films.

In “Oy Vey in a Manger”, we find Rachel, Winnie, Trixie, and Trampolina trying to sell off their manger – yes, that manger – before it’s foreclosed upon. Crises arise, secrets are revealed, Jewish-Gentile tensions surface, and mayhem ensues – all in glorious four-part harmony.

This a cappella musical boasts The Kinsey Sicks’ reinterpretations of holiday classics, such as “God Bless Ye Femmy Lesbians,” “Satan Baby”, and “I’m Dreaming of a Betty White Christmas”, plus hilarious Jewish satiric fare, including “Don’t Be Happy, Worry”, the Chanukah spa classic “I Had a Little Facial” and, of course, the requisite Yiddish production number, “Papirossen.”

The New York Times praises their “voices sweet as birdsong” and Variety calls

Page | 9 them “one act that should not be missed.” The San Francisco Chronicle says, “Their mangling of hit songs hits genius level.” Read more about them at www.kinseysicks.com. 

Academy of Friends Oscar Gala February 22, 2015

ALRP has been selected as a major beneficiary of the Academy of Friends Oscar Night Gala. Join us!

The 2015 Academy of Friends (AOF) Oscar Night Gala is being held on Sunday, February 22, 2015 in the San Francisco Design Center Galleria, located at 101 Henry Adams Street (near 8th & Townsend).

The 2015 AOF GALA celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the 1915 Pan Pacific Exposition and the 35th Anniversary of Academy of Friends. Neil Patrick Harris is set to host. View the broadcast of the 87th Annual Academy Awards® on multiple large screens while enjoying wonderful food, wine & champagne provided by the finest Bay Area restaurants, caterers and wineries.

General Tickets are priced at $250 and include admission to the event, silent auction, food, wine, champagne, the viewing party, and entertainment following the awards broadcast. VIP Tickets are priced at $750 and include all of the above amenities plus admission to the exclusive VIP Lounge and exclusive wines, spirits and food in a more intimate environment. AOF Gala Tickets will be available for purchase in November 2014.

All of the money raised from the AOF 2015 Gala will benefit seven Bay Area HIV/AIDS Services Agencies – including ALRP, HIV Story Project, Huckleberry Youth Programs, LGBTQ Connection, Project Open Hand, Positive Resource Center, and SF AIDS Nightline.

We hope you will join ALRP on Oscar Night at the Academy of Friends Gala and help us raise funds to support ALRP’s free and low cost legal services for people living with HIV/AIDS. AOF Gala Tickets will be available for purchase in November 2014. Please mention ALRP when ordering tickets.

You can also support AOF and ALRP by purchasing a MERCEDES Raffle Ticket for a chance to win a Two-Year Lease on a 2015 Mercedes-Benz GLA 250. Mercedes Raffle Tickets are 1 for $40 or 3 for $100. Only 1,500 Mercedes Raffle Tickets are being sold.

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And if a Mercedes-Benz isn’t enough, you can purchase an ALASKAN CRUISE Raffle Ticket for a chance to win a Celebrity Cruise 11-Day Golden Gate Alaska Cruise. This prize covers the cost of one ocean view stateroom for two adults departing from San Francisco on May 15, 2015. Alaskan Cruise Raffle Tickets are only $10 individually, or you can buy 3 for $25 or 15 for $100.

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