A right to counsel for tenants facing eviction in Culver City?
On February 17, 2026, Culver City’s Standing Housing and Homelessness Subcommittee directed city staff to apply for grant funding that would create a Right to Counsel program for low-income tenants facing eviction.
Now, Culver City has the opportunity to create the first fully operational Right to Counsel program in California.
Why Right to Counsel?
Eviction is one of the leading causes of homelessness. A 2011 report on evictions in Boston found that 45% of households that entered Massachusetts shelters gave eviction as the reason they were homeless or at risk of homelessness. Additionally, a 2017 report by the Institute for Children, Poverty, and Homelessness found that eviction is the second-leading cause of homelessness in New York City among families with children.
Generally, less than one in ten tenants facing eviction have an attorney, while nine out of ten landlords do. These unrepresented tenants often receive worse outcomes than tenants with defense counsel who can often win their cases outright in court. In fact, a 2019 report by STOUT found that 99 percent of unrepresented tenants suffered “disruptive displacement.”
Providing tenants legal counsel leads to better tenant outcomes. Stay Housed LA, which provides eviction defense services to tenants across LA County, achieved a 90% success rate for tenants over the past five years. Of those tenants, 50% were able to stay in their own homes, and 40% secured favorable settlements, including extra time to moveout, waivers of rent owed, and eviction record sealing, so they could safely transition to new housing without falling into homelessness.
The goal of Right to Counsel programs is to provide free legal counsel to all low-income tenants to ensure they can achieve similar success with their eviction case.
In recent years, both the City and the unincorporated portions of Los Angeles County have adopted Right to Counsel ordinances. However, these programs are not yet fully funded and operating at full capacity. With only a small infusion of additional funds, Culver City has the opportunity to create the first fully operational Right to Counsel program in California.
How will we fund it?
To achieve Right to Counsel, it is estimated Culver City would have to spend $260,000 to $298,000 per year. The City could combine existing eviction defense spending with new grant funding to provide these services.
Currently, Culver City already spends roughly $160,000 annually on its Eviction Defense Program. Culver City contracts with the legal aid non-profit service provider Bet Tzedek to provide these services.
Culver City can provide the additional funding needed for Right to Counsel through the Pro Housing Incentive Program (PIP) Grant. Culver City is eligible to receive $750,000 in PIP grant funds, which must be applied to our housing and homelessness priorities. Councilmembers Fish and McMorrin have already recommended the City use these funds to fund Right to Counsel.
Thus, the existing $160,000 in eviction defense spending and one-time $750,000 PIP grant funding could be combined to provide Right to Counsel to tenants in Culver City for years to come.
What can you do?
The deadline to apply for PIP grant funds is March 31. Culver City Council will likely vote on the use of these funds on March 24. We’ll keep you posted with more info on ways you can make your voice heard.