San Antonio Legal Services Association (SALSA) is a corps of attorney volunteers coordinated by professional staff to provide free civil legal services to those with limited means and those who are vulnerable or at-risk.
Our programs are designed to meet significant legal needs in San Antonio and surrounding communities that otherwise would go unaddressed. SALSA volunteers provide free legal services across a variety of civil legal issue areas and multiple areas of substantive law.
"We envision a community where everyone has equal access to justice, regardless of the ability to pay."
SALSA offers clinics and limited engagement programs in a variety of subject matter areas. This includes preventing homelessness, advocating for vulnerable populations, and protecting indiviudal rights.
As new unmet needs are identified, SALSA’s volunteer corps adjusts to fill these gaps.
Legal Priority Areas:
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, SALSA volunteers drafted wills for over 300 frontline healthcare workers, providing critical peace of mind so these heroes could care for San Antonio’s most vulnerable citizens.
Legal Service Models:
SALSA offers many different kinds of volunteer service opportunities. Some can be completed in a day, and others assist clients as they navigate more complex legal issues.
In Texas, the eviction process can be confusing. Often, tenants who have received an eviction judgment don’t know their legal rights, which can make the process more stressful. This website teaches you about the eviction appeals process so that you can stand up for your rights in the eviction process.
Click here for more information, forms, additional resources, and a step-by-step video.
IMPORTANT: If you have already attended your eviction hearing and you received an eviction judgment, you have 5-calendar days (including weekends and holidays) from the date the eviction judgment was signed to file an appeal. This 5-calendar day deadline may not be extended under any circumstances.
Do you need help with settling a small estate in Bexar County?
Walk-in assistance is available to qualifying applicants. Click here for a calendar of upcoming Small Estate Clinics.
Applicants are encouraged to bring all relevant documents, including the:
- Decedent's death certificate
- Evidence of decedent's assets
- Evidence of decedent's debts
- Any previously filed SEAs
- Any responses from the court regarding previously filed SEAs
Volunteer attorneys offer advice on Small Estate Affidavits for estates under $75,000 and various deed and county records issues.
The Small Estate Help Desk provides free legal assistance for low-income individuals at the Bexar County Courthouse at 100 Dolorosa St., San Antonio, Texas 78205, Room 1.15, every other Thursday from 1:00-3:30 PM.
Operating on a first-come, first-served basis with income qualifications, the service helps clients determine the best approach for their situation and can address questions about property transfers and fraudulent deed or lien issues. The Bexar County Clerk’s Office is on-site to accept ready documents.
Check our Public Calendar for upcoming dates.
San Antonio Legal Services Association (SALSA) assists attornies who want to provide pro bono service, including meeting the State Bar of Texas' recommendation that every attorney perform 50 hours of pro bono service a year.
SALSA provides training resources, mentorship, and coverage under SALSA’s Professional Liability policy. Attornies can give back within their area of expertise or take on a limited-service matter in a new area of the law.
Volunteer for a clinic. Provide limited legal advice or assistance at an isolated pro bono event. (This requires limited or no follow-on assistance.)
Participate in a program. Provide limited scope representation in a subject matter area that has ample training resources and mentor oversight.
Take a case. Provide extended representation services in your area of expertise. Check out SALSA’s available cases and express interest in a particular case.
Click here to learn more and sign up.
Check out the SALSA Calendar for currently available opportunities.
* Are you an attorney who is licensed and in good standing in another state or has an inactive Texas bar license? Learn more about how you can do pro bono in Texas through the NOVA Program.
Please note that volunteers will be contacted on an as-needed basis to confirm availability for cases as they come into the program.
SALSA offers volunteer opportunities for non-attorney volunteers seeking to give their time to support legal efforts that benefit indigent, vulnerable, and at-risk members of our community.
SALSA works with other non-profits in San Antonio to identify gaps in coverage that are ideal for volunteers to fill.
New Volunteer Opportunities: Spanish translation, Don't Bully Me Project Intake (only for paralegals), Court Monitor Program, etc.
Volunteers are accepted on a rolling basis and must first complete the required trainings and clear a background check prior to volunteering.
If you are a student interested in doing guardianship work as a career, if you are in need of community service hours, or if you are an individual who simply wants to help protect a vulnerable population, we’d love to have you volunteer.
Click here to learn more and sign up.
When you volunteer with SALSA, you have all of our resources, trainings, mentors, staff support, and more at your fingertips.
SALSA’s Deed Help Desk is a first-come, first-served, walk-in help desk for low-income communities. Income qualifications are required. If you qualify for SALSA’s services, you’ll be paired with a volunteer attorney to receive legal advice about deed and county records questions and issues. The Bexar County County Clerk’s Office will be on site at the help desk to accept any documents ready for filing.
Volunteer attorneys can answer basic questions about deeds and county records. For example:
- How do I change the name on my deed?
- How do I add a name?
- How do I take off a name?
- How do I transfer my parent’s deed to my name?
- Someone filed a fraudulent deed on my property, what do I do?
- After probating an estate, what needs to be filed here to change the deed?
- How do I put my property under an LLC?
- If a family member passes away, how do I remove their name from the deed?
- Someone filed a fraudulent lien on my property, how do I remove it?
- What form do I need to file to remove my ex from my deed?
- How do I get a new deed with just my name?
Services will be held in the Bexar County Archives Building.
Help Desk calendar dates can be viewed here.
To access the Deed Help Desk and receive free legal aid, certain eligibility requirements must be met. Individuals who meet the following criteria are eligible to seek assistance:
1.Must meet income guidelines. 200% or below the federal poverty limit.
2. Must not currently have legal representation for the specific deed-related issue.
If you meet these eligibility requirements, you can access the Deed Help Desk by walk-in. The upcoming dates for the Deed Help Desk are as follows:
- 09/26/2023
- 10/24/2023
- 11/28/2023
SALSA is at Haven for Hope, every Wednesday from 2–4PM, to assist qualifying applicants with housing and tenants’ rights legal issues, including evictions and eviction appeals, disability accommodations, lockouts, repairs, security deposits, utilities, and expunctions.
No appointment is needed to speak with a SALSA attorney at the Haven for Hope Legal Assistance Clinic. You do not have to be a Haven for Hope client. Individuals will be assisted on a first come, first served basis; no appointment necessary.
Clinic is located at the Haven for Hope Community Center (John L. Santikos Welcome Center).
For all matters, please bring documents related to your legal issue. Originals are not necessary.
Haven for Hope has a strict “no children policy” on the part of the campus where our offices are located. Please plan for your little ones prior to attending SALSA’s walk-in legal clinic.
If you are seeking legal assistance regarding an expunction, and the offense(s) occurred in Bexar County, please obtain a copy of your criminal history from the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office. For more information on how to get a copy of your criminal history, please visit the Bexar County Sheriff’s Website.
Income qualifications apply.
See Map here for parking and directions to SALSA’s offices at Haven for Hope.
Free
SALSA hosts a free legal assistance clinic for eligible Veterans and family members. Veterans may request a virtual appointments (if they are unable to come to the clinic in person), an in-person individual meeting with a staff attorney, or telephone, dependent on the Veteran’s need and Volunteer Attorney’s preference.
Veterans can receive legal and counsel advice ona myriad of legal issues including, but are not limited to:
- expunction & non-disclosure assistance
- housing (tenant/landlord issues)
- probate/survivor’s benefits appeals/wills
- military discharge upgrades
- military benefits appeal questions(disability compensation appeal/increase, VA pension, etc)
- family law issues (guardianship, uncontested divorce or child support agreement, etc)
- military records correction
- criminal record non-disclosure
Please bring all relevant documents pertaining to your legal issue to the clinic or your appointment.
SALSA assists qualifying applicants with eviction-related matters, including eviction appeals and negotiating with your landlord.
Appealing an eviction judgment can buy you more time to stay on the property while you find a new residence.
No appointment is needed, but priority is given to applicants who have already received an eviction judgment, are filing an eviction appeal, or have an eviction hearing that day.
You can find SALSA inside the JP1 building on the right, as you enter, just past security.
Please bring the following documents:
- Notice(s) to vacate (This is the 3-day notice that you receive from the landlord);
- Eviction citation (the document you receive from the constable);
- Your current lease;
- Any other documents you think SALSA should review, such as rent ledgers, deeds, emails/texts, etc.
(Note: We cannot always review every document or take custody of originals.)
Must live in Bexar County’s Precinct 1. (Click here to find your Bexar County Precinct.)
If you live in Bexar County’s Precinct 1, have been served with an eviction citation, and would like to speak with a SALSA attorney before your hearing, please come to our walk-in housing legal clinic at Haven for Hope on Wednesdays from 2–4PM.
If you would like to speak with a SALSA attorney on the same day as your hearing, we will do our best to assist qualifying applicants seeking legal advice. For same day advice, please come to the JP1 Eviction Appeal Help Desk on Thursday (8AM–5PM) at least 1 hour before your scheduled hearing.
If you do not live in Precinct 1 and would like legal assistance before your hearing, you can call St. Mary’s University School of Law, Center for Legal and Social Justice (CLSJ) Housing Hotline at (210) 570-6135.
For more information or to explore self-help resources & services visit us here.
Free