Disaster Legal Services in Tennessee

1

• Disaster Legal Services in Tennessee
• Flood/Storms of
• May 2010

2
May 2010 Floods

• The May 2010 Tennessee floods occured in Middle
  and West Tennessee, South Central and Western
  Kentucky and northern Mississippi as the result
  of torrential rains on May 1 and 2, 2010.
• Floods from these rains affected the area for
  several days afterwards, resulting in a number of
  deaths and widespread property damage

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May 2010 Floods

• Rain totals in some areas were greater than 14-22
  inches. The Cumberland River crested at 51.86
  feet in Nashville. All-time record crests were
  observed on the Cumberland River at Clarksville
  the Duck River at Centerville and Hurricane
  Mills, the Buffalo River at Lobelville, the
  Harpeth River at Kingston Springs and Bellevue,
  and the Red River at Port Royal.

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May 2010 Floods

• Flood waters reached places in Tennessee that
  have never been flooded since there has been
  recorded history in the area.
• Many do not have flood insurance to cover damage
  cover by ground water.

5
Disaster Phase I - Response

• Immediately following a disaster - Survivors need
  to
• Be safe and out of danger
• Attend to immediate medical/physical/emotional
  needs
• Find temporary shelter
• Ascertain safety of family, friends, pets
• Determine losses (home, auto, job, etc.)
• Can take anywhere from 1 day to several weeks

6
Disaster Phase II Short Term Recovery

• Goals for Helping Survivors
• Protect their shelter housing rights
• Reestablish lost income protect employment
  rights
• Gain access to federal and state disaster
  assistance
• Maximize any private insurance available.
• Can begin within a week after disaster, can go on
  for up to a month.
• Need for Legal Services

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Disaster Phase III Long Term Recovery/Rebuild

• Help Survivors with Housing
• Homeowners buy out? rebuild? Future floods? What
  are building standards? Foreclosure?
• Renters liveability? landlord response? Future
  floods?
• Protect Against Fraud
• Maximize Insurance/Federal Benefits
• Assist with document replacement/POA/ wills
• Manage Ongoing Legal Needs

8
Disaster Response Infrastructure - Government

• Local County Emergency Management Agencies
  (EMAs)
• Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA)
  regional offices East, West, Middle
• TEMA
• Federal Emergency Management Agency

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DLS Partners
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Disaster Response Infrastructure Legal Services

• ABA/YLD FEMA Memorandum of Understanding
• Tennessee Bar Association State co-coordinator
• Recruitment of volunteer attorneys
• Publicity/marketing
• Training of attorneys
• State VOAD/DLS
• TALS State co-coordinator State
  co-coordinator
• Disaster Legal Services (DLS) Hotline coordinator
  
• Publicity/marketing
• Training and support of legal service providers
• Coordination of pro bono programs
• Reporting to FEMA ABA/YLD
• State VOAD/DLS

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Legal contd

• Legal Aid Providers
• Placement of cases with local pro bono attorneys
• Clinics Neighborhood Meetings
• Limited Case Handling
• Local Bars
• Assist with pro bono recruitment
• placement of fee-generating cases
• Local VOAD/DLS
• Other Agencies
• Tennessee Association for Justice
• Tennessee Justice Center
• Disability Law Advocacy Center

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Tennessee Structure
Flow of Information During a Disaster
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Disaster Response Local Programs

• FEMA/TEMA efforts
• VOAD Volunteer Organizations Assisting in a
  Disaster
• Disaster Application Disaster Recovery Centers
  (DACs DRCs) only activated in a disaster
• Local Non-profits
• Red Cross
• United Way
• Other disaster agencies
• Long-Term Recovery Committees

14
TALS Disaster Response

• Appropriate legal services include
• Volunteer attorney staffing at local Disaster
  Application or Recovery Centers, if applicable
• Hotline telephone assistance and referrals
• Voluntary lawyer services for individual cases
• Referrals to bar association lawyer referral
  services and
• Any legal services you normally provide as a
  legal service agency.

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Common Legal Issues

• Securing government benefits available to
  disaster victims FEMA Small Business
  Administration
• Assisting with filing life, medical and property
  insurance claims
• Dealing with home repair contracts and
  contractors
• Replacing missing or destroyed wills and other
  legal documents
• Dealing with consumer protection matters,
  remedies and procedures
• Counseling on mortgage-foreclosure problems
• Counseling on landlord/tenant problems

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Major Sources of Monetary Help for Flood Victims

• Insurance
• FEMA
• Small Business Administration Loans
• Charitable
• Volunteer
• Gap Funding Metro Program We Are Home
  Program

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Disaster Legal Services

• Tennessee DLS Hotline
• 1-888-395-9297 (M-F, 9-5 CDT)
• Facebook Group Page
• Disaster Legal Services in Tennessee
• Contact Erik Cole
• [phone] ext. 23
• ecole_at_tals.org
• www.tals.org

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Useful Links

• Metro Flood Site
• http//www.nashvillerecovery.com/index.asp
• TBA Flood Site
• http//www.tba.org/volunteer/
• TALS
• www.tals.org
• TN Disaster Legal Assistance Manual
• http//www.tba.org/YLD/disaster_manual.pdf
• DLAC Flood Guidehttp//www.tba.org/volunteer/floo
  dguide_051010.pdf

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Useful Links

• FEMA
• www.fema.gov
• TEMA
• www.tnema.org
• Local Firm FAQs Blogs
• http//nashvillefloodhelp.blogspot.com/
• http//www.babc.com/flood-relief-update-05-05-2010
  /
• http//walleraid.squarespace.com/
• TALS Disaster Response Working Group (listserv)
• tals_disaster_at_lists.tals.org