photo by: Kim Callahan/Journal-World

The Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center is pictured on Nov. 25, 2025.

Douglas County tenants facing eviction are now able to access free legal consultation and representation with the county’s new tenant eviction defense pilot program.

The pilot program, which launched on June 1, has already served 37 individuals as of Thursday, according to a press release from Douglas County. As the Journal-World reported, the program is supported by the Douglas County District Court Self-Help Center in partnership with Kansas Holistic Defenders and Kansas Legal Services.

Casey Forsyth, the Self-Help Center’s director, said in the release that if tenants receive an eviction notice, they should attend their court date and not ignore it.

Attorneys will be available at the tenant’s first answer hearings, and tenants can request assistance in person at the hearing or in advance by completing an application at https://www.dgcoks.gov/form/eviction-defense-application.

Sam Allison-Natale, executive director of Kansas Holistic Defenders, has already seen benefits to the program. He said the increased availability of attorneys has encouraged more people to attend their court dates and seek resources.

“We’ve heard from tenants that the reason they showed up at court was that they heard help from attorneys would be available,” Allison-Natale said in the release. “Hope can be a powerful motivator for people to not give up on what seems like a desperate situation and seek out the resources our community has available.”

There’s a similar program in Topeka that has helped 250 tenants in the past two years, Brynn Blair, managing attorney at Kansas Legal Services’ Topeka office, said in the release.

“KLS is honored to have the local community’s support for this pilot program, and we look forward to helping low-income tenants access free legal services in Douglas County,” Blair said in the release.

The program comes after the County Commission has had multiple previous conversations surrounding the development of a tenants right to counsel program – which would guarantee legal representation to any renter facing eviction – after Lawrence Tenants brought its own proposal forward, as the Journal-World reported.

A tenants right to counsel program is highlighted as a strategy in the city-county plan to end chronic homelessness, “A Place for Everyone,” to help reach its affordable housing goals.

The pilot – which county commissioners allocated $40,000 towards in May – will only last until December, and then, county commissioners will evaluate its data and performance. The commissioners will also consider whether or not to continue the program.

The Self-Help Center is open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday inside the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center, 111 E. Eleventh St. Staff can be contacted via email at selfhelp@dgcoks.gov or by phone or text at 785-691-9448.