Address Evictions to Address Poverty, Author Tells Law School Audience

When he was a graduate student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Matthew Desmond searched for research on the impact of evictions on low-income people. He found close to nothing written by academics, policy makers, or journalists.

No more. Almost a decade later, Desmond has written a book that is already attracting major attention nationwide and changing the conversation about evictions and related housing issues for low-income people.

The book, which was officially released on Tuesday, is set in Milwaukee and is based on Desmond’s emersion in the lives of renters and landlords in 2008 and 2009 and on his research into tens of thousands of records on evictions.

And he chose an “On the Issues with Mike Gousha” program at Marquette Law School on Tuesday as the first event on a national book tour.

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Welcome to Our March Blogger

Lion - Louisville ZooI am pleased to announce that our guest Alumni Blogger for March is Ryan Murphy ’04. Ryan is the General Counsel at Edgerton Contractors, Inc., and is also an adjunct professor in the College of Engineering, where he teaches Engineering Law to senior- and graduate-level students.

Many thanks to our previous guests, Jason Roberts ’10 and 3L Steven Wah.

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MVLC Receives Two Awards for Service to Low-Income People

Through efforts such as the Marquette Volunteer Legal Clinic (MVLC), “we are chipping away at poverty by bringing greater access to justice,” says Angela Schultz, Marquette Law School’s assistant dean for public service.

The documentable record of the clinic in providing thousands of low-income people with access to legal help earned honors at two events this week.

On Tuesday, Milwaukee Archbishop Jerome E. Listecki presented a “Treasures of the Church” award to the clinic in recognition of the success of the Mobile Legal Clinic, which was launched in 2014 as a joint project of Marquette LMobileLegalClinic-noblueaw School, the Milwaukee Bar Association, and Milwaukee County. The recognition came as part of Archbishop’s Lenten Luncheon. The Treasures of the Church awards recognize those who have shown steadfast commitment in response to the needs of poor people.

On Thursday, the United Community Center, a large social service and education provider on the south side, recognized the MVLC as its “group volunteer of the year.”

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