Commercial Lease Legal Clinic

Communities Rise with the support of the City of Seattle Office of Economic Development will be offering free 1 hour phone consultations with an attorney for eligible small businesses and non-profits seeking support around commercial leases.

Please note that this clinic can only serve Washington state based small business and non-profits that meet income eligibility requirements.

This clinic is best suited for clients seeking assistance with:

• Commercial Lease Review
• Questions about options when facing Commercial Lease eviction
• General advice around commercial lease negotiation

The Commercial Lease Clinic is not able to serve businesses and nonprofits who are already involved in court proceedings related to their commercial lease. For example, if your landlord already filed an action in court against your business, the clinic cannot handle your matter. The reason is that then your business or nonprofit is subject to court evidence rules that clinic attorneys are not qualified to handle.

How To Request An Appointment With An Attorney:

• Send an email to smallbiz@communities-rise.org with “Commercial Lease Clinic” as the subject line.
• Please include some information about the commercial lease support you are seeking.
• If your legal need is a good fit for the Commercial Lease clinic, Communities Rise staff will ask you to submit a Phone Consultation Form to complete your application.
• Upon receiving a completed Phone Consultation form, Communities Rise staff will review your application and reach out about next steps.
• Please note that the last day to request an appointment with an attorney for the Commercial Lease clinic is Monday, December 11.

When seeking an appointment at the Commercial Lease clinic, please be prepared to email a copy of your lease to Communities Rise staff.

The Commercial Lease clinic has a limited number of appointments available; while we are trying to make sufficient appointments available to meet client need, we cannot guarantee we will be able to serve all applicants.

Please direct any questions about the Commercial Lease clinic to smallbiz@communities-rise.org.

If you are an attorney who is interested in volunteering at the Commercial Lease clinic, please email probono@communities-rise.org to get connected!