Earlier this month, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a nationwide order temporarily halting residential evictions through Dec. 31 of this year to halt the spread of COVID-19.

Even though renters facing eviction in the Greater Cleveland area have been given a temporary reprieve, this is still a confusing and frightening time for them. In Cleveland alone, there have been 1,467 eviction filings since March 15. Renters who are struggling to make their rent payments may not be aware of the moratorium or what they need to do to qualify for the protection. But help is available.

Ohio Legal Help runs OhioLegalHelp.org, a free, trusted legal help website that provides forms, easy-to-understand legal information, and referrals to additional community resources in common, critical legal areas, including the CDC’s eviction moratorium, unemployment benefits, foreclosures, and domestic violence. Ohio Legal Help is funded by the Ohio Supreme Court, the Ohio State Bar Foundation, and the Gund Foundation.

As Ohioans navigate ever-changing developments around COVID-19, it’s essential for them to have access to accurate information about legal problems they are facing. OhioLegalHelp.org meets these needs.

David A. Kutik,

Avon Lake

David A. Kutik is board president of Ohio Legal Help.

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