To Contact Us by Mail Use the guidelines below to write the ACLU at the following address: How to American Civil Liberties Union of Washington P.O. Box 4115 Seattle, WA 98104-1799 In order to assist you, the ACLU needs the following information: • Your name, mailing address, telephone and e-mail address (if available) • If you are writing on behalf of another person, please provide the person’s name. Also state your relationship to the person and provide any contact information you have for the person. • Are you presently represented by an attorney in the matter you are writing about? • Briefly describe the problem or issue about which you are contacting the ACLU. Please include any relevant dates and give the names of individuals or organizations involved in the matter. • Do you have any documentation of this matter? If so, please describe it. • Have you taken any steps to resolve this issue (for instance: filed a grievance, contacted another agency or organization, or gone through an appeals process)? • If yes, where and what did you file, and what was the result? • What would you like the ACLU to do concerning this matter? The ACLU of Washington Foundation maintains the confidentiality of all information we receive. We may wish to share this information with other legal organizations while investigating complaints, but we will always seek your permission before doing so. 11/09 American Civil Liberties Union of Washington P.O. Box 4115, Seattle, WA 98194 Legal Complaint Line: (206) 624-2180 www.aclu-wa.org/gethelp We only respond to letters sent that are written to the ACLU. We do not respond to copies of letters sent to other groups. Response time varies, but typically ranges between three to six weeks. Seek Help from the ACLU of Washington P.O. Box 4115, Seattle, WA 98194 www.aclu-wa.org What is the ACLU? As one of more than 50 local ACLU affiliates around the country, the ACLU of Washington handles civil liberties and civil rights matters that happen in the state of Washington. We do not provide assistance outside of Washington. To find the ACLU affiliate in your state, go to the national ACLU website (www.aclu.org). The ACLU works on a wide range of issues involving equal treatment for all, fair treatment by government, privacy, and personal freedoms, such as free speech, religious freedom, and reproductive choice. These broad areas include discrimination based on race, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, or disability; police misconduct; personal privacy; the rights of students and young people; and other civil liberties. What We Do • We offer information in response to specific inquiries or concerns. • We coach people on how to assert their own rights, and sometimes we advocate on their behalf. • When we can’t help, we refer people to other organizations that may be able to. • We undertake selected impact lawsuits that will defend or extend fundamental civil liberties and civil rights and will affect a large number of people. However, the number of cases that we take is relatively small. What We Don’t Do The ACLU of Washington does not handle matters that happen outside the State of Washington. Although there are exceptions, the ACLU does not generally assist in these types of cases: • Criminal Defense or Post-Conviction Appeals • Divorce or Custody Cases • Property Disputes • Tax Problems • Landlord-Tenant Disputes • Building Code Issues • Complaints about Lawyers or Judges The ACLU is not a general legal aid provider, such as the public defender’s office or a legal services office that is specifically funded to aid low-income people. There are a number of legal service resources in Washington, and you can find information at the Washington State Bar Association website: http://www.wsba.org/atj/ contact/legasst.htm. What Does It Cost? All ACLU assistance, including litigation, is provided free of charge. How Does the ACLU Choose Cases? The ACLU generally files cases that affect the civil liberties or civil rights of large numbers of people. The basic questions we ask when reviewing a potential case are: (1) Is this a significant civil liberties or civil rights issue? (2) What effect will this case have on people in addition to our client? (3) Do we have the necessary resources to take this case? Why the ACLU Turns Down Cases Which Fall Within Our Guidelines There are many incidents of unfairness and injustice that the ACLU is simply unable to handle. We receive thousands of requests for help each year. Therefore, we cannot accept many of the cases that fall within the guidelines discussed above. If your complaint is not pursued by our office, it does not mean it is without merit. Can the ACLU Advise Me About My Case? If we do not accept your case, then the ACLU is unable to give you advice about your case, answer questions, or provide other types of assistance – for example, reviewing papers or conducting legal research to assist you. This policy allows us to direct the necessary resources to those cases we do accept. If you presently are represented by an attorney, Washington court rules prohibit us from talking about your case with you without the permission of your attorney. If you believe there are issues that merit ACLU attention, you should discuss them with your attorney and have the attorney contact us to either (1) discuss the case directly with the ACLU, or (2) give the ACLU permission to discuss the case with you. Important Note About Deadlines All legal claims have time deadlines. The deadlines may be different depending on who violated your rights and which rights were violated. For some kinds of violations, you may need to file a claim with a government agency before you can sue, and these agencies have their own time deadlines. If you do not comply with the applicable statute of limitations, you may be legally barred from pursuing your claim in court. Contacting the ACLU to describe your problem does not mean that the ACLU represents you and will not stop the statute of limitations from running. The ACLU cannot give you advice about the deadlines that apply to your case. To protect your rights, please consult an attorney promptly to find out what deadline may apply to your case. To Contact Us Online Visit our website, www.aclu-wa.org, and go to the “Get Help” section. To Contact Us by Phone Volunteer counselors answer calls on the ACLU Intake and Referral Line during varying times within our business day. Please call 206.624.2180 to talk to a counselor or to find out when the line is open. If we are not available, you will receive a message telling our current hours for the intake line. Please note that we do not accept voicemail messages. . The counselor may be able to provide general information over the phone. Depending on the issues you raise, the counselor may ask you to send additional information. If the ACLU cannot help you, the counselor will try to refer you to an organization that can.