Phoenix Free Civil Legal Aid: Community Legal Services Guide (2026-27)
Updated: 1 hour ago
Need a free lawyer for a civil problem in Phoenix or Maricopa County? Community Legal Services is the main option. Qualifying is rarely the hard part. Getting through intake is, so here is the route step by step.
AT A GLANCE
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If you live in Phoenix or elsewhere in Maricopa County and need a lawyer for a civil problem you can't afford to handle alone, the main free option is Community Legal Services (CLS). It's a nonprofit law firm that handles eviction defense, debt collection, benefit denials, family cases involving domestic violence, unpaid wages and more. The hard part usually isn't qualifying. It's getting through: CLS screens by phone, online or at a few satellite sites, its central Phoenix office isn't taking walk-ins, and phone intake has set hours.
This guide is built as a step-by-step route through intake, starting with the timing you need to know right now. Everything comes from CLS's own website and the statewide AZLawHelp.org intake site, read directly in October 2026.
Step 1: Check That CLS Handles Your Kind of Problem
CLS only takes civil cases. Its "What We Do" page lists these areas:
Area | Examples CLS lists |
|---|---|
Housing | Eviction defense, public or subsidized housing issues, forcing landlords to make needed safety repairs (such as air conditioning), foreclosure |
Family | Divorce, paternity and guardianship, with priority for cases involving domestic violence or child abuse |
Consumer | Debt collection defense, contract violations (priority on solar panel and car repair or sales problems), federal tax debt |
Public benefits | Appeals of overpayments, terminations or denials of Unemployment, Nutrition Assistance, AHCCCS, Social Security and cash assistance |
Employment | Unpaid wages, criminal conviction set-asides, marijuana conviction expungements, farmworker issues |
What CLS won't take:
Criminal cases. CLS does not help with criminal charges. Setting aside a conviction or getting an expungement counts as civil, and CLS does help with those.
Motor Vehicle Division tickets or fines.
Physical injury claims. CLS's consumer page explains that private lawyers usually take these on contingency, meaning you pay fees only if you win.
CLS's consumer unit also lists help with car purchases, wage and bank account garnishments, student loans, homeowners association assessments, title loans and predatory lending, and bankruptcy. It runs an IRS-funded Tax Program for people in disputes with the IRS.
Step 2: Pick a Way to Apply
CLS says it does eligibility screenings by phone and in person, and you can also apply online.
By phone
Central Phoenix intake: 602-258-3434, Monday–Friday, 9:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m.
Toll-free: 1-800-852-9075
TTY: 602-254-9852
Online
CLS points Maricopa County applicants to AZLawHelp.org, available 24 hours a day. AZLawHelp.org says free or reduced-fee legal help may be available if you qualify, and you can check eligibility by calling 866-637-5341 or applying online. The site also has a box for a six-digit "Modest Means" code, which applies only if the phone application gave you one.
In person
CLS's central Phoenix office at 305 S. 2nd Avenue is not accepting walk-ins. Because of building repairs, CLS says it has stopped in-office appointments and walk-in applications until further notice, with two exceptions: people without a working or reliable phone, and clients preparing for trials and hearings.
Walk-in help is still available at three Maricopa County satellite sites. CLS notes they're first come, first served and that financial and other eligibility rules apply.
Satellite site | Address | Listed walk-in hours |
|---|---|---|
Peoria Resource Center | 8335 W. Jefferson St., Peoria, AZ 85345 | Tue 9 a.m.–12 p.m.; Wed 9 a.m.–4 p.m. |
Native Health (Building C) | 4041 N. Central, Phoenix, AZ 85012 | Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri 9 a.m.–4 p.m.; Wed 9 a.m.–12 p.m. |
MesaCAN | 635 E. Broadway Road, Mesa, AZ 85204 | Fri 9 a.m.–12 p.m. |
CLS also runs offices outside Maricopa County (Kingman, Prescott, San Luis and Yuma). If you live in one of those areas, use that office instead. CLS provides translators for all languages and makes its services available to people with disabilities.
Step 3: Get Ready for the Screening
CLS's instruction is simple: when you visit or call, have all information about your legal issue and your household income ready. Its pages say financial and other eligibility apply, but none of the pages we read gives a dollar income limit. Expect the screener to work that out with you.
When you visit or call, have all information about your legal issue and your household income ready.
CLS doesn't publish a fixed document checklist. Based on what it asks for, have these on hand:
Every paper about the problem: court papers, eviction notices, collection letters, garnishment notices, benefit denial or overpayment letters, and any hearing date
Proof of income for everyone in your household (pay stubs, benefit award letters, unemployment statements)
Your household size and your address, so they can confirm which office serves you
For a debt, the creditor's or collector's name and any account number
For a landlord repair problem, the dates you reported it and any photos or messages
Watch your deadlines. Court answer dates and benefit appeal deadlines can be short, so tell the screener about any date right away.
Step 4: Use CLS's Free Self-Help Material While You Wait
CLS's consumer page offers free downloads, including information on wage garnishment, buying a used car, and federally guaranteed student loan debt, plus a sample letter asking a creditor for written verification of a debt you don't think you owe. CLS says to email info@clsaz.org if you need these in another language.
That page also covers Arizona's lemon law for used cars bought from a dealer. CLS describes it as very limited: warranty protection for 15 days or 500 miles, whichever comes first.
CLS also runs a Kiosk Project. At a CLS legal kiosk you can have a video meeting with a lawyer or a court, look up information on your legal problem, find legal help and forms, learn your rights, and print and scan documents.
Step 5: If CLS Can't Take Your Case
Free legal aid offices can't help everyone who qualifies. If CLS turns you down, or your income is over its limits:
Ask whether a volunteer lawyer project fits. CLS's Volunteer Lawyers Program recruits Arizona-licensed attorneys to give free advice, brief help and full representation. Projects include the Family Lawyers Assistance Project (advice and brief help with divorce, child support, legal decision-making and parenting time), the Probate Lawyers Assistance Project, the Children's Law Center for grandparents and other caregivers seeking guardianship or adoption, and a Federal Court Self-Service Clinic for people representing themselves in federal civil cases.
Ask about reduced-fee help. AZLawHelp.org says free or reduced-fee legal help may be available. If you're over the free-help limits, ask about Modest Means when you apply.
Reapply if your situation changes. If your income drops or a new notice arrives, contact intake again with the new paperwork.
Don't let deadlines pass. If you have a court date and no lawyer yet, go to the hearing. Missing it usually makes things worse.
Quick Reference
What | Contact |
|---|---|
CLS Phoenix phone intake | 602-258-3434 (Mon–Fri, 9 a.m.–2 p.m.) |
CLS toll-free | 1-800-852-9075 |
CLS TTY | 602-254-9852 |
AZLawHelp.org phone application | 866-637-5341 |
Email for translated self-help documents | info@clsaz.org |
WHAT TO DO THIS WEEK
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More help in Phoenix
Find more local guides on rent, utilities, food, taxes and legal help at our Phoenix Financial Help Guides hub.
Related guides
Official sources
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Hours and phone numbers can change. Confirm with CLS before you rely on any detail.
October 2026 (CLS website and AZLawHelp.org)
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