On August 11, 2017, Mayor Bill De Blasio of New York City signed the United States’ first law that provides free legal representation in eviction cases for all tenants earning 200 percent or less of the federal poverty line. Other cities such as Boston, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. have followed suit by either enacting or proposing similar measures. These efforts are the culmination of efforts by the National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel, the New York City Bar Association, the Boston Bar Association, and several other groups to level the playing field for tenants who are facing eviction. Statistically, tenants face daunting odds. For instance, 90% of landlords are represented by counsel while 90% of tenants are not. The impact of not having counsel was clearly demonstrated in a 2013 pilot program initiated by the D.C. Right to Counsel Initiative. In that program tenants who were assigned lawyers were six times less likely to be evicted. Time will tell if the New York law will substantiate that result. If so, the trend to provide free legal counsel to those facing homelessness may be coming to a city near you.