Q: What Is COVID H.E.L.P.?
A: COVID H.E.L.P. (Housing and Economic Loss Prevention) is a project of a statewide network of Illinois legal aid non for profit
organizations that provide legal advice and representation to help people in Illinois experiencing common legal problems due to the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Q: How Does COVID H.E.L.P. Work?
A: By visiting http://covidhelpillin.wpengine.com, you can interact with one of COVID H.E.L.P.’s virtual legal assistant chat bots about
your legal problem, to get accurate and reliable legal information, be directed to other online legal resources that are on point to your problem, and to connect with legal aid programs around Illinois that help with your kind of legal problem.
Q. What Types Of Legal Problems Are Covered By COVID H.E.L.P.?
A: The chat bots of COVID H.E.L.P. were created to address the most common legal subjects that have been affected by the
COVID-19 pandemic. These topics are:
Consumer (Debt and Bankruptcy)
Housing (landlord/tenant, eviction and foreclosure)
Employment
Unemployment
Probate (Estates and Guardianship)
If you have some other type of legal problem, COVID H.E.L.P. is still a fast way to direct you to general online legal resources.
Q: What If I Have More Than One Legal Problem?
A: You can use COVID H.E.L.P. multiple times if you have several legal problems. Each legal subject area is a different chat bot,
so after you finish with one bot, you can start again http://covidhelpillin.wpengine.com with another bot for your additional legal
problem.
Q: Is There Another Way To Find Legal Help For My Problem?
A: If you want to browse the legal aid programs that are available in your area, go to the COVID H.E.L.P. resource page <here.>
Q: Are The Chat Bots A Live Conversation With An Attorney?
A: No, the chat bots are not a real time conversation with an attorney, but their software logic has been created by legal aid attorneys.
By answering a series of questions about your legal problem, you will learn helpful legal information, and be pointed to other online
legal resources, as well as connected to the legal aid programs in your area that might be able to help you further.
Q: Is Using COVID H.E.L.P. The Same As Getting Advice From An Attorney?
A: No, interacting with the chat bots online is not the same as getting specific legal advice from an attorney in person.
COVID H.E.L.P. provides legal information, not legal advice that is very specific to an individual person’s situation. While
nothing can fully take the place of having a legal consultation with an attorney directly, COVID H.E.L.P. can give you legal
information that applies to your legal issue, can point you to online legal resources about the problem, and direct you to
any available legal aid that exists for your problem, in your area. You are encouraged to consult with an attorney if you
want specific legal advice for your particular situation.
Q: Are COVID H.E.L.P. Services Free?
A: Yes, there is no charge to use the COVID H.E.L.P. bots. The bots will point you to free resources, including legal aid.
If there is no legal aid available for a particular legal problem, the bots will point you to resources on finding a private attorney.
Private attorneys do charge fees for their services.