By nature, a leader and one to take up for those who are unable to defend themselves, Attorney Joan D. Clay, Esq., has devoted over half of her legal career to public interest law and to utilizing her expertise to make the legal system more accessible to those who need it most.
A native of Chicago’s South Side, she holds a B.A. in Communications with an emphasis in Journalism from Loyola University Chicago and earned her J.D. from the University of Detroit Mercy.
Since becoming a licensed attorney in 2004, Attorney Clay has been in private practice, academia, and nonprofit roles, but it was during the 2020 COVID shutdown that she saw the vision for a new way to effect change and positively impact the community through her brainchild, The Village Legal and Community Project.
Founded in response to the critical need for accessible civil legal services, The Village Legal and Community Project goes beyond traditional legal assistance by addressing the challenges that affect families, young people, and aspiring entrepreneurs. The organization also provides free and sliding-scale legal services for matters such as landlord-tenant disputes, child support, parenting time, and criminal record sealing and expungement. While its legal services lend a big helping hand, the organization’s work isn’t just limited to the courtroom. Through its economic development and life readiness initiatives, The Village equips entrepreneurs with tools to launch and grow businesses while helping young people build essential career skills, explore opportunities, and prepare for their futures.
N’DIGO recently sat down with the busy law professional and CEO to learn more about her backstory and the incredible work she’s doing with The Village Legal and Community Project.
N’DIGO: In your own words, who is Attorney Joan D. Clay, Esq.?
Joan Clay: I am just a girl from the South Side of Chicago trying to make a difference. I am fortunate that I have always lived life on my own terms, and it has worked out for me.
What are three words family and friends would use to describe you?
Honest. Loyal. Sarcastic.
How did you find yourself on the path to being an attorney, and did you always know you’d pursue it as a kid?
I always laugh when I’m asked this because I really had no idea I would become an attorney. I was a broadcast journalism major in college and have always loved writing. I still don’t know how I ended up in law school, but 22 years later, here I am.
Please tell us about The Village Legal and Community Project and the work you do with the organization.
The Village Legal and Community Project is a nonprofit based on the South Side of Chicago that provides pro bono civil legal services as well as programming in the areas of entrepreneurship and life readiness for our youth. We help with landlord/tenant issues, sealing and expungement of records, parenting time and child support, and driver’s license reinstatement. We also provide some transactional legal services to small businesses, like entity formation, drafting governance documents, and reviewing contracts and commercial leases.
Our B.O.S.S. and Baby B.O.S.S. cohorts work with adults and our youth who want to start a business. And we have a resume bootcamp for our youth to prepare to enter the workforce.
Are there common misconceptions you find that people have in regards to their legal rights in the matters that you handle?
People rely on what they “heard,” and rarely does what they heard match the law or their particular circumstances. The hardest part of my job sometimes is being the reality check for people. “It depends” is a real answer.
What are three principles or rules you abide by when conducting business?
- Listen closely to the side/other person
- Ask for what you want
- Pick your battles
What’s the best advice you remember receiving as a youth?
I can’t remember the best advice I received. I remember feeling safe pursuing whatever interests I wanted with my parents and being raised to believe anything is possible.
And from your life experiences, what is your best advice for the youth?
Decide what you want to do with your life and then make a plan. There are no shortcuts, no substitutions for hard work, and you have to be prepared to fail and learn the lessons from that failure.
What’s something people would be surprised to know about you?
My intense love of baseball. I am a lifelong Chicago White Sox fan and season ticket holder.
The last great book you read was….?
I have a stack of books I hope to get to soon. Lately, I have been buying cookbooks. I love a great vegan cookbook but will also buy regular cookbooks and figure out how to make the recipes vegan.
Favorite quote or affirmation?
I reread The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz regularly. One of the agreements I am focused on right now is not taking anything personally. This agreement focuses on not taking what others say or do personally. If you master this agreement, you can avoid unnecessary suffering.
What’s next for Attorney Joan D. Clay, Esq., and the Village Legal and Community Project?
We are a young nonprofit. I want us to continue to grow in size and impact. Ideally, I want the organization to own its space and use it not just for The Village but to be a community hub.
For more information on The Village Legal and Community Project, please visit www.tvlcp.org
