Pepperdine Caruso Law Disaster Relief Clinic Supports Over 100 Fire Victims

Pepperdine Caruso Law Disaster Relief Clinic students Caroline Kedeshian, Amanda Lacher, Ellie LaFrombois, Jackson Petty, and Reese Welch assisted over 100 victims of the Palisades and Eaton fires this summer. The students guided fire victims through complex insurance, FEMA, and property claims. Balancing five to six clients at a time, the students developed tailored legal strategies, negotiated insurance settlements, and resolved property disputes and liens.

The clinic's outstanding community impact, led by Palisades fire survivors Jackie Adams and Jessica Lazarus, was featured in the Palisades Post article, "Survivor-Led Pepperdine Legal Clinic Offers Palisades Residents Free Legal Services."

Excerpt from the Palisades Post:

The Pepperdine University Caruso School of Law’s Disaster Relief Clinic has expanded its free legal services for Palisades and Eaton Fire survivors, offering assistance with insurance, remediation, FEMA claims and tenant issues at no cost.

The initiative is led by director Jackie Adams and staff attorney Jessica Lazarus, both of whom are Palisades Fire survivors. Three of the clinic’s five summer interns are also affected Pacific Palisades residents.

“We’re Palisadians, too. We get it,” Adams said in an interview with the Palisadian-Post. “Let’s walk each other home.”

The clinic draws on that shared experience, advising residents—many of whom the team considers neighbors—from the perspective of people who have navigated the very same losses. More than a year after the January 2025 fire, many residents still find themselves navigating insurance claims, remediation and rebuilding in a slow and often foreign process, in which free legal help can be difficult to find. The clinic’s services are pro bono and the attorneys staffing the clinic do not keep a percentage of what clients recover.

The complete article may be found at the Palisades Post