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Cannabis Expungement Clinic Near Me

Free expungement clinics exist in every state — staffed by legal aid attorneys, law students, public defenders, and volunteer lawyers. Most provide help filing the petition, free or sharply reduced, often in a single afternoon. Here’s how to find one near you.

The Single Most Useful Day on the Calendar

National Expungement Week happens every September. During that week, dozens of cities host free clinics where attorneys help walk-in clients file expungement petitions. Some clinics also provide on-the-spot record review, ID assistance, and connections to job-training programs. Check the official site each summer for the year’s clinic list.

Outside that week, year-round clinics exist in most major metro areas. The directory below is organized by the most common types of free clinic.

How to Find a Clinic Near You

1. Legal Aid Organizations

Every state has a Legal Aid network funded in part by the Legal Services Corporation. Most local legal aid offices handle expungements as a routine matter. Eligibility is income-based (typically 125–200% of the federal poverty line).

2. Law School Expungement Clinics

Many law schools run year-round clinics where supervised second- and third-year law students handle expungement cases. Income limits often apply but tend to be more generous than legal-aid programs.

  • Northwestern Children & Family Justice Center — Chicago (IL).
  • Howard Law — Civil Rights Clinic — Washington, DC.
  • Loyola Center for Criminal Justice — New Orleans (LA).
  • Drexel Kline Law — Criminal Defense Clinic — Philadelphia (PA).
  • UCLA Ernesto Cruz Center — Los Angeles (CA).
  • NYU Civil Defense Clinic — New York (NY).
  • University of Maryland Carey Law — Re-Entry Clinic — Baltimore (MD).
  • Mitchell Hamline Reentry Clinic — St. Paul (MN).

Search "[your nearest law school] expungement clinic" to find others. New ones launch every academic year.

3. Public Defender Expungement Units

Several public-defender offices (county or state) operate dedicated post-conviction relief units that handle expungement filings for past clients (and sometimes broader populations). Notable examples:

  • Cook County Public Defender Expungement Help Desk — Chicago (IL).
  • Los Angeles County Public Defender Clean Slate Program — LA County (CA).
  • Maricopa County Public Defender Expungement Workshops — Phoenix (AZ).
  • King County Department of Public Defense Records Project — Seattle (WA).

Even if your jurisdiction doesn’t advertise a dedicated unit, calling the local public defender and asking is worth the time.

4. ACLU Chapter Expungement Projects

State ACLU chapters run periodic expungement clinics, particularly during reform-bill rollouts. Examples that have hosted clinics in 2024–2025:

  • ACLU of Illinois — partnered with state agencies on the automatic-expungement rollout.
  • ACLU of New Jersey — CREAMMA expungement support.
  • ACLU of Pennsylvania — periodic Philadelphia/Pittsburgh clinics.
  • ACLU of Maryland — works with the State’s Attorney’s office on automatic-expungement implementation.

Check your state ACLU’s "Smart Justice" or "Criminal Legal Reform" pages.

5. Cannabis-Specific Nonprofits

  • Last Prisoner Project — case-by-case attorney support for cannabis-related convictions; clemency petitions; periodic state campaigns.
  • NORML Legal Committee — state-level referrals to cannabis-knowledgeable counsel.
  • Code for America — Clear My Record — partners with prosecutors in California, Utah, and other states to automate cannabis-record clearance.

6. State Attorney General & District Attorney Initiatives

Several state AGs and DAs run periodic free expungement events. These are particularly useful in petition states with new automatic eligibility, where the public office wants to help residents access the new relief.

  • San Francisco DA, Los Angeles DA — long-running cannabis expungement initiatives under California Prop 64.
  • Manhattan DA, Brooklyn DA, Bronx DA — vacatur of cannabis convictions under New York’s MRTA.
  • Cook County State’s Attorney — Illinois automatic expungement support.
  • St. Louis Circuit Attorney, Kansas City Prosecutor — Missouri Article XIV expungements.

Check your prosecutor’s public events page for upcoming clinic dates.

What to Bring to the Clinic

  • Government-issued photo ID
  • Any case numbers, court dates, or sentencing documents you have
  • A list of every cannabis-related conviction (including misdemeanors and dropped charges)
  • Proof of completion of any required sentence (probation discharge, parole termination)
  • Recent paystubs or benefits documentation if eligibility is income-based
  • Notepad — you’ll get a lot of information in a short visit

If No Clinic Is Near You

Try in this order:

  1. Call your state bar’s lawyer referral service — many offer free or low-cost initial consultations.
  2. Check your state Supreme Court’s self-help portal — most publish DIY expungement forms with instructions.
  3. Search "[your state] expungement self-help" for state-court walk-throughs.
  4. NORML chapter — many state and city chapters connect members to volunteer lawyers.
  5. Public library legal-help desk — some libraries (notably in California, Illinois, Texas) host weekly free legal-help hours.

For background on who qualifies and what the process looks like, see our step-by-step expungement guide.

If You’d Rather Pay a Lawyer Directly

See Cannabis Expungement Attorney for how to evaluate paid counsel and what fees to expect.