Early Care & Education

Ninety percent of brain development occurs between the ages of zero to five, so quality early care and education is instrumental for child development, growth, and lifelong success. Public Counsel’s Early Care and Education law unit is the leading provider of free legal services for child care providers in L.A. County and fills a critical void—as early care and education is a highly regulated industry with multiple barriers to entry.

Our services contribute to the financial security of the business owner and enable working families in low-income communities and communities of color to secure quality child care services so that they can both contribute to the economy and earn a living wage for their families. The program’s goal is to maintain and increase the supply of quality early care and education in Los Angeles County by helping providers overcome barriers to opening and operating their child care programs. Without such support, many of these providers would be unable to start their business or sustain providing quality services to low-income children.

We assist in-home day care providers and nonprofit child care centers with issues such as: 

• Understanding and complying with employment laws
• Landlord discrimination against in-home day care providers
• Land use/zoning barriers imposed by local jurisdictions
• Compliance with state licensing regulations
• Navigating business issues related to liability and risk management
• Drafting contracts and other transactional documents that will protect the provider and their business.

See Get Help below to apply for support.