Unemployment Insurance Benefit Claim

The purpose of our Unemployment Benefits Assistance Program is to assist individuals who have been denied unemployment and have applied for a hearing to obtain benefits. Our program has limited resources. JustCause does not guarantee that an attorney will be available to attend an unemployment hearing but will make every effort to match clients needing assistance with available volunteers. 

Individuals who have been denied unemployment and who have received a Notice of Determination from the New York State Department of Labor are eligible for JustCause’s program. If you have not yet applied for benefits or have not yet applied for a hearing after having been denied benefits, please do so before continuing with our intake process. You may request a hearing on any determination affecting your rights to benefits by writing a letter to the NYS Department of Labor, P.O. Box 15131, Albany, NY 12212-5131. Please make sure to include your social security number on your hearing request letter. You will thereafter receive an acknowledgment letter and a questionnaire from the Department of Labor.   

To protect your rights, you must continue to claim weekly benefits for any week in which you are unemployed. 

If you have been denied unemployment benefits and would like to have a VLSP staff person contact you, please complete our online intake . A staff member will then contact you at our nearest opportunity.