A free crash course in complicated city land-use rules, housing programs, building codes, neighborhood planning, annexation and other Santa Fe local government issues is offered today and Friday by the Santa Fe Neighborhood Law Center.

The second annual conference on "Neighborhood Policy and Law," features presentations by key city staff members and interested elected officials.

Each day a state judge will give a lecture. Today at noon, Supreme Court Justice Richard Bosson will speak about how government can avoid lawsuits by following due process of law. Friday's lunchtime speaker is New Mexico Court of Appeals Judge Timothy Garcia, who will talk about legal ethics and fair decisions by municipalities.

"The target audience is really the interested community that is following civic issues, which frequently are legal issues. It's a broader audience we are looking at rather than just lawyers," said Fred Rowe, one of the attorneys who founded the law center in 2007.

Last year's conference was attended by about 130 people. Rowe said organizers are expecting more participants this year.

The center has had some success advocating in the courts for neighborhood protections and at the city policy level. It filed an amicus brief in a case over zoning for an Old Taos Highway housing project and a district judge issued an opinion echoing the center's position.

Board members Peter Dwyer, Gerald Gonzalez, Nancy Long, Anita Miller, Bruce Throne, Daniel Yohalem and Rowe have also filed an analysis in support of the city's short-term rental ordinance and most recently worked with the city staff to improve the chapter 14 ordinance regarding appeals to broaden the standing of neighborhoods and organization, Rowe said.