June 28, 2010
A coalition of legal justice organizations have launched a Public Commission on Legal Aid due to concerns over legal aid cuts in BC. The commission will hold hearings across BC to engage the public...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
June 25, 2010
The CBA has released a new report on legal aid in Canada called,Moving Forward on Legal Aid: Research on Needs and Innovative Approaches. The report considers the current state of legal aid, both in...
Legal Aid, All of Canada
January 25, 2010
The following is a brief timeline and backgrounder on the cuts to legal aid in BC culled from various press releases and news articles. See the links in the More Information section below for more...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
January 12, 2010
On January 11th, members of the Kamloops bar withdrew all duty to protest the closure of five regional legal aid offices.
Duty counsel are lawyers paid by the Legal Services Society to help lower...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
November 4, 2009
Below is the Hansard transcript from the November 3rd, 2009 Legislative Assembly about the Legal Aid cuts.
LEGAL AID SERVICES
L. Krog: Today we've learned that Legal Services' budget is going to be...
Government Policy, Legal Aid, British Columbia
November 3, 2009
The Legal Services Society has announced that they will be closing five legal aid offices in towns across BC and laying off 58 staff members. This is the second time this year LSS has announced...
Government Policy, Legal Aid, Legal aid cuts, British Columbia
February 6, 2009
West Coast LEAF and PIVOT Legal Society are asking individuals and organizations to sign their online petition to restore legal aid in BC.
According to the petition:
The recent continuation of cuts...
Legal Aid, Organizing, British Columbia
February 6, 2009
Some update and history of legal aid cuts in BC:
In January, the Legal Services Society announced that due to a significant increase in demand for legal aid, a decrease in non-government funding and...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
January 24, 2009
Check out PovNet's listings on how to apply for legal aid in provinces and territories across Canada.
Legal Aid, All of Canada
September 28, 2008
West Coast LEAF has put together a short educational pamphlet on family law, access to justice and specifically legal aid to be used all candidates meetings or other election events.
Legal Aid, Legal Research, British Columbia
May 20, 2008
Legal Services Society (LSS) is the organization that provides legal aid in BC. Check out their redesigned website if you are looking for a lawyer, a legal aid office, legal advice and legal...
Legal Aid, Legal Research, British Columbia, General resources
October 15, 2007
Shelagh Day and Gwen Brodsky have authored a study entitled: Women and the Canada Social Transfer:
Securing the Social Union (in PDF) and (website). The report explains how social assistance and...
Legal Aid, Welfare, Women, All of Canada
June 11, 2007
http://www.accessjustice.ca/ - Access Justice provides pro bono clinics at several dozen locations around British Columbia, often in cooperation with local advocacy organizations.
Legal Aid, British Columbia, General resources
June 11, 2007
http://www.probonomap.bc.ca/ - Pro Bono Law of BC has a searchable map of all pro bono resources in British Columbia.
Legal Aid, British Columbia, General resources
May 25, 2007
The Supreme Court of Canada has overturned a lower court decision to scrap the provincial tax on legal fees in BC. Dugald Christie, a lawyer who helped found the Western Canada Society to Access...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
March 24, 2007
LawLine Journal Blog was created to share some of the solutions to the legal problems of callers to LawLINE a phone service of the Legal Services Society for people with low incomes who face legal...
Blogs, Legal Aid, Legal Research, British Columbia, General resources
November 8, 2006
The Federation of Francophone and Acadian Communities of Canada is taking the federal government to court over the government's decision to cut the court challenges program. The program set aside...
Government Policy, Legal Aid, All of Canada
October 12, 2006
Community Legal Assistance Society (CLAS) provides a number of legal and advocacy services in the areas of disability, mental, human rights and poverty.
Legal Aid, Legal Research, British Columbia, General resources
September 10, 2006
In a September 6, 2006 Canadian Bar Association release, the association reaffirmed its ongoing commitment to a constitutional right to civil legal aid and access to justice. This followed the BC...
Legal Aid, All of Canada
July 5, 2006
http://www.clasbc.net/ - The Community Legal Assistance Society (CLAS) provides free legal assistance to people who are physically, mentally, socially, economically or otherwise disadvantaged...
Legal Aid, British Columbia, General resources
June 16, 2006
http://www.bcpiac.com - Provides representation to groups that would not otherwise have the resources to effectively assert their interests.
Legal Aid, British Columbia, General resources
June 8, 2006
The Community Legal Assistance Society (CLAS) provides specialized legal aid for British Columbians. The CLAS website publications page has links to a numbers of useful resources including A Lay...
Legal Aid, Legal Research, British Columbia, General resources
April 1, 2006
The Electronic Legal Aid Newsletter (ELAN) is published 9 times year by the Legal Services Society to keep individuals and organizations who help low-income people deal with the legal system up to...
Legal Aid, Legal Research, General resources, All of Canada
November 7, 2005
British Columbia's Legal Services Society (LSS) is loosening up their requirements for low income earners to recieve legal assistance. The new requirements are based on the Market Basket Measure...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
June 30, 2005
Prince Edward Island's government is resisting a move by the opposition to provide legal aid funding for Workers Compensation claims. The opposition is stating that it is unfair to make Workers...
Legal Aid, Workers' Rights, Prince Edward Island
June 20, 2005
The Canadian Bar Association (CBA) has officially launched the ground-breaking test case that will challenge the constitutional right to civil legal aid in British Columbia. The statement of claim...
Legal Aid, All of Canada
January 23, 2005
The Social Planning and Research Council (SPARC BC) talked to people around the province about the poverty law services that remain in place following the withdrawal of legal aid funding, and...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
October 17, 2004
As a result of legal aid cuts women are losing custody of their children, giving up valid legal rights to support, and being subjected to litigation harassment, according to a new report. It finds...
Legal Aid, Women, British Columbia
October 17, 2004
Nunavut has begun a pilot project which will expand legal aid from simply being available for criminal cases to civil ones. Due to the status of Nunavut there is not the same degree of access to...
Legal Aid, Nunavut
July 6, 2004
The government of New Brunswick is amending legislation regarding legal aid, so as to make it more accessible. Their goal is to ensure that anyone who cannot afford a lawyer is able to recieve legal...
Legal Aid, New Brunswick
May 28, 2004
The Administrative Tribunals Act, currently in the third reading stage, according to a government press release, will create a new, comprehensive set of standards and practices for B.C.'s...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
March 14, 2004
Dramatic cuts to legal aid to legal aid in British Columbia have left many poor people without lawyers, with troubling consequences says a Chris Tenove article in The Tyee. “I’ve seen people go to...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
June 12, 2003
http://www.library.utoronto.ca/justiceandsocial/ - An information and research resource for welfare law, sponsored by U of Toronto's Law Faculty.
Legal Aid, Welfare, General resources, Ontario
June 12, 2003
West Coast Women's Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF) has launched an Affidavit Campaign to collect convincing evidence from across the province of British Columbia that reflects the true impacts...
Legal Aid, Women, British Columbia
April 30, 2003
Anti-poverty lawyers in British Columbia are asking the BC Supreme Court to order the provincial government to provide state-funded legal representation to three people who have been sued in BC...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
January 17, 2003
The CanLII (Canadian Legal Information Institute) website provides more than 550 Ontario Superior Court of Justice decisions from June 2000 to date free of charge on the internet. Family law...
Legal Aid, General resources, Ontario
May 18, 2002
The Attorney General introduced Bill 45, an Act to amend to the Legal Services Society Act in the legislature on May 1, 2002. The Bill has gone through second reading and is in Committee. This bill...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
May 18, 2002
The Legal Services Society (LSS) of BC has created a fact regarding the BC government cuts to Legal Aid funding and what this will mean for BC residents. The LSS fact sheet is availble online (in PDF...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
May 18, 2002
The BC Liberal Government's proposed 38.8% cut to Legal Aid funding made the BC Legal Services Society board of directors take drastic action. They couldn't see how they would be able to provide...
Legal Aid, British Columbia
