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Clinic Services

Three types of services are provided to eligible clients (low income individuals and their organizations in our service area):

-Individual casework in many areas of law including social assistance, support and custody, employment insurance, compensation for victims of crime, administrative, consumer and debt, tenant, Native and non-profit organizations. Individuals who need assistance in areas of law not handled by the clinic, e.g. criminal, real estate and business law, are referred to other lawyers. We do not handle cases against First Nations or their agencies or cases involving requests for benefits or decisions from First Nations or their agencies. Services range from simple summary advice (e.g. commissioning of affidavits, preparation of short documents) through representation in court or before administrative bodies such as the Ontario Rental Housing Tribunal or the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board. In deciding whether or not we are able to provide services we take into account various factors including the type of case, the client's financial resources, the availability of the services from other providers (e.g. the private bar) and our ability to provide the services within our resources.

-Public Legal Education including workshops on topics related to our casework or of particular interest to people or groups in this area. Some of the workshops we have presented in the past have included: Treaty Rights, Youth and the Law, Law for Nurses, Organizing and Maintaining Non-Profit Corporations, Careers in Law, Confidentiality for Counselors and Child Support. Most of our workshops were presented in response to specific requests from individuals or organizations in our area.

-Community Development which involves working with a variety of local organizations.