Legal Aid is available to low income individuals and disadvantaged communities for a variety of legal problems, including criminal matters, family disputes, immigration and refugee hearings and poverty law issues such as landlord/tenant disputes, disability support and family benefits payments. In 1998, the Ontario government enacted the Legal Aid Services Act in which the province renewed and strengthened its commitment to legal aid. The Act established Legal Aid Ontario (LAO), an independent but publicly funded and publicly accountable non-profit corporation, to administer the province’s legal aid program. LAO’s mandate in the Legal Aid Services Act, 1998 is to "promote access to justice throughout Ontario for low-income individuals by means of providing consistently high quality legal aid services in a cost-effective and efficient manner." LAO services are carefully targeted to meet diverse client needs and make the most efficient use of our resources. Poverty law services - such as helping people to obtain or maintain social assistance benefits - are delivered through a network of 79 independent, community-based legal aid clinics, funded by LAO. LAO also runs a certificate program through its network of 51 offices. Here LAO issues certificates, which low-income people use to retain a private lawyer to represent them in proceedings before the criminal or family courts, certain administrative tribunals or immigration/refugee boards. The certificate is the private lawyer’s guarantee of payment from LAO, subject to the rates and limitations set out in the legal aid tariff. We also provide duty counsel services – performed by staff and private-sector lawyers – for people who arrive in criminal, family or youth courts without a lawyer. For more information and how to contact them, please contact Legal Aid Ontario
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Legal Aid Ontario
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