Legal assistance
Accessing free legal support
If you need a lawyer to protect your interests in court, you can hire one for a fee. You may also be able to get free legal services, called legal aid, depending on your income. Legal aid is a legal service offered to Canadians and residents who cannot afford to pay for it. It offers different kinds of help, depending on your legal problem.
Whether you qualify for legal aid will depend on your family responsibilities and what you must pay every month to live. Legal aid staff will decide if you qualify after they have looked at your financial situation.
Areas where legal aid can help you
If you qualify, legal aid may help you defend yourself against criminal charges, such as an offence for which a penalty could result in jail. It may also help you with legal problems in family matters, such as:
- Getting or changing custody of your children
- Setting up, increasing or decreasing child or spousal support payments
- Helping you if your husband or wife denies you access to your children
- Allowing you to see your children or making a major change to access arrangements that have already been made
- Stopping your husband or wife from selling or destroying your property
- Determining ownership of savings or pensions that could provide you with some income
- Getting access for grandparents or other relatives to see a child
Immigration and refugee matters:
- Refugee hearings before the Immigration and Refugee Board
- Sponsorship and deportation appeals
- Detention reviews
Some civil cases and final appeals:
- Mental health hearings and appeals
- Human rights issues
- Assistance with income, housing and employment issues, such as:
- Rental Housing Tribunal matters
- Employment insurance matters
- Workers’ Compensation Appeal Tribunal cases
- Social Benefits Tribunal matters (such as arguing a decision that you are eligible for social assistance after you have been denied it)
- Canada Pension Plan matters
Each province and territory has a legal aid contact.
Contacting legal aid
You can find legal aid offices in the area where you live by looking in the telephone book under Legal Aid. An immigrant-serving organization will also be able to tell you where and how to obtain these services.