Grants made

L’Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO) will offer public services including free 30-minute consultations with a lawyer, in French or English, to anyone with a legal problem in the province. AJEFO also operates cliquezjustice.ca, which houses simplified legal information to assist users to better manage everyday legal issues. AJEFO also hosts legal workshops, and creates simplified legal resources for vulnerable groups. Additionally, it facilitates Law Days, which provide an opportunity for secondary students in French-language high schools to explore themes related to justice. This initiative will enhance Ontarians’ access to French language legal services

The Criminalization of Women Pro-Bono Project at the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic (BSCC) will provide trauma-informed summary legal advice, brief services, high need case management, and referrals to women and non-binary people who have experienced gender-based violence and have been charged with or convicted of a criminal offence. This initiative will connect women and non-binary people to responsive and trauma-informed legal support.

The Canadian Centre for Housing Rights (CCHR)’ Pro Bono and Public Education Program provides legal support that is tailored to the needs of low-income tenants in Ontario who face eviction or experience human rights violations connected to their housing. CCHR offers educational programming for service providers, workshops for community members, system navigation support, and referrals to volunteer lawyers. CCHR will also research emerging and ongoing legal challenges in housing across Ontario, enhance staff training on diversity, equity and inclusion, and implement a development strategy and impact measurement framework. This initiative enhances tenants’ access to timely and reliable legal support.

The Canadian Legal Information Institute (CanLII) will use Artificial Intelligence to generate 76,140 summaries of Ontario case law and legislation. These summaries will be translated into both official languages and publicly available for free online access by legal professionals and the general public. The objective of the project is to make complex legal documents more accessible and searchable.

Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO) develops clear, accurate, and practical legal education and information to help Ontarians understand and exercise their legal rights, especially those who face barriers to accessing the justice system. The CLEO Connect program offers training and resources for trusted intermediaries who assist people with low incomes to identify and address their legal issues. CLEO will also conduct public legal education (PLE) research for the benefit of legal education stakeholders, and will launch a Generative AI in PLE project to enhance the usability of CLEO’s Guided Pathways website, which assists users to complete legal forms. CLEO’s work will enhance access to justice for Ontarians by making legal information more widely available in accessible formats, and by making legal documents easier to complete.

Connecting Ottawa coordinates a consortium of over 50 legal and non-legal organizations to implement a regional plan to provide legal information and referrals to people who are not proficient in English or French or who face communication challenges as the result of a disability or sensory impairment. The initiative enhances linkages between legal and community workers in Ontario.

EmpowerHer Diversity Hub will conduct a legal needs assessment to better understand the legal needs and available resources for agricultural workers, international students, and other vulnerable groups in Ontario including survivors of gender-based violence with precarious immigration status. Research results will inform the development of resources that address the most pressing legal needs of the community, as well as produce a map that identifies existing legal resources and services available to the target communities.

The FCJ Refugee Centre serves refugees and others at risk due to their immigration status through all steps of the refugee determination and refugee appeals processes. The Centre primarily works with refugee claimants, rejected refugee claimants, individuals with precarious immigration status, temporary foreign workers, and those who have been victims of human trafficking. It also provides training workshops and legal education materials for frontline workers who serve refugees in the Greater Toronto Area and other parts of southern Ontario on aspects of the immigration and refugee process and procedures. The Catalyst grant will help the Centre to ensure it has the capacity and expertise to serve its clients and assist other organizations to do so, as well as to ensure its evolution and sustainability.

Gillian’s Place, located in St. Catharines, will hire a Family Court Support Worker to support its Legal Program that provides free legal advice, information, and referrals to help women who have experienced intimate partner violence through the family and criminal court systems.

The Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) is Ontario’s leading law reform agency, conducting research, providing multidisciplinary analysis, and reports on emerging legal policy issues. The LCO will continue to conduct research focused on artificial intelligence, consumer protections, environmental accountability, and protection orders. The LCO will create reports in multiple languages, and build new partnerships to expand the reach of their research. The LCO aims to promote access to justice and contribute to public debate to benefit the general public and justice sector stakeholders.

Legal Advocates for Nature’s Defence (LAND) will develop culturally appropriate legal resources and deliver in community trainings on environmental and Indigenous rights in northern Ontario. LAND will establish an Advisory Circle of Indigenous Knowledge Holders. The project will strengthen Indigenous community members’ knowledge of their rights, and their ability to participate in project decision-making and consultations with governments and industry.

Level will deliver and grow its three youth programs in Ontario: (1) the Indigenous Youth Outreach Program (IYOP), a justice education and mentorship program for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit youth, (2) the Environmental Justice Program, a program to provide knowledge and skills for youth to advocate for environmental justice, and (3) the Black Youth Justice Program, providing justice education and mentorship to Black youth. These programs encourage youth to increase their critical thinking and leadership skills and their knowledge of the law and careers in justice.

Ontario Justice Education Network will engage the judiciary, the Bar, the courts, and the education community throughout Ontario by developing and growing innovative educational tools that introduce young people to the justice system. This initiative will provide young people with tools to understand the law and develop the ability to address their own legal issues. OJEN will increase the range and depth of its public legal education initiatives, focusing on increased Francophone resources, more in-person programming, website redesign, and increased learning from Indigenous partners to inform approaches to programs and services.

Pro Bono Students Canada (PBSC) provides legal help without charge to low-income individuals and nonprofit organizations, and experiential learning opportunities to law students. With chapters in 22 of 23 Canadian law schools, PBSC develops legal placements for law students in a range of work settings including legal clinics, nonprofit organizations, courts, and tribunals. Under the supervision of a lawyer, student volunteers draft memos, develop and deliver legal education workshops, assist lawyers and duty counsel with client intake, assist clients with document preparation, represent clients before tribunals and courts, and provide legal information to clients.

The Probono Inmate Appeal Program (PIAP) coordinates and supports a roster of experienced criminal appellate counsel to act as duty counsel on the appeals of unrepresented appellants in criminal cases before the Court of Appeal for Ontario. PIAP will also provide guidance on procedure and strategy for ineffective assistance of counsel appeals. This initiative will enhance unrepresented appellants’ access to legal support.

The Seizure and Brain Injury Centre will make legal services accessible to people living with brain injuries in northern Ontario. It will create accesible toolkits tailored for people with brain injuries, and will develop a list of legal professionals trained in working with clients with brain injuries. By expanding its laptop library, more clients in remote communities will be able to access virtual court. The object of this project is to enhance access to justice for northern Ontarians living with brain injuries.

The Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History studies and promotes public interest in the history of the law, the legal profession, and the judiciary in Ontario and elsewhere in Canada. It does so by publishing books on Canadian legal history, creating and preserving an oral history archive, supporting academic research, and hosting a diverse range of topical educational events.

Victim Services Toronto will work with Toronto Police 51 Division to provide victims with trauma support, legal information, case management, court accompaniment, and will provide a direct link to the Crown Attorney stationed at 51 Division. This project aims to advance access to justice by connecting police, the criminal justice system, community support agencies, and victims of crimes.

The Workers Action Centre (WAC) will expand their reach to benefit temporary, low-wage and precarious workers across southern Ontario. WAC will operate a workers’ rights phone line in 6 languages and lead workshops about workers’ rights to improve access to justice for multi-racial and immigrant workers who have little protection and power in the workplace, and who are unable to adequately deal with violations or access labour and human rights protections.

The Workers Action Centre (WAC) will expand their reach to benefit temporary, low-wage and precarious workers across southern Ontario. WAC will operate a workers’ rights phone line in 6 languages and lead workshops about workers’ rights to improve access to justice for multi-racial and immigrant workers who have little protection and power in the workplace, and who are unable to adequately deal with violations or access labour and human rights protections.

The Chiefs of Ontario (COO) will develop legal education resources on the duty to consult First Nations. COO will carry out legal and policy research, and conduct outreach and engagement with the 133 First Nations in Ontario. This initiative will benefit First Nations in Ontario, and the Governments of Ontario and Canada, by providing guidance on standards for accomodation and consultation practices.

Ottawa & District Injured Workers’ Group willl grow its University Clinic Project in partnership with the University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law. The clinic supports workers across the province whose claims for WSIB have been rejected by providng legal expertise in identifying potention objections a client may have to a WSIB decision. The project’s goal is to enhance access to justice for people injured at work in Ontario.

The Algoma Community Legal Clinic will host articling students to support its work to provide representation to low-income people living in Sault Ste. Marie and district. The articling students will represent clients at the Landlord and Tenant Board, work on matters involving the Ontario Disability Support Program and on other benefit issues, as well as provide representation and community outreach in the area of sexual harassment in the workplace.

Amnesty International Canada will host articling students to support its research and action with respect to a variety of pressing international and national human rights concerns. Its work is both focused on individual situations such as taking up the case of an individual who is detained as a prisoner of conscience as well as on reform initiatives, seeking to create the legal, political, and social conditions that prevent human rights violations from occurring in the first place.

Animal Justice Canada will host articling students to support its work to prevent cruelty to animals through the enforcement of existing laws and increasing public awareness. The articling students will conduct legal research, draft motions and pleadings, participate in strategy and policy meetings, and draft public legal education materials.

The Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic will host articling students to support its work providing legal services to women and non-binary survivors of gender-based violence, and in systemic advocacy initiatives including public legal education and law reform.

The Canadian Centre for Housing Rights (CCHR) will host articling students to support its work to advance the right to housing. The articling students will assist tenants who are facing eviction or other housing-related legal issues, participate in the development and delivery of public legal education materials and workshops, and conduct research to support CCHR’s policy and litigation work.

Community Justice Collective will host articling students to support its work alongside community organizers and social justice movements in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton areas to challenge displacement, criminalization, exploitation, and racism.

Egale Canada Human Rights Trust will host articling students to support its work advancing the rights of 2SLGBTQI people in Canada, through reseach, awareness and legal advocacy.

Innocence Canada will host articling students to support its work to identify, advocate for, and exonerate individuals who have been convicted of a serious crime that they did not committ and to prevent future miscarriages of justice through legal education. The articling students will assist with case review and investigation, and completing applications of wrongful conviction.

The John Howard Society of Canada will host articling students to support its work to promote just, effective, and humane responses to the causes and consequences of crime. The articling students will assist in policy and law reform proposals, litigation research and preparation, and guidance to prisoners and former prisoners on legal issues.

Luke’s Place will host articling students to support its work improving the experience of women and their children as they deal with family law issues after fleeing abusive relationships. Luke’s Place provides training, resources and mentoring to service providers across Ontario, and provides free legal services including summary legal advice and court form drafting support.

Peacebuilders International (Canada) will host articling students to support its Restorative Youth Circles program where youth have the potential to have their court cases diverted pre-trial out of the court system. The articling students will also assist with criminal record suspensions, public legal education, and policy development.

Pro Bono Ontario (PBO) will host articling students to support its work leveraging volunteer lawyers to assist low-income Ontarians in the area of civil, non-family law. The articling students will provide support to lawyers serving clients who call PBO’s Free Legal Advice Hotline, and for those where lawyers are providing enhanced services, including representation.

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre will host articling students to support its work providing legal, advocacy, and research services on behalf of those elements of the public interest that would otherwise be unable to be adequately heard before courts, tribunals, and decision-makers.

The University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Civil Law Section, to mark the 150th anniversary of the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC), will create a multi-media learning experience to make the law more accessible through increasing public awareness of the law and the justice system. This three-year project will include the creation of an interactive 3D virtual reconstruction of the SCC as well as a self-paced Massive Open Online Course interactive audio visual website to enhance understanding and educate Canadians about the importance of the SCC and the rule of law.

The Bora Laskin Faculty of Law at Lakehead University will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The Métis Nation of Ontario’s Advocacy Program will increase understanding of individual rights, responsibilities, and the legal system as a whole, encompassing knowledge and awareness of laws, regulations, and legal processes that affect the lives of Métis people.

Osgoode Hall Law School will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Queen’s University, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The Second Chance Scholarship Foundation will provide a post-secondary education scholarship to a student who is, has been, or is at risk of becoming in conflict with the law and who is enrolled in a college or university program relating to legal education.

The University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Civil Law Section will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Common Law Section, will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Toronto, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Western Ontario, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Windsor, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Aboriginal Legal Services (ALS) supports Indigenous community members across Ontario who are experiencing legal issues. ALS offers legal services such as court workers, Gladue services, a post-charge diversion program, an alternative dispute resolution program for child welfare matters, and justice circles. This initiative enhances Indigenous communities’ access to legal services that are culturally responsive.

The Criminalization of Women Pro-Bono Project at the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic will provide trauma-informed summary legal advice, brief services, and referrals to women and non-binary people who have experienced gender-based violence and have been charged with or convicted of a criminal offence. This initiative will connect women and non-binary people to responsive and trauma-informed legal support.

Canadian Civil Liberties Education Trust will deliver workshops to educate Ontario students, teachers, newcomers, and the public about their civil rights and freedoms, and democracy more broadly. This initiative will increase access to reliable and youth-centric information on civil liberties.

The Canadian Forum on Civil Justice will undertake public-focused, evidence-based, empirical research and dissemination activities that fill information gaps around civil and family justice needs in Ontario, as well as more broadly in Canada. This initiative will facilitate the creation of justice indicators and metrics that will support interdisciplinary collaboration and evidence-based decision making.

Community Legal Education Ontario’s CLEO Connect program will continue to develop clear, accurate, and practical legal rights education and information resources to help people understand and exercise their legal rights, with a particular focus on support for trusted intermediaries.

Connecting Ottawa coordinates a consortium of over 50 legal and non-legal organizations to implement a regional plan to provide legal information and referrals to people who are not proficient in English or French or who face communication challenges as the result of a disability or sensory impairment. The initiative enhances linkages between legal and community workers in Ontario.

The FCJ Refugee Centre serves refugees and others at risk due to their immigration status through all steps of the refugee determination and appeals processes. The Centre primarily works with refugee claimants, rejected refugee claimants, individuals with precarious immigration status, temporary foreign workers, and those who have been victims of human trafficking. It also provides training workshops and legal education materials for frontline workers who serve refugees on aspects of the immigration and refugee process and procedures. The Catalyst grant will help the Centre to ensure it has the capacity and expertise to serve its clients and assist other organizations to do so, as well as to ensure its evolution and sustainability.

Innocence Canada is dedicated to identifying, advocating for, and exonerating individuals convicted of a crime that they did not commit and to preventing such injustices in the future through legal education and justice system reform. The Catalyst grant will enable the organization to continue to coordinate and administer its pro bono program, which reviews and assesses claims of innocence, as well as to enable the continuation of its legal education program.

The Childhood Arrivals Support and Advocacy Program works to support undocumented childhood arrivals. These are young people who were moved to Canada as children who have lived all their lives without official authorization or documentation, and thus are vulnerable to deportation to birth countries where they have little to no connection. Activities include outreach to youth, teachers, and parents through schools and community programs and legal system navigation, including pro bono legal support, in an effort to file permanent residence applications.

L’Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO) will offer services at its legal information centre in Ottawa and deliver workshops on a range of legal topics. Ontarians are also able to access legal information through AJEFO’s CliquezJustice.ca portal. This initiative will enhance Ontarians’ access to French language legal services.

The Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) will conduct research, provide multidisciplinary analysis, and develop reports on current and emerging legal policy issues to promote access to justice and contribute to public debate on a broad range of legal issues, such as artificial intelligence, consumer protections, protection orders, and environmental accountability. Through this initiative, LCO aims to promote access to justice and contribute to public debate, benefiting justice sector stakeholders and the general public.

Law in Action Within Schools is a partnership between the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, and the Toronto District School Board, and will continue to deliver a law and justice-themed academic and extra-curricular high school program designed to teach students about law and justice. It will support them to graduate from high school, access post-secondary education, and consider a justice sector or legal profession career.

Level’s Indigenous Youth Outreach Program engages First Nations, Métis, and Inuit youth throughout Canada in specialized justice education and mentorship activities led by justice sector volunteers. The program encourages youth to increase their critical thinking and leadership skills and their knowledge of the law and careers in justice.

Luke’s Place Support and Resource Centre for Women and Children will continue to provide family law support for women who have experienced intimate partner violence, as well as training, resources, and mentoring to frontline workers and lawyers who assist them in Durham region and provincially.

The Muslim Legal Support Centre (MLSC) will connect Muslim communities across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) to volunteer lawyers who will provide free summary advice and brief services. MLSC will also host public legal education sessions in partnership with community organizations in the GTA. This initiative will enhance Muslim communities’ access to culturally responsive and accessible legal support.

The Ontario Justice Education Network will engage the judiciary, the Bar, the courts, and the education community throughout Ontario by developing innovative educational tools that introduce young people to the justice system. This initiative will provide young people with tools to understand the law and develop the ability to address their own legal issues.

Pro Bono Ontario (PBO) bridges the gap between low-income Ontarians who cannot afford a lawyer or qualify for legal aid and lawyers who want to donate their services. Its programs include a legal advice hotline and medical-legal partnerships that operate out of five children’s hospitals. In addition to supporting these activities, the Catalyst grant will enable PBO to enhance its hotline services. The hotline currently provides free summary advice and legal drafting services in the areas of civil litigation, consumer debt and protection, employment law, housing, power of attorney for property and personal care, and corporate law (for nonprofits and small newcomer-run start-ups).

Pro Bono Students Canada (PBSC) provides legal help without charge to low-income individuals and nonprofit organizations, and experiential learning opportunities to law students. With chapters in 22 of 23 Canadian law schools, PBSC develops legal placements for law students in a range of work settings including legal clinics, nonprofit organizations, courts, and tribunals. Under the supervision of lawyers, student volunteers draft memos, develop and deliver legal education workshops, assist lawyers and duty counsel with client intake, assist clients with document preparation, represent clients before tribunals and courts, and provide legal information to clients.

The Probono Inmate Appeal Program coordinates and supports a roster of experienced criminal appellate counsel to act as duty counsel on the appeals of unrepresented appellants in criminal cases before the Court of Appeal for Ontario. This initiative enhances unrepresented appellants’ access to legal support.

The 519’s Access to Justice and Direct Legal Services program responds to the legal needs of LGBTQ2S communities in Toronto and Ontario. The 519 offers a general summary advice legal clinic, specialty legal clinics for criminal law, immigration and refugee law, housing law, and Trans ID matters, refugee mock hearings, a court support program, and public legal education workshops. This initiative will enhance access to legal resources that are tailored to the specific needs of LGBTQ2S communities in the province.

The Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History studies and promotes public interest in the history of the law, the legal profession, and the judiciary in Ontario and elsewhere in Canada. It does so by publishing books on Canadian legal history, creating and preserving an oral history archive, supporting academic research, and hosting a diverse range of topical educational events.

Workers’ Action Centre (WAC) will continue to provide information resources to people in low-wage and precarious employment in Ontario. Through its Developing Critical Post-Pandemic Public Education Strategies to Improve Access to Justice for Workers in Precarious Employment program, WAC will provide responsive public education strategies and resources to reach workers facing emerging barriers, including those who have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 and are facing increased barriers to access to justice.

Aftermetoo will further test, expand, and enhance its web platform to better serve people facing workplace sexual harassment with a particular focus on those with specific unmet informational needs such as Indigenous people, gig economy workers, and sex workers. Aftermetoo.com centralizes laws, judicial systems, reporting options, and supports across Canada for those who experience or observe workplace sexual harassment. It uses clear and accessible language to answer common questions and provides step-by-step information to guide people through judicial and administrative forums.

Black Law Students’ Association of Canada (BLSA Canada) will host its annual conference benefiting Black law students from across the country. BLSA Canada aims to foster connections between Black law students and legal professionals to promote professional development, legal education, and cultural awareness within the legal sector.

The Elizabeth Fry Society of Northeastern Ontario will create a Justice Navigation Project to provide practical and legal supports to people in northeastern Ontario in contact with the justice system. Justice Navigators will help approximately 100 people each year with legal aid applications, accessing diversion and other programming, and participating in Pre-Sentence and Gladue reports. Project trainings and a manual will be developed to help sustain and replicate the project. The objective of the project is to improve people’s understanding of their legal rights, produce more positive outcomes, and create efficiencies for the courts.

Elizabeth Fry Society of Northwestern Ontario’s Court Support Program in Thunder Bay supports women and gender-diverse individuals with: court accompaniment; safety planning; and information about court dates, legal processes and terminology; and failure to appear and related administrative charges. It also offers assistance with navigating the process of obtaining legal aid, connecting with legal representation, and with a range of services, including mental health support, housing resources, and substance abuse treatment.

The Elizabeth Fry Society of Peterborough (EFSP) will expand its justice services to support marginalized people in Peterborough and area. EFSP will develop: a pilot program to increase access to community alternatives at pre-sentence by diverting matters from the court; and an outreach plan to reach criminalized individuals who are unhoused and face barriers to accessing supports. The objective of the project is to support people who face multiple, complex challenges to complete court requirements.

Healing of the Seven Generations’ Dehsahsodre Bail Release and Supervision Program, located in the Region of Waterloo, offers an alternative to typical bail release programs with a focus on reducing the overrepresentation of Indigenous people in the criminal justice system by facilitating culturally informed programming and allowing more people to remain in the community while awaiting hearings.

The John Howard Society of Simcoe & Muskoka will expand its digital access to justice program to rural and remote communities in Simcoe & Muskoka: Bracebridge, Gravenhurst, Midland, Penetanguishene, and Collingwood/ Wasaga. The rotating, weekly clinics will offer support for disclosure requests, digital access to court appearances, connection to legal and duty counsel, and record suspension applications. Benefiting vulnerable and disproportionally criminalized populations within rural and remote communities, the objective of this project is to support participation in the justice system and to reduce discrimination and criminalization.

The Nishnawbe-Aski Legal Services Corporation will work with Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) communities to set up Starlink systems in 29 communities so they may access remote fly-in court. Travel distances and unreliable internet connections across NAN territory prevent matters before the courts from progressing in a timely manner. By setting up reliable internet and virtual courts, the objective of this project is to increase access to and timeliness of court proceedings, benefiting the individuals involved and the justice system broadly. The project will also develop and provide legal education workshops, materials, and presentations across the communities.

Sisters in Sync will partner with KnowledgeFlow Cyber Security Foundation and Victim Support and Services of Hamilton to introduce We’ve Got You Sis, a program with a multi-disciplinary approach focusing on community outreach and capacity building to encourage disclosure from Black girls and women who have experienced sexual assault, discrimination, and/or hate incidents. The objective of the project is premised on the hypothesis that if individuals are given the opportunity and tools to work on their self-esteem, emotional intelligence, and resilience, coupled with training on self-advocacy, they will feel empowered to access support and disclose their experiences.

Toronto Metropolitan University, School of Journalism’s Canada Press Freedom Project is an initiative of J-Source, which is a website managed by Canada’s two largest post-secondary journalism programs located at Toronto Metropolitan University and Carleton University that covers media, labour, business, education, ethics, and more. CPFP’s Legal Education for Media Project will develop and produce a series of legal guides and educational tools to assist journalists, students, and researchers with a better understanding and improved navigation of press freedom rights.

Innocence Ottawa at the University of Ottawa, a student-involved innocence project that helps the wrongly convicted in Ontario who are seeking exoneration, will implement an outreach project for Indigenous people in prisons to make them aware of its services. The objective of the project is to increase the number of applications received from Indigenous individuals seeking review of their convictions.

Black Femme Legal will offer training on transmisogynoir for lawyers and legal professionals in Ontario. This project is delivered in partnership with The 519 and builds on Black Femme Legal’s transmisogynoir toolkit and pro bono clinic. This initiative will benefit legal professionals and the Black 2SLGBTQI+ community by providing legal education on the experiences at the intersection of misogyny, transphobia, and anti-Blackness. The objective is to increase the quality of legal services for members of the Black 2SLGBTQI+ community.

Partners for Planning will update and digitize Ontario’s Safe and Secure workbook and develop training and resources for planning professionals. The project will also pilot a subsidized facilitation service for family networks in Ontario. With Pooran Law, the Ontario Caregivers Organization, and Community Living Ontario, this initiative will increase the confidence of people with a disability and their families to secure their futures by navigating and participating in the legal system.

Sudbury District Restorative Justice will partner with local service providers to research legal services available in the region, create a legal services process map, and provide legal system navigation to socio-economically disadvantaged youth and their families in the Greater Sudbury region. The objective of this project is to improve access to legal representation and support services for youth and their families navigating the justice system.

The Canadian National Institute for the Blind will create and deliver workshops for guide dog handlers and produce a training video for Police Services in Ontario. This project will provide guide dog handlers with information about legal recourse options in the event of discrimination, particularly access denial. Police Services will benefit from increased knowledge about provincial legislation specific to guide dogs and enforcement procedures.

Capital Rainbow Refuge in partnership with Rainbow Haven, will create a toolkit and supplementary materials to support the sponsorship application process for LGBQTIA+ sponsorship groups in Ontario. These resources will benefit sponsor groups, law students, and those providing legal guidance in the preparation of LGBTQIA+ sponsorship applications. LGBTQIA+ refugees often are imminently at risk due to laws in their home country criminalizing consensual same-sex relations, their sexual orientation. or gender identity.

The Centre for Refugee Children will expand and adapt its Child Representative Legal Support Program to enhance specialized legal support for unaccompanied and separated children (UASC) navigating immigration proceedings in Ontario. In collaboration with FCJ Refugee Centre and legal partners, the project will provide UASC with enhanced access to child representatives at all stages of the immigration process and provide newly-established referrals to summary legal advice for UASC.The project will ensure that UASC in Ontario are informed, engaged, and supported throughout their legal immigration process.

The Ottawa Francophone Legal Clinic (Clinique juridique francophone d’Ottawa) will conduct a legal education project with Francophone elders, and the workers who support them, in Ottawa and across Ontario. Partners include the Fédération des aînés et des retraités francophones de l’Ontario (FARFO) and Retraite en action. The objective of the project is to prevent legal issues that Francophone elders may face and the harm they may experience as a result.

La Clinique juridique francophone d’Ottawa effectuera un projet d’éducation juridique auprès des aîné.es francophones et des intervenant.es qui les soutiennent à Ottawa et en Ontario. Les partenaires comprennent la Fédération des aînés et des retraités francophones de l’Ontario (FARFO) and Retraite en action. L’objectif du projet est de prévenir les problèmes juridiques auxquels les aîné.es francophones peuvent faire face et les préjudices en découlant.

Osgoode Hall Law School’s Community Legal Aid Services Program (CLASP) will expand its identification documents (ID) clinic serving the Greater Toronto Area. In partnership with community hubs such as the Weston King Neighborhood Centre, CLASP will hire a Community Outreach Worker to supervise students, coordinate partnerships, and train outreach workers in ID services. The objective of the project is to assist low-income and marginalized individuals to secure ID so that they can access basic services such as healthcare, employment, and immigration.

Community Justice Collective will pilot the position of a triage lawyer to receive calls about the legal needs of unhoused people and make referrals to pro-bono lawyers and peer advocates. The objective of this project is to expand legal supports for a community of people who experience extensive criminalization, marginalization, harassment and abuse in the greater Toronto and Hamilton areas.

Community Living Ontario, in partnership with PooranLaw, will develop an online guide focused on the legal and educational rights of students with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Ontario’s public school system. The guide will provide an overview of the accommodations and supports available to students, review and appeal processes, and the roles of school boards, the Ontario Special Education Tribunals, and the Human Rights Tribunal. The objective of the project is to equip families with information to help them understand their rights and access the school system’s supports and accommodations.

COMPASS Refugee Centre will pilot a virtual Canada-US border clinic based in Ontario. Partners include the Canada-US Border Network and the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers. This initiative will benefit border crossers seeking protection in Canada, potential anchor relatives in Canada, NGOs in Ontario and the United States, and Canadian immigration lawyers. The objective of the project is to provide quality legal information and advice for border crossers and those who serve them.

Disability Justice Network of Ontario will develop and publish a resource entitled, “EnAbling Justice: Access and Autonomy for Disabled People Facing Criminalization in Ontario” to meet the needs identified by racialized people with disabilities in Ontario who are incarcerated or otherwise in contact with the criminal justice system. The objective of this project is to support disabled people as they navigate the intersection of ableism, racism, and incarceration and give them increased knowledge, confidence, and autonomy when their dignity and freedom is at stake.

Grey-Bruce Community Legal Clinic will educate seniors, members of the public, and trusted intermediaries who support seniors about elder law. The objective of the project is to build the capacity of these groups to identify legal issues impacting seniors and access appropriate resources for assistance with these issues. This elder law capacity building will occur in the clinic’s catchment area of Grey and Bruce Counties and includes the Saugeen First Nation and the Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation.

Kijicho Manito Madouskarini Algonquin First Nation, located south of Algonquin Provincial Park, will research, interpret, educate about, and develop policies and procedures to clarify and be responsive to the implications of “Duty to Consult” legislation on its unceded territory. A manual will be developed primarily for government and private businesses to be used when consulting with the Algonquins of Ontario.

Kinbrace’s myrefugeeclaim.ca web platform assists refugee claimants through the refugee determination process. Kinbrace will translate this website into eight languages and will automate its registration system for its virtual Ready Tours to meet expected increased demand. The objective of the project is to reach a minimum of 85% of all refugee claimants in Ontario with resources in their preferred languages so they are informed, connected, and prepared throughout their refugee claim journey.

Laadliyan will create culturally appropriate public legal education videos and a database of legal supports for international students, in particular young, female international students living in Peel Region. The resources developed will be available in English, Punjabi, and Hindi. With limited knowledge about their legal rights in Canada and their vulnerable immigration status, this group faces an elevated level of exploitation by employers and landlords. The objective of the project is to build the students’ capacity to understand and exercise their legal rights.

Level will expand its Environmental Justice Program. The program, developed in partnership with Climate Action Alliance, includes presentations from Elders and other experts on environmental justice, and culminates in a mock negotiation circle where students take on roles representing different parties in a legal environmental dispute. The program provides youth with the skills and education to be advocates for marginalized communities who face the consequences of environmental degradation.

Muslim Legal Support Centre’s Advancing Access to Justice for Vulnerable Muslim Communities in Ontario project will provide court navigation services to help with understanding court proceedings and processes. Language interpretation will be provided for meetings and interactions outside of court proceedings, as well as referrals, where necessary, to other community services and support. Community organizations and leaders will be engaged to raise awareness of the program and will be provided with educational resources on legal rights and reporting incidents of Islamophobia.

Parents of Black Children will create a bilingual legal rights and education toolkit and offer legal navigation services for black students in Ontario. In partnership with Black Legal Action Centre and members of the Student and Family Advocates Initiative, this project will benefit parents of Black children in Ontario facing incidents in schools such as discipline and referrals to the child welfare system. The objective is to provide legal information and support that reflects the lived experience of Black Ontarians in the education system.

Queen’s University Faculty of Law will develop and deliver a clinical course for law students to partner with the Anishinabek Nation to expand the Nation’s governance and legal revitalization work. The clinical course will enhance the capacity of the leadership and members of the Anishinabek Nation to strengthen community wellbeing through effective governance. This project also responds to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Call to Action for law schools to train future lawyers in critical skills and knowledge related to Indigenous history and law.

San Lorenzo Latin American Community Centre will provide in-person workshops and host a live, weekly call-in radio show through their CRTC-licensed radio station (CHHA 1610 AM) to create interactive and engaging community spaces for newcomers and immigrants from Latin American countries living in the Toronto and Hamilton areas. This project will help to inform and connect individuals with legal education, specifically about labour rights and laws in Ontario and where to find support and information in the community.

The Sault Ste. Marie Indian Friendship Centre, in partnership with Dr. Jane Dickson (Carleton University), will pilot a Gladue bail program for Indigenous people in Sault Ste. Marie. A first of its kind in Ontario, the Centre will hire a Gladue Bail Report (GBR) Support Worker to provide support to and oversight of persons released on bail, and to develop and deliver training on the preparation of GBRs and info sessions for defense bar, Crowns, and courts. This initiative will fill a gap in Gladue services as only a modest percentage of courts receive Gladue reports at sentencing.

Scarborough Community Legal Services’ Communities Building Justice Together program will build and develop community-led resources with East Scarborough’s Black and Indigenous communities by providing support navigating the legal system and by providing a platform for community development around access to justice issues.

Society’s Bella Coola Legal Advocacy Program will adapt its British Columbia-specific Legal Information for Indigenous People booklet into a nationally relevant version. Additions will include sections about status, prisons, borders, and criminal and federal child protection laws. The booklet will be distributed throughout Canada to Indigenous-led and Indigenous-serving organizations, as well as to legal aid organizations. The online version will be updated as required through Clicklaw. The objective of the project is to increase knowledge of the legal issues that affect Indigenous people, including those living on and off reserve communities.

The Women’s Centre of Halton will expand its legal services by piloting a family court advocacy program for survivors of intimate partner violence in Halton. In consultation with legal experts, Family Court Advocates will offer case management support and public legal information. The objective of this project is to improve survivors’ knowledge of the legal system and their legal rights and options and to provide access to timely support in navigating the family court system.

TTCriders will develop Know Your Transit Rights resources to provide legal information to members of the public, community agencies, and legal clinics on the Wheel-Trans application and appeals process and on the fare enforcement complaints process. Partners include volunteer lawyers who will provide pro bono legal research and oversight. This initiative will primarily benefit disabled, low-income, and racialized transit users who are impacted by transit enforcement interactions and changes to paratransit. The objective of the project is to increase awareness of legal rights on public transit and of transit legal and administrative processes.

University of Toronto’s African, Caribbean, Black Family Group Conferencing project addresses the negative experiences of African, Caribbean, and Black (ACB) families and youth in the child welfare system, primarily in the Greater Toronto Area, by providing culturally responsive, restorative alternatives to traditional group conferencing. The objective of the project is to model and develop the Ujima Mediation Training for Families and Youth, a researched-based, Black-focused mediator training model for mediators working with low-income Black families involved in family court. This project will expand operations into new forms of mediation, broadening the work in the child welfare sector and into other areas where ACB families can benefit from mediation, particularly family law.

The University of Windsor, Faculty of Law will update its Civil Procedure and Practice in Ontario guide, test its usability with audiences, and expand its reach so it is available to more people, including public library and Steps to Justice users, and those who use Google or Wikipedia in search of legal knowledge. The objective of the project is to provide self-represented litigants with a free, accessible and plain-language online resource on Ontario civil procedure (published on CanLII).

Through this project, Whistleblowing Canada Research Society will survey Ontario lawyers to identify those who take whistleblowing cases and offer pro bono consultations and develop a directory for the public. Educational videos and materials will also be developed to inform and educate the general public – potential whistleblowers – about their rights.

This 2-year partnership will enable the Black Opportunity Fund to provide grants to Black-led, Black-serving nonprofits with impactful initiatives helping Black communities better understand and navigate the criminal justice system.

In this 2-year project, the Legal Information and Resource Network (LiRN) will promote Access to Innovation through an Innovation Sandbox that allows libraries to test new technologies, and increase equitable access to key legal resources across the province by improving collections to a minimum standard and growing e-LiRN, its suite of electronic research databases.

The Bora Laskin Faculty of Law at Lakehead University will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Osgoode Hall Law School will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Queen’s University, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The Second Chance Scholarship Foundation will provide a post-secondary education scholarship to a student who is, has been, or is at risk of becoming in conflict with the law and who is enrolled in a college or university program relating to legal education.

The University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Civil Law Section will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Common Law Section, will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Toronto, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Western Ontario, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Windsor, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Aboriginal Legal Services (ALS) supports Indigenous community members across Ontario who are experiencing legal issues. ALS offers legal services such as court workers, Gladue services, a post-charge diversion program, an alternative dispute resolution program for child welfare matters, and justice circles. This initiative will enhance Indigenous communities’ access to legal services that are culturally responsive.

L’Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO) will offer services at its legal information centre in Ottawa and deliver workshops on a range of legal topics. Ontarians are also able to access legal information through AJEFO’s CliquezJustice.ca portal. This initiative will enhance Ontarians’ access to French language legal services.

The Criminalization of Women Pro-Bono Project at the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic will provide trauma-informed summary legal advice, brief services, and referrals to women and non-binary people who have experienced gender-based violence and have been charged with or convicted of a criminal offence. This initiative will connect women and non-binary people to responsive and trauma-informed legal support.

Canadian Civil Liberties Education Trust will deliver workshops to educate Ontario students, teachers, newcomers, and the public about their civil rights and freedoms, and democracy more broadly. This initiative will increase access to reliable and youth-centric information on civil liberties.

The Canadian Forum on Civil Justice will undertake public-focused, evidence-based, empirical research and dissemination activities that fill information gaps around civil and family justice needs in Ontario, as well as more broadly in Canada. This initiative will facilitate the creation of justice indicators and metrics that will support interdisciplinary collaboration and evidence-based decision making.

Community Legal Education Ontario’s CLEO Connect program will continue to develop clear, accurate, and practical legal rights education and information resources to help people understand and exercise their legal rights, with a particular focus on support for trusted intermediaries.

Connecting Ottawa will continue to coordinate a consortium of over 50 legal and non-legal organizations to implement a regional plan to provide legal information and referrals to people who are not proficient in English or French or who face communication challenges as the result of a disability or sensory impairment. The initiative will also enhance linkages between legal and community workers in Ontario.

The FCJ Refugee Centre serves refugees and others at risk due to their immigration status through all steps of the refugee determination and refugee appeals processes. The Centre primarily works with refugee claimants, rejected refugee claimants, individuals with precarious immigration status, temporary foreign workers, and those who have been victims of human trafficking. It also provides training workshops and legal education materials for frontline workers who serve refugees in the Greater Toronto Area and other parts of southern Ontario on aspects of the immigration and refugee process and procedures. The Catalyst grant will help the Centre to ensure it has the capacity and expertise to serve its clients and assist other organizations to do so, as well as to ensure its evolution and sustainability.

Innocence Canada is dedicated to identifying, advocating for, and exonerating individuals convicted of a crime that they did not commit and to preventing such injustices in the future through legal education and justice system reform. The Catalyst grant will enable the organization to continue to coordinate and administer its pro bono program, which reviews and assesses claims of innocence, as well as to enable the continuation of its legal education program.

The Childhood Arrivals Support and Advocacy Program works to support undocumented childhood arrivals. These are young people who were moved to Canada as children who have lived their lives in Canada without official authorization or documentation, and thus are vulnerable to deportation to birth countries where they have little to no connection. Activities include outreach to youth, teachers, and parents through schools and community programs and legal system navigation, including pro bono legal support, in an effort to file permanent residence applications.

The Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) will conduct research, provide multidisciplinary analysis, and develop reports on current and emerging legal policy issues to promote access to justice and contribute to public debate on a broad range of legal issues, such as artificial intelligence, consumer protections, protection orders, and environmental accountability. Through this initiative, LCO aims to promote access to justice and contribute to public debate, benefiting justice sector stakeholders and the general public.

Law in Action Within Schools is a partnership between the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, and the Toronto District School Board, and will continue to deliver a law and justice-themed academic and extra-curricular high school program designed to teach students about law and justice. It will support them to graduate from high school, access post-secondary education, and consider a justice sector or legal profession career.

Luke’s Place Support and Resource Centre for Women and Children will continue to provide family law support for women who have experienced intimate partner violence, as well as training, resources, and mentoring to frontline workers and lawyers who assist them in Durham region and provincially.

Ontario Justice Education Network (OJEN) will engage the judiciary, the Bar, the courts, and the education community throughout Ontario by developing innovative educational tools that introduce young people to the justice system. This initiative will provide young people with tools to understand the law and develop the ability to address their own legal issues.

Pro Bono Ontario (PBO) bridges the gap between low-income Ontarians who cannot afford a lawyer or qualify for legal aid and lawyers who want to donate their services. Its programs include a legal advice hotline, litigation assistance programs in small claims court and Superior Court in Toronto and Ottawa, and medical-legal partnerships that operate out of five children’s hospitals. In addition to supporting these activities, the Catalyst grant will enable PBO to enhance its hotline services. The hotline currently provides free summary advice and legal drafting services in the areas of civil litigation, consumer debt and protection, employment law, housing, power of attorney for property and personal care, and corporate law (for nonprofits and small newcomer-run start-ups).

Pro Bono Students Canada (PBSC) provides legal help without charge to low-income individuals and nonprofit organizations, and experiential learning opportunities to law students. With chapters in 22 of 23 Canadian law schools, PBSC develops legal placements for law students in a range of work settings including legal clinics, nonprofit organizations, courts, and tribunals. Under the supervision of a lawyer, student volunteers draft memos, develop and deliver legal education workshops, assist lawyers and duty counsel with client intake, assist clients with document preparation, represent clients before tribunals and courts (under lawyer supervision), and provide legal information to clients.

The Probono Inmate Appeal Program will continue to coordinate and support a roster of experienced criminal appellate counsel to act as duty counsel on the appeals of unrepresented appellants in criminal cases before the Court of Appeal for Ontario. This initiative will enhance unrepresented appellants’ access to legal support.

The 519’s Access to Justice and Direct Legal Services program responds to the legal needs of 2SLGBTQ+ communities in Toronto and Ontario. The 519 offers a general summary advice legal clinic, specialty legal clinics for criminal law, immigration and refugee law, housing law, and Trans ID matters, refugee mock hearings, a court support program, and public legal education workshops. This initiative will enhance access to legal resources that are tailored to the specific needs of 2SLGBTQ+ communities in the province.

The Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History will study and promote public interest in the history of the law, the legal profession, and the judiciary in Ontario and elsewhere in Canada. It does so by publishing books on Canadian legal history, creating and preserving an oral history archive, supporting academic research, and hosting a diverse range of topical educational events.

Workers’ Action Centre (WAC) will continue to provide information resources to people in low-wage and precarious employment in Ontario. Through its Developing Critical Post-Pandemic Public Education Strategies to Improve Access to Justice for Workers in Precarious Employment program, WAC will provide responsive public education strategies and resources to reach workers facing emerging barriers, including those who have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 and are facing increased barriers to access to justice.

Angels of Hope (AOH) will provide system navigation support to survivors of human trafficking in Northeastern Ontario. AOH’s court support worker will provide survivors with a range of holistic supports including information about the court process, helping prepare survivors for court, accompanying survivors to court proceedings, and providing referrals to counselling and other community supports. Partners include the Sudbury Crown Attorney’s office.

BGC Durham will hire a youth court access coordinator to provide referrals and system navigation support to racialized youth who are involved in the criminal justice system. The coordinator will also deliver workshops and create a toolkit to share legal information and resources. This initiative will benefit racialized youth, ages 12-17, who live in and around Durham. BGC Durham aims to increase access to legal supports that are responsive to the needs of youth in conflict with the law.

Black Femme Legal (BFL) will pilot a pro bono clinic for Black 2SLGBTQI+ Ontarians who have experienced anti-Black racism and sexual violence in the workplace. Community members will receive summary legal advice, brief services, and appropriate referrals from a volunteer lawyer in BFL’s network. BFL will provide training on anti-Black racism and mysogynoir to all the pro bono lawyers who participate in the project. Partners include The 519. BFL aims to fill a gap in legal support and services that are tailored to the unique legal needs of Black 2SLGBTQI+ Ontarians who have experienced intersecting forms of anti-Black racism and sexual violence in the workplace.

Black Law Students’ Association of Canada (BLSA Canada) will host its annual conference benefiting Black law students from across the country. BLSA Canada aims to foster connections between Black law students and legal professionals to promote professional development, legal education, and cultural awareness within the legal sector.

Canadian National Institute for the Blind Foundation (CNIB) will provide Youth Empowerment through Legal Learning (Y.E.L.L.) programming to blind, partially sighted, and Deafblind students at W. Ross Macdonald School in Brantford, Ontario. The objective of this project is to increase students’ knowledge of their rights, advocacy skills, and confidence to challenge discrimination and assert their rights in a way that promotes inclusion, dignity, and individualization.

Centre for Spanish Speaking Peoples Legal Clinic (CSSP) will hire a paralegal who will develop and implement an outreach strategy for connecting with Spanish-speaking seniors in the GTA. This initiative will benefit Spanish-speaking seniors who are living in isolation with no access to other seniors or community supports. CSSP aims to increase these community members’ access to legal information and legal supports.

The Centre for Refugee Children will develop, in collaboration with legal experts and community partners, a comprehensive catalogue of resources for refugee children and youth in Ontario, and those who support them. The objective of the project is to provide critical legal information in accessible language to unaccompanied and separated minors on the most important issues and processes they must navigate within the immigration and other systems they encounter during their settlement in the province.

Downtown Legal Services (DLS) will expand its legal services to aid inmates in Toronto-area provincial penal institutions. This pilot program will assist inmates in identifying unmet legal needs and providing them with brief legal services and representation or, where DLS is not able to assist, connecting them with other legal supports.

Hispanic Development council (HDC) will provide intake, referral, and system navigation support to the Latin American Hispanic community in the Greater Toronto Area. This initiative will benefit community members with a range of legal needs, including family law, child protection, youth justice, wills & estates, and housing. HDC aims to increase the community’s access to reliable legal information and support that is linguistically and culturally appropriate.

John Howard Society of Ontario (JHSO) will expand their Civil Legal Needs Program. JHSO will conduct research to better understand the unique civil legal needs of BIPOC populations in Ontario to create responsive and relevant educational content.The objective of the project is to increase trusted intermediaries’ ability to act as a bridge between justice involved individuals and the legal system so that the civil legal issues faced by clients are not further exacerbated by their justice involvement.

JusticeTrans will develop and disseminate arts-based PLE resources, such as comics and ‘zines, for Two Spirit, trans, non-binary, and gender nonconforming (2STNBGN) communities in Toronto and Ottawa. Partners include The 519 and Kind Space. This initiative will benefit 2STNBGN community members who are navigating discrimination, harassment, violence, and employment related legal issues. JusticeTrans aims to increase access to legal information and resources that are tailored to the unique experiences of 2STNBGN communities.

The Korean Legal Clinic will hold culturally and linguistically appropriate pro bono summary advice clinics in refugee and immigration law at partner Korean-Canadian organizations in the Greater Toronto Area. The Clinic will also develop two legal information toolkits in Korean. One toolkit will assist individuals to respond to anti-Asian racism and the second toolkit will include information on family, immigration, and housing laws. The project aims to assist recently arrived Koreans that have little to no English language proficiency and a limited understanding of the Canadian legal system.

Law Commission of Ontario’s (LCO) Indigenous Environmental Accountability Project will consider how First Nation, Métis, and Inuit laws and legal orders inform environment accountability in Ontario, including the provincial Environmental Bill of Rights. This project is part of the LCO’s broader Environmental Accountability Project.

The National Associations Active in Criminal Justice will create, disseminate, and make freely available 14 bilingual plain-language information sheets that outline the employment-related protections provided to people with criminal records in the various Canadian jurisdictions. The objective of the project is to help people with criminal records and service providers in the community to learn about these rights and be aware of protections and grounds for discrimination in Canadian jurisdictions as they relate to employment.

Ontario Nonprofit Network, and its partner Community Legal Education Ontario, will strive to meet the legal needs of Ontario nonprofits led by and serving communities facing barriers to accessing justice (i.e. public benefit nonprofits) through a systemic approach to public legal education and information. The emphasis of this project will be supporting the implementation of the Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporations Act, and conducting a legal needs assessment of Ontario’s nonprofit sector. This project will benefit Ontario’s nonprofit organizations.

Parry Sound Friendship Centre will develop a a Restorative Justice Program in Parry Sound District and Bracebridge, applying Indigenous legal principles to support community healing. The program will support pre and post charge programming and activities for Indigenous people who have been diverted from the mainstream criminal justice system.

Peacebuilders International (Canada) will conduct research on the viability of using Impact of Race and Culture Assessments (IRCAs) in youth court and school disciplinary hearings. IRCAs are pre-sentencing reports that explain how the offender’s lived experiences of racism and discrimination inform the circumstances of the offender, the offence committed, and the offender’s experience with the justice system. Peacebuilders will share the research results with policymakers, education and justice professionals, community service providers, and youth-serving organizations. Peacebuilders aims to advance conversations around how IRCAs can be leveraged to address the overincarceration of Black and other racialized youth.

Pro Bono Ontario and the National Self-Represented Litigants Project will conduct research on how end users want and need to access legal services. The purpose of the project is to collect, analyze, and share information that will improve coordination and collaboration between justice system providers in Ontario and thereby improve outcomes for low-income Ontarians who depend on pro bono and legal aid programs to address their unmet legal needs.

Sexual Assault Support Centre of Waterloo Region (SASC) will deliver its Sexual Assault Legal Advocate Program, which connects survivors of sexual violence to system navigation, referrals, and court accompaniment support. SASC will also develop accessible, online resources on topics such as victims’ rights, the process for obtaining a peace bond, civil litigation, key roles within the criminal justice system, and publication bans. This initiative will benefit survivors in the Waterloo region. SASC aims to increase survivors’ access to legal information and timely system navigation support.

The Survivors’ Secretariat will offer Six Nations community members a systems navigator resource to support individuals interviewed by the Police Task Force investigating the deaths of children at the Mohawk Institute. The navigator will explain the interview process and privacy considerations, provide progress updates, and coordinate referrals to survivor-specific services. The Secretariat aims to connect survivors and families to trauma-informed and culturally competent support as they navigate the Task Force’s investigation process.

TBMA will operate its Newcomer Legal Clinic, which connects community members in and around Thunder Bay to free immigration and refugee law services. Partners include the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law at Lakehead University. TBMA aims to fill a gap in free immigration and refugee services in Northwestern Ontario.

The University of Toronto Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work will continue its work to develop an online toolkit that will synthesize the legislation, case law, and evidence-based social science research on child protection and its effects on families involved in the child welfare system. The toolkit will be designed to be used by lawyers, social workers, and others working in child protection with the goal of leading to more informed decision-making and court orders with a stronger evidentiary basis.

The University of Windsor, Faculty of Law, in partnership with The Empowerment Council (a nonprofit organization that acts as a voice for mental health and addiction service users at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto) will establish a student legal clinic that addresses the complex, intersectional legal needs of mental health and addiction service users. The first of its kind in Canada, over three years the clinic will conduct a needs assessment, develop public legal education materials, and provide CAMH patients with legal information, support, and referrals.

Wilfrid Laurier University’s Centre for Research on Security Practices (WLU) will conduct an in-depth mixed methods qualitative case study to examine the experiences of migrants with precarious status seeking legal assistance in rural Southern Ontario (including farm workers, temporary workers, refugee claimants, international students, and people without immigration status). WLU will document the ways in which this community accesses legal services and its impact on their everyday lives. This study will benefit migrants with precarious status and will provide empirical insights for the clinics of rural Southern Ontario that can inform more effective service provision.

The Action Committee on Access to Justice in Civil and Family Matters is focused on fostering engagement, pursuing a strategic approach to reforms, and coordinating the efforts of participants across the country concerned with civil and family justice. It will undertake various activities including: ongoing national coordination, holding its annual summit, regional colloquia, and communities of practice events, and continuing to work on its justice development goals and justice metrics.

The Bora Laskin Faculty of Law at Lakehead University will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Lincoln Alexander School of Law at Ryerson University will conduct a needs assessment in order to establish a student legal clinic that responds to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Osgoode Hall Law School will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Queen’s University, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The Second Chance Scholarship Foundation will provide a post-secondary education scholarship to a student who is, has been, or is at risk of becoming in conflict with the law and who is enrolled in a college or university program relating to legal education.

The University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Civil Law Section will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Common Law Section, will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Toronto, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Western Ontario , Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Windsor, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Aboriginal Legal Services (ALS) supports Indigenous community members across Ontario who are experiencing legal issues. ALS offers legal services such as court workers, Gladue services, a post-charge diversion program, an alternative dispute resolution program for child welfare matters, and justice circles. This initiative will enhance Indigenous communities’ access to legal services that are culturally responsive.

L’Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO) will offer services at its legal information centre in Ottawa and deliver workshops on a range of legal topics. Ontarians are also able to access legal information through AJEFO’s CliquezJustice.ca portal. This initiative will enhance Ontarians’ access to French language legal services.

The Criminalization of Women Pro-Bono Project at the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic will provide trauma-informed summary legal advice, brief services, and referrals to women and non-binary people who have experienced gender-based violence and have been charged with or convicted of a criminal offence. This initiative will connect women and non-binary people to responsive and trauma-informed legal support.

Canadian Civil Liberties Education Trust will deliver workshops to educate Ontario students, teachers, newcomers, and the public about their civil rights and freedoms, and democracy more broadly. This initiative will increase access to reliable and youth-centric information on civil liberties.

The Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation’s (CERA) Pro Bono and Public Education Program will provide legal support that is tailored to the needs of low-income tenants in Ontario who face eviction or experience human rights violations connected to their housing. CERA will offer educational programming for service providers, workshops for community members, system navigation support, and referrals to volunteer lawyers. This initiative will enhance tenants’ access to timely and reliable legal support.

Community Legal Education Ontario’s CLEO Connect program will continue to develop clear, accurate, and practical legal rights education and information resources to help people understand and exercise their legal rights, with a particular focus on support for trusted intermediaries.

Connecting Ottawa will continue to coordinate a consortium of over 50 legal and non-legal organizations to implement a regional plan to provide legal information and referrals to people who are not proficient in English or French or who face communication challenges as the result of a disability or sensory impairment. The initiative will also enhance linkages between legal and community workers in Ontario.

The FCJ Refugee Centre serves refugees and others at risk due to their immigration status through all steps of the refugee determination and refugee appeals processes. The Centre primarily works with refugee claimants, rejected refugee claimants, individuals with precarious immigration status, temporary foreign workers, and those who have been victims of human trafficking. It also provides training workshops and legal education materials for frontline workers who serve refugees in the Greater Toronto Area and other parts of southern Ontario on aspects of the immigration and refugee process and procedures. The Catalyst grant will help the Centre to ensure it has the capacity and expertise to serve its clients and assist other organizations to do so, as well as to ensure its evolution and sustainability.

Innocence Canada is dedicated to identifying, advocating for, and exonerating individuals convicted of a crime that they did not commit and to preventing such injustices in the future through legal education and justice system reform. The Catalyst grant will enable the organization to continue to coordinate and administer its pro bono program, which reviews and assesses claims of innocence, as well as to enable the continuation of its legal education program.

The Childhood Arrivals Support and Advocacy Program works to support undocumented childhood arrivals. These are young people who were moved to Canada as children who have lived all their lives without official authorization or documentation, and thus are vulnerable to deportation to birth countries where they have little to no connection. Activities include outreach to youth, teachers, and parents through schools and community programs and legal system navigation, including pro bono legal support, in an effort to file permanent residence applications.

The Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) will conduct research, provide multidisciplinary analysis, and develop reports on current and emerging legal policy issues to promote access to justice and contribute to public debate on a broad range of legal issues, such as artificial intelligence and automated decision-making, class actions, last stages of life, consumer protections, and environmental accountability. Through this initiative, LCO aims to promote access to justice and contribute to public debate, benefiting justice sector stakeholders and the general public.

Law in Action Within Schools is a partnership between the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, and the Toronto District School Board, and will continue to deliver a law and justice-themed academic and extra-curricular high school program designed to teach students about law and justice. It will support them to graduate from high school, access post-secondary education, and consider a justice sector or legal profession career.

Luke’s Place Support and Resource Centre for Women and Children will continue to provide family law support for women who have experienced intimate partner violence, as well as training, resources, and mentoring to frontline workers and lawyers who assist them in Durham region and provincially.

Ontario Justice Education Network will engage the judiciary, the Bar, the courts, and the education community throughout Ontario by developing innovative educational tools that introduce young people to the justice system. This initiative will provide young people with tools to understand the law and develop the ability to address their own legal issues.

Pro Bono Ontario (PBO) bridges the gap between low-income Ontarians who cannot afford a lawyer or qualify for legal aid and lawyers who want to donate their services. Its programs include a legal advice hotline, litigation assistance programs in small claims court and Superior Court in Toronto and Ottawa, and medical-legal partnerships that operate out of five children’s hospitals. In addition to supporting these activities, the Catalyst grant will enable PBO to enhance its hotline services. The hotline currently provides free summary advice and legal drafting services in the areas of civil litigation, consumer debt and protection, employment law, housing, power of attorney for property and personal care, and corporate law (for nonprofits and small newcomer-run start-ups).

Pro Bono Students Canada (PBSC) provides legal help without charge to low-income individuals and nonprofit organizations, and experiential learning opportunities to law students. With chapters in 22 of 23 Canadian law schools, PBSC develops legal placements for law students in a range of work settings including legal clinics, nonprofit organizations, courts, and tribunals. Under the supervision of a lawyer, student volunteers draft memos, develop and deliver legal education workshops, assist lawyers and duty counsel with client intake, assist clients with document preparation, represent clients before tribunals and courts (under lawyer supervision), and provide legal information to clients.

The Probono Inmate Appeal Program will continue to coordinate and support a roster of experienced criminal appellate counsel to act as duty counsel on the appeals of unrepresented appellants in criminal cases before the Court of Appeal for Ontario. This initiative will enhance unrepresented appellants’ access to legal support.

The 519’s Access to Justice and Direct Legal Services program responds to the legal needs of LGBTQ2S communities in Toronto and Ontario. The 519 offers a general summary advice legal clinic, specialty legal clinics for criminal law, immigration and refugee law, housing law, and Trans ID matters, refugee mock hearings, a court support program, and public legal education workshops. This initiative will enhance access to legal resources that are tailored to the specific needs of LGBTQ2S communities in the province.

The Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History will study and promote public interest in the history of the law, the legal profession, and the judiciary in Ontario and elsewhere in Canada. It does so by publishing books on Canadian legal history, creating and preserving an oral history archive, supporting academic research, and hosting a diverse range of topical educational events.

The National Self-Represented Litigants Project is dedicated to better understanding the needs, motivations, and challenges of self-represented litigants (SRLs) in civil and family courts and administrative tribunals. It promotes new and more affordable models of legal service delivery that better support SRLs. It is committed to the development of practical resources geared specifically to SRL’s needs, especially in relation to cultural and procedural matters that can often confound them.

Workers’ Action Centre (WAC) will continue to provide information resources to people in low-wage and precarious employment in Ontario. Through its Developing Critical Post-Pandemic Public Education Strategies to Improve Access to Justice for Workers in Precarious Employment program, WAC will provide responsive public education strategies and resources to reach workers who have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 and are facing increased barriers to access to justice.

The Action Committee on Access to Justice in Civil and Family Matters is focused on fostering engagement, pursuing a strategic approach to reforms, and coordinating the efforts of participants across the country concerned with civil and family justice. It will undertake various activities including: ongoing national coordination; holding its annual summit, regional colloquia, and communities of practice events; and continuing to work on its justice development goals and justice metrics.

The Association of Family and Conciliation Courts, Ontario Chapter will update its Parenting Plan Guide and Parenting Plan Template. The guide was created to assist parents, lawyers, judges, and other professionals in making developmentally-appropriate parenting plans after separation. The update will incorporate recent legislative changes, will be translated into French in collaboration with Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario, and evaluated with a view to increasing the usability of the materials.

Black Law Students’ Association of Canada (BLSA Canada) will host its annual conference benefiting Black law students from across the country. BLSA Canada aims to foster connections between Black law students and legal professionals to promote professional development, legal education, and cultural awareness within the legal sector.

The British Columbia Civil Liberties Association will develop guides and public legal education materials for youth and their educators on digital privacy and rights in relation to law enforcement and other public regulated bodies. This initiative will support Ontario youth, particularly low-income and marginalized youth, become more aware of their digital privacy rights through tailored materials developed in response to a consultation process.

The Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA) will develop a report and accompanying toolkit about establishing Indigenous-led and governed protected areas, known as Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas (IPCAs) in Ontario. Partners include Asubpeeschoseewagnog Anishinabek (ANA or Grassy Narrows First Nation). CELA will work with the ANA land protection team and Elders to gather community insights to support the development of the report and toolkit. This initiative will support ANA’s ongoing efforts to establish an IPCA. CELA anticipates that the resources created will benefit other First Nations communities looking to do the same.

Canadian Legal Information Institute (CanLII) will use artificial intelligence to develop a custom classification for Ontario case law to enhance the CanLII website’s search capacity. The initiative seeks to make Ontario case law more accessible for users by making navigation easier based on area of law.

The Centre for Refugee Children will develop and implement a Child Representative Program to recruit, train, and support volunteer child/designated representatives in Ontario who are assigned to unaccompanied and separated children (UASC) navigating legal immigration proceedings. UASCs will have enhanced access to qualified representatives who will support and advocate for the child’s best interests at all stages of the refugee claim/immigration process.

The Committee to Support Indigenous Youth Aging Out of Care (the Committee) will design and disseminate a legal information package for Indigenous youth across Ontario who are aging out of the foster care system. The Committee is comprised of lawyers from Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and Ontario who have relevant professional and lived experience. Partners include the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto. This initiative will provide Indigenous youth with reliable and culturally relevant legal information to support their transition to adulthood.

The Community Justice Collective (CJC) will disseminate legal resources and deliver workshops tailored to the legal issues facing encampment residents in the Greater Toronto Area and Ontario. Topics that will be covered include basic rights when interacting with the police, the Charter rights of people living in public spaces, and the powers of private security and municipal security officers. Partners include The 519 and the Encampment Support Network. This initiative will increase access to reliable legal information and resources for unhoused people in the province.

The HIV Legal Network will research and develop public legal education resources for nurses and other supervised consumption services (SCS) providers on the legal and policy framework governing nurse and SCS service provider assisted injection of controlled substances in Ontario.

Kinbrace will consolidate its library of 39 individual region and language-based Refugee Hearing Preparation Guides into one online national version available in 12 languages. The Guide is designed to help refugee claimants better understand the refugee determination system and increase their capacity to prepare for their refugee hearing.

Drs. Rachel Birnbaum and Nicholas Bala will establish a pilot project to evaluate child-inclusive family mediation in Ontario to test whether this service can result in less expensive, more timely, and more durable dispute resolutions. It is a collaborative initiative with the support of the judiciary, mediation services, and government that could lead to a positive innovation in family law, ultimately improving outcomes for children and reducing the costs of family justice.

The Korean Legal Clinic (KLC) will provide intake, referral, and summary advice services to the Korean-Canadian community in the Greater Toronto Area. Throughout the project, KLC will build a roster of Korean-speaking lawyers available to offer pro bono services. KLC will also host public legal education workshops on a range of legal issues. This initiative will enhance the Korean-Canadian community’s access to culturally and linguistically appropriate legal resources.

Law in Action Within Schools (LAWS)’s Summer Job Program will place students in paid four-week jobs with legal aid clinics and public interest organizations. The initiative benefits high school students involved in the LAWS program and offers them a unique opportunity to learn about access to justice, observe the legal aid system in action, and interact directly with the legal community.

The Law Society of Ontario will launch a five-year pilot that allows providers of innovative technological legal services (ITLS) to serve consumers while complying with risk-based public protection requirements. Participants that meet expectations can receive permits from the Law Society to continue providing legal services in Ontario on an ongoing basis. The project responds to regulatory issues that innovators and consumers have faced in developing and using ITLS. It is designed to provide greater certainty about the rules and standards that will apply to ITLS providers and to provide consumers with increased choice and confidence that the assistance they receive is effective and safe.

Maggie’s Toronto Sex Worker’s Action Project will consult sex workers in Toronto to identify their pressing legal concerns related to their encounters with law enforcement and discrimination in other areas of their work and lives, such as housing, employment, immigration, family law and child custody matters. In response to these consultations and in collaboration with sex worker advisory groups, the project will produce comprehensive, plain language public legal education resources.

Peacebuilders International (Canada) will research and share findings on how extending the age for diversion could improve access to justice for youth aged 18-25 involved in or at risk of becoming involved in the criminal justice system in Toronto.

R.I.S.E. Arts and Community Services (R.I.S.E.) will engage artists in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) who will work alongside volunteer lawyers to produce a series of short informational videos accompanied by creative works such as images, songs, music, poetry, posters, and spoken word pieces. R.I.S.E. will also host public legal education (PLE) workshops for Black youth in the GTA, led by an artist and a legal educator. Partners include the Black Legal Action Centre and the Ontario Justice Education Network. This initiative will fill a gap in PLE resources that are engaging and culturally relevant to Black youth.

The Sexual Assault Support Centre of Waterloo Region (SASCW) will pilot a legal advocate program to provide system navigation support to survivors of sexual violence in the Waterloo region. Grant funds will be used to hire a legal advocate who will provide support through a case-management model, which will include advocating on behalf of clients, assisting with completing documents, accompanying clients to court, and facilitating referrals to lawyers. This initiative will increase survivors’ access to timely system navigation support.

University of Toronto, Faculty of Law will examine how the public’s perception of government interventions relating to COVID-19 influences public health outcomes in Canada. This multidisciplinary research study will build and draw upon unique sources of data to observe the factors that influence public response to government interventions and the efficacy of different interventions.

WomenatthecentrE will create an up-to-date, bilingual, and interactive website that provides information on the court process to youth in Ontario who are preparing to testify in criminal court, including those who are survivors of sexual assault. This new site will enable WomanatthecentrE feature to update and expand the information on the CourtPrep.ca website that was launched in 2004. This initiative will increase access to reliable information for youth navigating the court system.

YWCA Sudbury will develop and disseminate an online training program for justice sector professionals across Ontario to increase their knowledge and sensitivity regarding cases of sexual assault. Partners include Voices for Women Sudbury Sexual Assault Centre, and She Matters. Through this initiative, YWCA Sudbury aims to decrease the secondary trauma experienced by survivors of sexual violence when navigating the justice system.

Connecting Ottawa will continue to coordinate a consortium of over 50 legal and non-legal organizations to implement a regional plan to provide legal information and referrals to people who are not proficient in English or French or who face communication challenges as the result of a disability or sensory impairment. Established to fulfil a recommendation in the “Connecting Across Language and Distance: Linguistic and Rural Access to Legal Information and Services” report commissioned by the Foundation, the initiative also strengthens linkages between legal and community workers in Ontario.

The Access to Justice & Law Reform Institute of Nova Scotia (The Institute) will develop the Atlantic Canada chapter of the National Self-Represented Litigants Project (NSRLP). The Institute will work with the national NSRLP team to develop public legal education resources tailored to the civil legal needs of self-represented litigants (SRLs) in PEI, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland and Labrador. The initiative will connect SRLs to resources needed to effectively navigate the court process on their own.

Amnesty International Canada will host an articling student to support its research and action with respect to a variety of pressing international and national human rights concerns. Its work is both focused on individual situations such as taking up the case of an individual who is detained as a prisoner of conscience as well as on reform initiatives, seeking to create the legal, political, and social conditions that prevent human rights violations from occurring in the first place.

The Anishinabek Nation Union of Ontario Indians (AN) will create and disseminate public legal education resources tailored to Anishinabek Elders living on and off reserve. The resources will provide plain language information on matrimonial real property laws, wills and estates, and elder abuse. The content on matrimonial real property and wills and estates will incorporate relevant portions of the Indian Act for Elders living on reserve. This initiative will benefit Elders from AN’s 39 First Nations communities by connecting them to culturally responsive legal resources.

Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic will host an articling student to support its work providing legal services to women and non-binary survivors of gender-based violence, and in systemic advocacy initiatives including public legal education and law reform.

The BCCLA will develop a series of guides with tailored legal information about police interactions and overlapping legal systems to better serve low-income, marginalized communities and meet their diverse legal needs. In order to meaningfully increase
access to justice, these guides will be developed through consultation with impacted communities and will be made accessible through their innovative design and through
both wide-spread and targeted dissemination.

The Canadian National Institute for the Blind Foundation (CNIB) will create and disseminate “Know Your Rights” resources for individuals living with sight loss in PEI, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland and Labrador. The resources will be tailored to support those living with sight loss who experience discrimination in various areas of their lives. This work is an expansion of CNIB’s Ontario-focused Know Your Rights (KYR) project, which was launched in 2018 with the support of a Foundation grant. This initiative will connect community members with the legal resources needed to navigate the justice system and self-advocate to challenge discrimination.

Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation (CERA) will host an articling student to support its work with clients facing eviction or human rights violations in their housing, assist in the development and delivery of public legal education materials and workshops, and conduct research and draft materials to support the development and execution of CERA’s policy and litigation work.

The Chinese Canadian National Council Toronto Chapter (CCNCTO) will develop and disseminate legal resources tailored to the needs of Chinese refugees across Ontario. The resources will cover the refugee claims process, how to prepare a humanitarian and compassionate grounds claim, labour rights, how to apply for temporary resident permits, and the options for legal recourse for those experiencing gender-based violence. CCNCTO will also share guidelines for selecting and working with legal representatives and immigration consultants. Partners include Butterfly: Asian and Migrant Sex Workers Support Network. This initiative will connect Chinese refugees in Ontario to culturally and linguistically responsive legal resources.

The East Coast Environmental Law Association will conduct research on the use of restorative justice processes to resolve environmental legal disputes. This research will inform the development of a guide on how a restorative justice process can be initiated for an environmental legal conflict. This initiative will benefit restorative justice practitioners, lawyers, and communities in Nova Scotia who are seeking alternatives to litigation.

The Elizabeth Fry Society of Peterborough will work alongside other members of the Indigenous Peoples’ Court (IPC) committee to pilot a bi-weekly provincial court in Peterborough for Indigenous individuals facing criminal charges. The IPC committee consists of representatives from First Nations communities, Friendship Centres, Legal Aid Ontario, and the Ministry of the Attorney General. Grant funds will be used to hire an Indigenous court worker who will raise awareness among court personnel of the IPC process and provide system navigation support to those participating in the court. Through this initiative, the IPC committee will work to address the overrepresentation of Indigenous people in the criminal justice system.

FCJ Refugee Centre will expand its online virtual capacity to more effectively serve refugee claimants, precarious migrant populations, and service providers across Ontario. This initiative will support FCJ Refugee Centre in increasing the reach and accessibility of its services, including migration clinics, webinars, and podcasts.

The Halifax Refugee Clinic will provide legal support to refugee claimants and non-status migrants in Halifax. Grant funds will be used to hire an experienced immigration and refugee lawyer who will provide summary advice, facilitate legal referrals, and take on cases for emergency hearings when necessary. This initiative will connect low-income refugee claimants and non-status migrants to free legal support.

Innocence Canada will host an articling student to support its mission to identify, advocate for, and exonerate individuals who have been convicted of a serious crime they did not commit, and to prevent future miscarriages of justice through legal education and legislative reform.

Innocence Canada will host an articling student to support its mission to identify, advocate for, and exonerate individuals who have been convicted of a serious crime they did not commit, and to prevent future miscarriages of justice through legal education and legislative reform.

Legal Information Society of Nova Scotia will identify needs and gaps in available public legal education resources for youth in Nova Scotia and develop materials to fill these gaps in consultation with youth. The focus of the project will be on youth aged 12-25, with an emphasis on providing early, responsive, and preventative legal information and referrals.

Living Space North Against Poverty will make referrals to legal and social supports for community members who are homeless or at risk of being homeless and are also involved in the justice system. This grant will benefit underhoused community members in the Timmins and Cochrane District by connecting them to wraparound support as they navigate the criminal justice system.

Metropolitan Action Committee on Violence Against Women and Children (METRAC) works to end gender-based violence across communities through education, research, and policy. The Catalyst grant supports METRAC’s Community Justice Program, which works to build individual, community, and organizational capacity in the City of Toronto and across Ontario, through legal education and information, research, and partnerships to increase access to justice for women and youth affected by violence. While METRAC’s programming is designed to benefit all women and youth experiencing violence, there is a particular focus on reaching isolated and vulnerable women including Indigenous women, newcomer women, LGBTQ2S communities, women with disabilities, and older women.

The Mile End Legal Clinic will connect refugees in Montréal to legal information and social supports relevant to their immigration and refugee law needs. MELC will also host workshops on legal topics that address the needs of refugees in Montréal and the surrounding area. This initiative will support the integration of refugees who have resettled in Quebec.

New Brunswick Refugee Clinic will overhaul its website to improve functionality and develop an online, interactive, multi-language public legal education and legal resource centre for the benefit of refugee claimants, vulnerable newcomers, and community workers in New Brunswick.

The Nokiiwin Tribal Council will hire a Gladue writer to prepare sentencing reports for eligible First Nation community members who are involved in the criminal justice system. This grant will benefit community members in the Robinson-Superior territory. Through this initiative, the Nokiiwin Tribal Council aims to address the high rates of incarceration and recidivism among First Nation community members in northwestern Ontario.

Peacebuilders International (Canada) will host an articling student to primarily support its work within its Restorative Youth Circles program where youth have the potential to have their court cases diverted pre-trial out of the court system.

Peacebuilders International (Canada) will host an articling student to primarily support its work within its Restorative Youth Circles program where youth have the potential to have their court cases diverted pre-trial out of the court system.

Pro Bono Students Canada (PBSC) will host bi-monthly human rights summary advice clinics as well as public legal education sessions for Indigenous communities in Ottawa and Thunder Bay. Community members will receive summary advice from volunteer lawyers on their rights under the Human Rights Code and the Canadian Human Rights Act. PBSC students will conduct intake and facilitate referrals during the clinics. Partners include the Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres (OFIFC). The OFIFC will lead Indigenous cultural competency training for the volunteer lawyers and PBSC students. This initiative will enhance Indigenous communities’ access to culturally responsive legal support.

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre will host an articling student to support its work providing legal, advocacy, and research services on behalf of those elements of the public interest that would otherwise be unable to be adequately heard before courts, tribunals, and decision-makers.

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre will host an articling student to support its work providing legal, advocacy, and research services on behalf of those elements of the public interest that would otherwise be unable to be adequately heard before courts, tribunals, and decision-makers.

Reach Canada will develop resources for frontline workers to enhance their ability to spot legal issues, conduct effective intakes, and facilitate referrals for community members living with disabilities. Grant funds will be used to hire a coordinator who will create and disseminate resources to frontline workers in the Ottawa and Champlain region. Frontline workers will be encouraged to refer clients in need of legal advice to Reach’s pro bono legal referral service. This initiative will enhance the capacity of frontline workers to provide effective intake and referral support to their clients living with disabilities.

The Thunder Bay Multicultural Association will pilot a legal clinic offering free immigration and refugee law services to migrants living in Thunder Bay and the surrounding area. The clinic will also offer business law services to resettled refugees looking to start small businesses and public legal education workshops. Partners include the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law at Lakehead University. This initiative will enhance access to legal support for migrants and resettled refugees in the Thunder Bay region.

Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF) will host an articling student to support its work to advance the substantive equality rights of women, girls, and people who face gender discrimination in Canada through litigation, law reform, and public education.

The Law Commission of Ontario will undertake empirical research examining the efficacy of family protection orders. This initiative will support data-based decision making to more effectively protect individuals experiencing family violence in Ontario.

Canadian Civil Liberties Education Trust will provide workshops, seminars, and in-class sessions in schools, educational institutions, and faculties of education, educating students and teachers about their civil rights and freedoms. It prepares the next generation of Canadians for civic engagement by introducing students and educators to the exploration of civil liberties, critical thought, and the development of democratic habits.

The Bora Laskin Faculty of Law at Lakehead University will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Law in Action Within Schools is a partnership between the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, and the Toronto District School Board that delivers a law and justice-themed academic and extra-curricular high school program designed to teach students about law and justice. It will support young people to graduate from high school, access post-secondary education, and consider a justice sector or legal profession career.

Lincoln Alexander School of Law at Ryerson University will conduct a needs assessment in order to establish a student legal clinic that responds to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Ontario Justice Education Network will carry out programs that facilitate and support broad-based activity by the judiciary, the bar, the courts, and the education community throughout Ontario, with a primary focus on students and the strengthening of links between the justice and education communities. It develops innovative educational tools that introduce young people to the justice system, helps them understand the law, builds their legal capability, and prepares them to manage the legal aspects of problems that arise in their own lives.

Osgoode Hall Law School will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Queen’s University, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The Second Chance Scholarship Foundation will provide a post-secondary education scholarship to a youth enrolled in a program relating to legal education, and who is currently, or has been, involved in the criminal justice system or who is at risk of such.

The University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Civil Law Section will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Common Law Section will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Toronto, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Western Ontario, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Windsor, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO) will continue to serve as the central hub for all public legal education and information in Ontario. CLEO develops clear, accurate, and practical legal rights education and information to help people understand and exercise their legal rights, with a particular focus on support for trusted intermediaries. The use of trusted intermediaries significantly expands access to justice for low-income individuals and people from marginalized and vulnerable communities in Ontario.

Artists’ Legal Advice Services (ALAS) will expand its virtual legal clinic, which connects artists and creators in Ontario to free summary advice from entertainment and intellectual property lawyers. ALAS will develop digital infrastructure to support the clinic expansion, recruit and train additional volunteer lawyers, engage in outreach to arts organizations that work with underserved communities, and conduct an evaluation. Partners include Artists’ Legal Services Ottawa. This initiative will benefit artists and creators who experience unique legal issues while navigating Ontario’s arts sector.

The Black Femme Legal Toolkit committee will develop and disseminate legal and social supports tailored to Black queer, trans, and/or non-binary femme workers across Ontario who experience anti-Black racism in the workplace. The toolkit will include guides on how to navigate administrative boards and tribunals, referral lists of labour and employment lawyers specializing in addressing anti-Black racism, and a list of alternatives to legal processes. Partners include The 519. This initiative will benefit Black queer, trans, and/or non-binary femme workers who need tailored resources to address their employment law issues.

The Canadian Muslim Lawyers Association (CMLA) will expand its Muslim Legal Support Centre (MLSC), which connects low to-moderate income Muslim communities across the Greater Toronto Area to free summary advice. CMLA will host satellite summary advice clinics and deliver public legal education workshops in partnerships with community organizations. CMLA will also facilitate warm referrals to lawyers on the MLSC pro bono roster, as needed. This initiative will connect underserved Muslim communities to culturally and linguistically appropriate legal support.

Capital Rainbow Refuge will develop a refugee hearing preparation toolkit for individuals claiming refugee protection based on their sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and/or sexual characteristics. The toolkit will include an overview of the refugee claim process, tips on completing a basis of claim and gathering evidence, and links to legal and social supports. The toolkit will be available in English, French, Spanish, and Arabic. This initiative will connect individuals to practical information to help them navigate the refugee claim process.

Caregivers Action Centre (CAC) will create and share public legal education resources to assist migrant care workers (care workers) to apply for permanent residency through the Federal government’s Home Child Care Provider and Home Support Worker pilot programs. CAC will create fact sheets, infographics, and short videos with up-to-date information on the application process for both programs and tips for navigating common barriers. Partners include The Ontario Employment Education & Research Centre. This initiative will connect migrant care workers to timely and practical system navigation support.

Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation will develop a pro bono program to match volunteer lawyers with low-income renters in the Greater Toronto Area who are facing the loss of their home due to eviction or a human rights violation, and who are underserved by the current service landscape. It will also provide public legal education to vulnerable renters to educate them about their housing rights.

The Centre for Refugee Studies will develop an open access legal analytics online application (Refugee Law Portal) to provide refugee lawyers and refugee claimants access to timely data relating to refugee law decision-making, including data visualization, statistical analysis, customizable views of granular data, and links to relevant published decisions. The objective of this initiative is to lessen the asymmetry in access to data by making data on refugee law adjudication user-friendly and freely accessible to all interested parties, and it offers a model for the development of nonprofit open-access legal technology that advances access to justice and transparency in the justice sector.

Christie Refugee Welcome Centre will pilot a program for unaccompanied and separated refugee children (minors under 18 years old who are in Canada without a parent or legal guardian) by providing specialized services and establishing connections with federal immigration bodies, Ontario child welfare system agencies, and community legal organizations. The initiative will improve immigration, settlement, child welfare, and education outcomes for these minors.

Community Legal Education Ontario will examine the evaluation methods and range of processes that are currently being used by community-based organizations in Ontario to assess their public legal education and information (PLEI) work. The objective of this initiative is to lay the groundwork to develop a measurement tool to assist community-based organizations assess the impact of their PLEI programs and projects.

Indigenous Bar Association (IBA) will measure the current progress of ongoing efforts to revitalize Indigenous laws in Ontario. Using a broad range of measurement indexes, the IBA will examine both the revitalization of Indigenous laws within Indigenous spaces and communities, as well as the application of Indigenous laws in common and civil law spaces (such as courts). IBA will also develop toolkits for Indigenous communities, as well as for courts and tribunals in Ontario so they can continue with evaluation work beyond the lifespan of this initiative.

The Indigenous Law Centre at the University of Saskatchewan (ILC) will continue work on its legal education initiatives, which include national legal research, academic and publications programs, and a national summer law program. This initiative will support ILC’s ongoing efforts to advance access to justice for Indigenous peoples.

The Childhood Arrivals Support and Advocacy Program works to support undocumented childhood arrivals. These are young people who were moved to Canada as children who have lived all their lives without official authorization or documentation, and thus are vulnerable to deportation to birth countries where they have little to no connection. Program activities include outreach to youth, teachers, and parents through schools and community programs and legal system navigation, including pro bono legal support, in an effort to file permanent residence applications.

Law in Action Within Schools (LAWS) will place students in paid four-week jobs with legal aid clinics and public interest organizations as part of their summer job program. The grant benefits high school students involved in the LAWS program, offering them an opportunity to learn about access to justice, observe the legal aid system in action, and interact directly with community members.

Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) will collect, analyze, and report on race-based data in bail and case outcomes by tracking data from all LAO service providers (both duty counsel and the private bar). The objective of this initiative is to improve data collection and facilitate evidence-based inferences on the impact of racial background on bail and case outcomes.

Legal Clinic of Guelph and Wellington County, in collaboration with Halton Community Legal Services, will offer a mobile legal clinic, called Wellington Halton Law Van, to enhance the network of rural supports available to low-income residents of Wellington and Halton Counties. Building on and expanding the original Wellington County Mobile Legal Service pilot project, this three-year project will improve access to justice in the rural portions of the region. It will also foster relationships among health care providers, the local bar association, mental health services, libraries, nonprofit organizations, community groups, and faith organizations.

Migrant Workers Alliance for Change (MWAC) will create and share public legal education (PLE) resources on housing rights to migrant agricultural workers based in Brantford, Hamilton, and the Niagara region. MWAC will raise awareness among migrant workers of basic housing standards and the ways in which they can assert their right to decent housing. The PLE resources will be available in English and Spanish. Partners include the Ontario Employment Education & Research Centre. This initiative will fill a gap in PLE resources that address the needs of migrant agricultural workers experiencing housing issues.

The University of Toronto Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work will develop an online toolkit that will synthesize the legislation, case law, and evidence-based social science research on child protection and its effects on families involved in the system. The toolkit will be accessible online and directed to lawyers, social workers, and others working in child protection, with the goal of leading to more informed decision-making and court orders with a stronger evidentiary basis.

University of Western, Faculty of Law will study the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on family law cases and family law litigants (both those with and without lawyers), including its effects on access to justice, victims of domestic violence, and children whose parents have separated. The team will study family law developments and impacts, and the responsiveness of family justice professionals and courts over the different phases of the pandemic. The objective of this initiative is to use empirical data to understand the effects of the pandemic on access to justice in the family law sector, which may also provide a benefit for future planning.

Windsor Law will create a free, online, accessible, and regularly updated guide to Ontario civil procedure published on CanLII. The guide will include plain-language summaries but will also be designed for legal professionals as an alternative to Westlaw and Quicklaw. By making the publication freely available, the guide will provide a tool for self-represented litigants and social justice practitioners.

Aboriginal Legal Services (ALS) will benefit Indigenous community members across Ontario who are experiencing legal issues. ALS aims to improve its capacity to develop and deliver programs and services that are responsive to the needs of the Indigenous community.

The Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic’s Criminalization of Women Pro-Bono Program seeks to increase access to justice for women in the Greater Toronto Area who have experienced violence and have been charged with and/or convicted of criminal offences. The program provides women with summary legal advice and brief services for their criminal law matters. Program participants with more complex criminal law needs can access a community of pro bono criminal defense lawyers for legal advice. The program is for survivors of violence, particularly those facing multiple forms of discrimination, who come from underserved communities, and who have complex socio-economic and legal needs.

The FCJ Refugee Centre serves refugees and others at risk due to their immigration status through all steps of the refugee determination and refugee appeals processes as well as assisting with the family sponsorship and family reunification processes. The Centre primarily works with refugee claimants, rejected refugee claimants, individuals with precarious immigration status, temporary foreign workers, and those who have been trafficked. It also provides training workshops and legal education materials for frontline workers who serve refugees in the Greater Toronto Area and other parts of southern Ontario on aspects of the immigration and refugee process and procedures. The Catalyst grant will help the Centre to ensure it has the capacity and expertise to serve its clients and assist other organizations to do so, as well as to ensure its evolution and sustainability.

Innocence Canada is dedicated to identifying, advocating for, and exonerating individuals convicted of a crime that they did not commit and to preventing such injustices in the future through legal education and justice system reform. The Catalyst grant will enable the organization to continue to coordinate and administer its pro bono program, which reviews and assesses claims of innocence, as well as to enable the continuation of its legal education program.

The John Howard Society of Ontario (JHSO) will create an innovative new program to scope and serve the unmet civil legal needs of JHSO clients in Ontario. This grant will benefit JHSO clients, which includes people in provincial or federal correctional institutions, those recently released from those institutions, and other at-risk clients. Through the Catalyst grant, JHSO aims to develop programming that is responsive to the particular circumstances of justice-involved individuals who have civil legal problems.

The Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) will conduct research, provide multidisciplinary analysis, and develop reports on current and emerging legal policy issues. Partners include various justice sector organizations such as the Citizen Lab and the Criminal Lawyers Association. This grant will benefit justice sector stakeholders and the general public. Through the Catalyst grant, the LCO aims to promote access to justice and contribute to public debate.

Luke’s Place serves women and their children needing family law support who have experienced abuse and the frontline workers and lawyers who assist them. It provides both direct services and systemic support in Durham region and provincially. The Catalyst grant will enable the organization to expand access to summary legal advice at its Oshawa-based pro bono clinic, improve upon and expand its virtual legal clinic to rural southwestern Ontario, update its legal information resources and training materials, and evaluate the overall impact of its work.

Pro Bono Ontario (PBO) bridges the gap between low-income Ontarians who cannot afford a lawyer or qualify for legal aid, and lawyers who want to donate their services. Its programs include a legal advice hotline, litigation assistance programs in small claims court and Superior Court in Toronto and Ottawa, and medical-legal partnerships that operate out of five children’s hospitals. In addition to supporting these activities, the Catalyst grant will enable PBO to enhance its hotline services. The hotline currently provides free summary advice and legal drafting services in the areas of civil litigation, consumer debt and protection, employment law, housing, power of attorney for property and personal care, and corporate law (for nonprofits and small newcomer-run start-ups).

Pro Bono Students Canada (PBSC) will provide legal help without charge to low-income individuals and nonprofit organizations, and experiential learning opportunities to law students. With chapters in 22 of 23 Canadian law schools, PBSC develops legal placements for law students in a range of work settings, including clinics, nonprofit organizations, law offices, courts, and tribunals. Under the supervision of a lawyer, student volunteers draft memos, prepare policies and manuals, develop and deliver legal education workshops, assist lawyers and duty counsel with client intake, assist clients with document preparation, represent clients before tribunals and courts (under lawyer supervision), and provide legal information to clients.

Sudbury Workers’ Education and Advocacy Centre (SWEAC) will provide public legal education to workers in northern Ontario about their workplace rights. SWEAC will continue to engage in outreach activities in regions such as the Greater Sudbury area, Sault St. Marie, and North Bay. SWEAC will develop public legal education materials in a variety of novel formats around labour and employment rights and deliver Know Your Rights education workshops to different audiences on workers’ rights (Health and Safety, Employment Standards, and Human Rights).

The 519 aims to build on its capacity to support individuals through the justice system and provide the legal expertise necessary to increase access to justice. Partners include Pro Bono Students Canada and Community Legal Education Ontario. This grant will benefit members of the LGBTQ2S community, particularly those who are racialized, trans, low-income, under-housed or otherwise marginalized who have difficulty accessing high quality legal services.

The Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History will study and promote public interest in the history of the law, the legal profession, and the judiciary in Ontario and elsewhere in Canada. It does so by publishing books on Canadian legal history, creating and preserving an oral history archive, supporting academic research, and hosting a diverse range of topical public educational events.

Workers’ Action Centre (WAC) will continue to provide information resources, train the trainer sessions, and educational workshops to people in low-wage and precarious employment in Ontario. WAC will continue to develop a robust and comprehensive public education program in order to rapidly respond to developing worker needs. WAC will also deepen engagement with regions and communities where it is currently active and expand into new and emerging regions and sectors.

The National Action Committee (NAC) is a national body created in 2008 to work across the justice sector on access to justice issues facing Canadians in civil and family matters. NAC is a national catalyst for reform, fostering engagement, pursuing a strategic collaborative approach to reforms, and coordinating the efforts of all participants. It will undertake various activities including: ongoing national coordination; holding its annual summit, regional colloquia, and communities of practice events; and, continuing to work on its justice development goals and justice metrics.

Canadian Artists’ Representation (CARFAC Ontario) will hold a series of high-access legal clinic drop-in sessions for diverse artists who face systemic barriers and experience social, cultural, and economic marginalization. Focusing on artists within the Greater Toronto Area, they include those from the Indigenous, racialized, LGBTQ2S, disability communities, artists affected by barriers like poverty, mental health issues, and access to employment and education. CARFAC Ontario will be working in partnership with Artists’ Legal Advice Services. Members of the visual arts community face a growing number of legal issues due to the COVID-19 pandemic and this project will increase access to justice for the community by providing increased opportunities for them to obtain legal advice from pro bono lawyers in a format that is less formal and intimidating than the services that are currently offered.

Youth Equality through Legal Learning (Y.E.L.L.) project will provide youth with sight loss and Deafblindness (ages 15-29) and their families, with essential legal information and self-advocacy skills to assist them with breaking down barriers and challenging discrimination in areas that impact them the most.

This training will build confidence and empower participants to assert their rights in a way that promotes inclusion, dignity and individualization, and allow them to develop skills that will better prepare the youth as they transition into adulthood and navigate through (among other things) post-secondary education, career exploration, and employment.

The Canadian Women’s Foundation, together with Aftermetoo, will complete and enhance Ontario-specific information as part of a larger national initiative to address workplace sexual harassment. The initiative, called Rosa, is a digital platform centralizing laws, judicial systems, supports, and reporting options across Canada for those who experience or observe workplace sexual harassment. Rosa will provide step by step information to guide people through all judicial and administrative forums.

The Community Law School (CLS) will upgrade its website to current technical standards and requirements, including accessibility in conformity with current Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act standards. The upgrades will secure the site, allow the organization to post additional content, resources, community news, information on province-wide initiatives public legal education (PLE) materials, outreach strategies, and links to third-party resources. The grant will benefit students of CLS’s Certificate in Community Advocacy Program and individuals who work with marginalized and underserved populations throughout Ontario. It will allow them to stay current on access to justice issues by providing enhanced and supplemental course material for the certificate program as well as up-to-date public legal education information.

Regent Park Focus Youth Media Arts Centre will create and distribute a bilingual educational brochure and develop and launch an initiative for the promotion and dissemination of the video, Unheard Voices: Criminal Harassment in Canada. The project will engage with organizations such as Barbra Schiffer Commemorative Clinic, the Criminal Lawyers Association, the Crown Attorney Office, and 51 Metropolitan Police Division, to ensure wide-spread and effective dissemination of the resources across Ontario. The project seeks to address the gaps in knowledge and awareness, especially among young women, regarding criminal harassment and the legal resources available for victims.

The Regroupement Ethnoculturel des Parents Francophone de l’Ontario will deliver virtual public legal education sessions and disseminate resources on interacting with law enforcement for Francophone Black youth living in and around Ottawa. This grant will increase youth’s knowledge of their rights and responsibilities when interacting with justice system actors.

Sanctuary Students Solidarity & Support Collective will develop an interactive toolkit and series of rights-based workshops focusing on precarious immigration status and its intersection with other identities. The workshops will increase participants’ knowledge of their rights in different settings and contexts, and will encourage participants to become Community Ambassadors and further share their knowledge in their communities.

In partnership with the University of Toronto, Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, Laura Tamblyn Watts, CEO of CanAge, will create a free online multi-module course that teaches Ontarians how to choose and/or act as a power of attorney for property and for personal care. The project will provide plain language and accessible education, targeted at no more than a grade 9 education level (English and French).

Prasanna Balasundaram, staff lawyer at Downtown Legal Services, in collaboration with Professor Sean Rehaag at Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, will develop a research methodology to understand the relationship between refugee populations in southern Ontario and transitional justice processes. The goal of the project is to develop a toolkit aimed at enhancing the public’s understanding of transitional justice while strengthening the capacity of refugee, diasporic, and other civil society organizations in Ontario to prevent persecutory circumstances from arising and facilitate access to transitional justice processes.

Prasanna Balasundaram, staff lawyer at Downtown Legal Services, in collaboration with Professor Sean Rehaag at Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, will develop a research methodology to understand the relationship between refugee populations in southern Ontario and transitional justice processes. The goal of the project is to develop a toolkit aimed at enhancing the public’s understanding of transitional justice while strengthening the capacity of refugee, diasporic, and other civil society organizations in Ontario to prevent persecutory circumstances from arising and facilitate access to transitional justice processes.

Laura Tamblyn Watts, CEO of CanAge, in partnership with the University of Toronto, Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, will create a free online multi-module course which teaches Ontarians how to choose and/or act as a power of attorney for property and for personal care. The project will provide plain language and accessible education, targeted at no more than a grade 9 education level (English and French).

Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic will host an articling student to support its work providing legal services to women and non-binary survivors of gender-based violence, and in systemic advocacy initiatives including public legal education and law reform.

Canada Without Poverty will host an articling student to support its work in eradicating poverty in Canada by addressing the systemic causes of and the legal barriers to ending it. Its work includes raising awareness about poverty, participating in research to generate new knowledge about poverty, and striving to demonstrate the connection between poverty and human rights.

Innocence Canada will host an articling student to support its mission to identify, advocate for, and exonerate individuals who have been convicted of a serious crime they did not commit, and to prevent future miscarriages of justice through legal education and legislative reform.

Peacebuilders International (Canada) will host an articling student to primarily support its work within its Restorative Youth Circles program where youth have the potential to have their court cases diverted pre-trial out of the court system.

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre will host an articling student to support its work providing legal, advocacy, and research services on behalf of those elements of the public interest that would otherwise be unable to be adequately heard before courts, tribunals, and decision-makers.

The Canadian Muslim Lawyers’ Association will run a pro bono summary legal advice, facilitate referrals, and deliver public legal education sessions in the Greater Toronto Area. This grant will benefit Muslim community members facing a range of legal issues. This grant will enhance access to linguistically and culturally responsive legal support.

Centre for Refugee Studies, York University will complete a plain language review of their MeetGary website in order to increase its accessibility. This website provides key legal information to refugee claimants regarding hearings in front of the Immigration and Refugee Board. The site will also be translated from English into French, Spanish, Arabic, and Chinese. This project will benefit refugee claimant and those that support them.

The Hispanic Development Council will provide intake, referral, and system navigation support to members of the Hispanic community living in the Greater Toronto Area. Partners include Carranza LLP, a law firm in North York that has served the Spanish speaking community in the Greater Toronto Area for over 25 years. This grant will enhance access to information and support that community members need to resolve their legal issues.

The Investor Protection Clinic at Osgoode Hall Law School will produce several short videos on topics such as the securities regulation system in Canada, red flags for investment fraud, and ways to recover lost funds, including different available complaints mechanisms. This grant will allow the Clinic to provide legal education support to retail investors (including seniors) throughout Ontario who wish to educate themselves on their rights or who believe they have suffered an investment loss as a result of someone else’s wrongdoing.

Kinbrace Community Society will undertake an update to its Refugee Hearing Preparation Guide for the Greater Toronto Area/Ontario to include changes to law, procedures, and legal, community, and government resources available to refugee claimants. The updated guide will be translated into eight languages. This printed and online resource for refugee claimants and the community workers that support them is designed to help refugee claimants further understand the refugee determination system, with a particular focus on increasing capacity to prepare for refugee hearings.

The Bora Laskin Faculty of Law at Lakehead University will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Law in Action Within Schools (LAWS) will place students in paid four-week jobs with legal aid clinics and public interest organizations as part of their summer job program. The grant benefits high school students involved in the LAWS program and offers them a unique opportunity to learn about access to justice, observe the legal aid system in action, and interact directly with community members.

The Legal Information Society of Nova Scotia, partnering with the Nova Scotia Securities Commission will develop a plain language online Investor Legal Planning Information Kit for vulnerable investors in Nova Scotia. The resource will focus on helping seniors, women and young families dealing with debt, newcomers, mature families dealing with significant changes in income, and youth entering adulthood strengthen their legal literacy around investing in order to avoid investment fraud.

Lincoln Alexander School of Law at Ryerson University will conduct a needs assessment in order to establish a student legal clinic that responds to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Luke’s Place, in collaboration with University of Guelph researchers and community agencies throughout the province, will investigate the complex family law needs that emerge when criminal and/or child protection legal issues intersect with family law cases involving violence against women. The project will produce a systemic analysis, recommendations, and best practices that improve access to justice and safety for women and children, tools for clients and advocates, as well as a Family Court Research Toolkit for use in other jurisdictions. Phase 1 saw the development of the research tool and partnerships with five community agencies, as well as the establishment of a court protocol in consultation with the judiciary.

Muslim Family Services Ottawa will compile and disseminate legal information and resources to Muslim communities in Ottawa. Partners include the University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law (Common Law Section). This grant will enhance access to culturally and linguistically responsive legal information for community members facing a range of legal issues.

Osgoode Hall Law School will undertake a comprehensive empirical research project into the financial lives of older Canadians who are dealing with retirement, increased debt, and the possibility of bankruptcy, with a specific focus on their use of RRSPs. They will look at the decision making of this population as well as the impact of legislative changes affecting retirement planning of older Canadians, such as the 2009 amendments to the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act. The research will be published and made available online, and seminars will be held to educate older Canadians about debt, RRSPs, and bankruptcy.

Osgoode Hall Law School will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

Queen’s University, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The Second Chance Scholarship Foundation will provide a post-secondary education scholarship to a youth enrolled in a program relating to legal education, and who is currently, or has been, involved in the criminal justice system or who is at risk of such.

Sudbury Workers’ Education and Advocacy Centre (SWEAC) will provide public legal education to workers in northern Ontario about their workplace rights. SWEAC will continue to engage in outreach activities in regions such as the Greater Sudbury area, Sault St. Marie, and North Bay. They will develop public legal education materials in a variety of novel formats around labour and employment rights, and deliver Know Your Rights education workshops to different audiences on topics such as workers’ rights (Health and Safety, Employment Standards, and Human Rights).

The Ticket Defence Program provides legal information and basic legal services to homeless and street-involved individuals who have received a ticket or fine for a provincial or municipal offence. University of Ottawa law students, lawyers, and paralegals work pro bono defending and advising clients. In addition to the University of Ottawa, partners include Odawa Native Friendship Centre, the Centre Communautaire Vanier, and the Elizabeth Fry Society of Ottawa. With fewer unpaid fines, the project will increase the likelihood of an individual advancing out of poverty. Based on past results, up to 90% of cases may have fines reduced significantly or charges withdrawn.

The University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Civil Law Section will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Ottawa Faculty of Law, Common Law Section will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Toronto, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Toronto, Faculty of Law will develop and disseminate plain language public legal education materials about investor rights and protections in Ontario in a variety of targeted formats, providing information to vulnerable investors (the elderly and newcomers) in order to prevent fraudulent and misleading investing.

University of Toronto, Faculty of Law, International Human Rights Program will produce Know Your Rights guides, wallet-sized information cards, and theatre-based workshops for individuals with precarious immigration status (or no status) in Canada with respect to their rights around interactions with Canadian Border Services Agency and police, as well as information about the deportation and detention process. Materials will also be translated into Mandarin, Cantonese, and Spanish.

The University of Western Ontario, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The University of Windsor, Faculty of Law will conduct activities that respond to access to justice needs in the local community and provide student enrichment opportunities through experiential learning and other means.

The Agincourt Community Services Association (ACSA) will pilot a pro bono summary advice clinic and deliver public legal education sessions for community members in and around Scarborough. This grant will benefit community members in need who access ACSA’s services, which includes newcomers, refugees, and low-income individuals and families. This grant will enhance access to legal information and support for community members in need who are facing a range of legal issues.

The Arab Canadian Lawyers Association will develop a website to house legal resources and a legal referral database for the Arab community across Ontario. This grant will increase access to information and resources for community members facing a range of legal issues.

The Canadian Council of Muslim Women will provide intake, referral, and system navigation support for Muslim women living in the Greater Toronto Area. This grant will benefit women who are experiencing family law issues. This grant will enhance access to reliable and culturally responsive family law resources.

The Canadian Muslim Lawyers Association (CMLA) will hire an organizational development coordinator to spearhead short and long-term organizational planning initiatives to further develop the Muslim Legal Support Centre (MLSC). The MLSC was piloted with the support of Law Foundation funding and connects Muslim communities in the Greater Toronto Area to culturally and linguistically responsive legal information and support. This grant will enable CMLA to build on the momentum of the MLSC pilot and connect with more Muslim communities across Ontario.

Community Living Ontario will create and distribute a guide for people with disabilities and their families throughout Ontario that provides plain language information and templates for the hiring and payment of private support workers. The guide will ensure that families have access to the necessary information in order to adhere to employment laws and avoid potentially damaging consequences that improper employment arrangements can entail.

For Youth Initiative (FYI) will hire a legal consultant who will complete an organizational needs assessment, identify training opportunities for staff, and develop an intake and referral process for youth in the Greater Toronto Area seeking legal information and support. This grant will enhance FYI’s ability to provide system navigation support to marginalized, racialized, and newcomer youth who are in conflict with the law.

Place du Partage will provide system navigation support, deliver public legal education sessions, and engage in staff training. This grant will benefit Place du Partage staff as well as Francophone refugees and newcomers in Windsor. This grant will increase community members’ access to French language legal resources.

The Somali Canadian Association of Etobicoke will provide intake and referrals as well as deliver public legal education sessions in the Greater Toronto Area. This grant will benefit Somali community members in need of legal information and support. This grant will enhance access to culturally and linguistically responsive for community members facing a range of legal issues.

Aboriginal Legal Services (ALS) will benefit Indigenous community members across Ontario who are experiencing legal issues. ALS aims to improve its capacity to develop and deliver programs and services that are responsive to the needs of the Indigenous community.

L’Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO) raises awareness, informs, and educates the general public and jurists about their legal rights in the official language of their choice. It will offer services at its legal information centre in Ottawa and public legal education on its CliquezJustice.ca portal. AJEFO also plans to enhance its services for the general public. It will offer different workshops about justice-related topics across the province. This benefits Franco-Ontarians and other Ontarians.

The Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic’s Criminalization of Women Pro-Bono Program seeks to increase access to justice for women in the Greater Toronto Area who have experienced violence and have been charged with and/or convicted of criminal offences. Through the program, the Clinic provides women with summary legal advice and brief services for their criminal law matters. Program participants with more complex criminal law needs can access a community of pro bono criminal defense lawyers for legal advice. The program is for survivors of violence, particularly those facing multiple forms of discrimination, who come from underserved communities, and who have complex socio-economic and legal needs.

Canadian Civil Liberties Education Trust will provide workshops, seminars, and in-class sessions in schools, educational institutions, and faculties of education, educating students and teachers about their civil rights and freedoms. It prepares the next generation of Canadians for civic engagement by introducing teens to the exploration of civil liberties, critical thought, and the development of democratic habits.

Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO) will continue to serve as the central hub for all public legal education and information in Ontario. CLEO develops clear, accurate, and practical legal rights education and information to help people understand and exercise their legal rights, with a particular focus on support for trusted intermediaries. The use of trusted intermediaries significantly expands access to justice for low-income individuals and people from marginalized and vulnerable communities in Ontario.

The FCJ Refugee Centre serves refugees and others at risk due to their immigration status through all steps of the refugee determination and refugee appeals processes as well as assisting with the family sponsorship and family reunification processes. The Centre primarily works with refugee claimants, rejected refugee claimants, individuals with precarious immigration status, temporary foreign workers, and those who have been trafficked. It also provides training workshops and legal education materials for frontline workers who serve refugees in the Greater Toronto Area and other parts of southern Ontario on aspects of the immigration and refugee process and procedures. The Catalyst grant will help the Centre to ensure it has the capacity and expertise to serve its clients and assist other organizations to do so, as well as to ensure its evolution and sustainability.

Innocence Canada is dedicated to identifying, advocating for, and exonerating individuals convicted of a crime that they did not commit and to preventing such injustices in the future through legal education and justice system reform. The Catalyst grant will enable the organization to continue to coordinate and administer its pro bono program, which reviews and assesses claims of innocence, as well as to enable the continuation of its legal education program.

The John Howard Society of Ontario (JHSO) will create an innovative new program to scope and serve the unmet civil legal needs of JHSO clients in Ontario. This grant will benefit JHSO clients, which includes people in provincial or federal correctional institutions, those recently released from those institutions, and other at-risk clients. Through the Catalyst grant, JHSO aims to develop programming that is responsive to the particular circumstances of justice-involved individuals who have civil legal problems.

The Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) will conduct research, provide multidisciplinary analysis, and develop reports on current and emerging legal policy issues. Partners include various justice sector organizations such as the Citizen Lab and the Criminal Lawyers Association. This grant will benefit justice sector stakeholders and the general public. Through the Catalyst grant, the LCO aims to promote access to justice and contribute to public debate.

Law in Action Within Schools is a partnership between the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, and the Toronto District School Board that delivers a law and justice-themed academic and extra-curricular high school program designed to teach students about law and justice. It will support them to graduate from high school, access post-secondary education, and consider a justice sector or legal profession career.

Luke’s Place serves women needing family support who have been subjected to abuse and the frontline workers and lawyers who assist them. It supports women and their children through the family law process. It provides both direct services and systemic support in Durham region and provincially. The Catalyst grant will enable the organization to expand access to summary legal advice at its Oshawa-based pro bono clinic, improve upon and expand its virtual legal clinic to rural southwestern Ontario (currently, in partnership with over 20 women-serving organizations the virtual clinic serves urban and rural areas in northwestern and northeastern Ontario), update its legal information resources and training materials, and evaluate the overall impact of its work.

Luke’s Place serves women needing family support who have been subjected to abuse and the frontline workers and lawyers who assist them. It supports women and their children through the family law process. It provides both direct services and systemic support in Durham region and provincially. The Catalyst grant will enable the organization to expand access to summary legal advice at its Oshawa-based pro bono clinic, improve upon and expand its virtual legal clinic to rural southwestern Ontario (currently, in partnership with over 20 women-serving organizations the virtual clinic serves urban and rural areas in northwestern and northeastern Ontario), update its legal information resources and training materials, and evaluate the overall impact of its work.

Ontario Justice Education Network will carry out programs that facilitate and support broad-based activity by the judiciary, the bar, the courts, and the education community throughout Ontario, with a primary focus on students and the strengthening of links between the justice and education communities. It develops innovative educational tools that introduce young people to the justice system, helps them understand the law, and builds their legal capability, and prepares them to manage the legal aspects of problems that arise in their own lives.

Pro Bono Ontario (PBO) bridges the gap between low-income Ontarians who cannot afford a lawyer or qualify for legal aid, and lawyers who want to donate their services. Its programs include a legal advice hotline, litigation assistance programs in small claims court and Superior Court in Toronto and Ottawa, and medical-legal partnerships that operate out of five children’s hospitals. In addition to supporting these activities, the Catalyst grant will enable PBO to enhance its hotline services. The hotline currently provides free summary advice and legal drafting services in the areas of civil litigation, consumer debt and protection, employment law, housing, power of attorney for property and personal care, and corporate law (for nonprofits and small newcomer-run start-ups).

Pro Bono Students Canada (PBSC) will provide legal help without charge to low-income individuals and nonprofit organizations, and experiential learning opportunities to law students. With chapters in 22 of 23 Canadian law schools, PBSC develops legal placements for law students in a range of work settings, including clinics, nonprofit organizations, law offices, courts, and tribunals. Under the supervision of a lawyer, student volunteers draft memos, prepare policies and manuals, develop and deliver legal education workshops, assist lawyers and duty counsel with client intake, assist clients with document preparation, represent clients before tribunals and courts (under lawyer supervision), and provide legal information to clients.

The 519 aims to build on its capacity to support individuals through the justice system and provide the legal expertise necessary to increase access to justice. Partners include Pro Bono Students Canada and Community Legal Education Ontario. This grant will benefit members of the LGBTQ2S community, particularly those who are racialized, trans, low-income, under-housed or otherwise marginalized who have difficulty accessing high quality legal services

The Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History will study and promote public interest in the history of the law, the legal profession, and the judiciary in Ontario and elsewhere in Canada. It does so by publishing books on Canadian legal history, and creating and preserving an oral history archive.

Black Law Students’ Association of Canada (BLSA Canada) will host its annual conference in Ottawa benefiting Black law students from across the country. BLSA Canada aims to foster connections between Black law students and lawyers to promote professional development, legal education, and cultural awareness within the legal sector.

The Brain Injury Society of Toronto Legal Educational Awareness Project will develop, organize, and deliver in-person and web-based referral and education sessions for people with Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) involved in the legal system. An innovative concept that will use technology to enhance supportive legal services and programming for people with ABI in both the City of Toronto and across Ontario. A better understanding of the condition by members of the legal sector will help to provide people with ABI access to justice by avoiding assumptions and misinterpretations of their behaviour.

Canadian Legal Information Institute will improve access to legal information pertaining to family law for Ontarians by scanning and loading the decisions from the Reports of Family Law onto their website. This project will ensure that the core primary law and most important court decisions for this practice area from the last 48 years will become readily available to Ontarians without subscription to or purchase of research materials.

The Community Law School will develop a Mental Health Laws and Advocacy course for inclusion in the Certificate in Community Advocacy Program that will encompass five crucial legal issues/processes and four governing statutes impacting people dealing with mental health issues. This grant will benefit trusted intermediaries, as well as friends, family, and other people supporting those dealing with mental health issues. The objective of the project is to empower people supporting individuals with mental health issues to understand and better navigate legal processes.

Council of Agencies Serving South Asians will provide legal education in the City of Toronto and London, Ontario to benefit refugee women. The objective of the project is to disseminate up-to-date, customized legal information related to childcare, housing, employment, education, healthcare including maternal and sexual health by bringing lawyers and refugee women together in education forums and by developing and disseminating legal toolkits in many languages spoken by refugees.

The Jail Accountability & Information Line aims to develop its capacity to offer prisoners and their families legal information and connections to legal services in an effort to improve conditions of confinement at the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre. Partnerships will be developed among the Faculty of Social Sciences and Faculty of Law at the University of Ottawa, the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Carleton University, Community Legal Education Ontario, and Legal Aid Ontario. With the assistance of two part-time coordinators, up to eight undergraduate social sciences students will be partnered with up to eight law students to participate in call intake and resolution work.

Keewaytinok Native Legal Services will develop an ID Bank in Moosonee with satellite offices in Moose Factory, providing services all along the James Bay coast to some of Ontario’s most remote communities, such as Attawapiskat, Kashechewan, Fort Albany, and Peawanuck. The project will help clients to get or replace essential ID documents as well as provide storage of ID documents. The objective is to ensure residents in the area are able to get essential ID, have it stored in a safe space, and ensure that their basic legal needs are met with required documentation.

Matthew House will pilot an expansion of its Refugee Hearing Program (RHP) by creating an RHP chapter in the Kitchener-Waterloo area that uses video-conferencing to provide legal education to local refugee claimants. This innovative program helps claimants prepare for their hearings by providing them with an understanding of what to expect in their hearing. The preparation allows them better represent themselves at the hearing and receiving a more objective and fair outcome.

Migrant Workers Alliance for Change will conduct outreach and legal education for migrant workers, agricultural workers, and their support organizations in rural Ontario in order to support them in accessing new work permit and permanent residence immigration programs.

Partners for Planning will develop and disseminate accessible, plain-language resources, including a printed book, facilitator guide, and planning e-course. The resources are on important legal topics for families that support a relative with a disability and wish to create a good life for them and ensure their future is safe and secure, both financially and socially. The project enhances the participants’ knowledge so they can use all the available tools and legal instruments to provide the maximum security possible for their loved ones.

The Sentencing and Parole Project will develop, launch, and evaluate an initiative that seeks to address the mistreatment and misunderstanding of Black offenders in criminal sentencing and parole. The primary activity is the professional preparation of in-depth Impact of Race and Culture Assessments that provide comprehensive insight into how an individual’s experiences with racism and socio-economic disadvantage in their community may have contributed to their conduct, choices, and current or past contact with the criminal justice system. The reports provide context for judges to craft unique sentences that are just to the offender, and for parole boards to ensure offenders have access to resources and help that is attuned to their concerns.

University of Windsor will establish a Class Action Clinic, a legal resource and services clinic focused on the needs of class action class members, with a mandate to provide public legal education and services to class members so that they may better understand and exercise their rights.

Native Law Centre (NLC) will implement a range of legal education initiatives, including its national legal research and publications program and the Native Law Centre Summer Program. This grant will benefit Indigenous law students and lawyers as well as the broader legal community. Through its initiatives, NLC aims to contribute to public legal education on Indigenous peoples and Indigenous law and promote access to legal education for Indigenous students.

The National Action Committee (NAC) is a national body created in 2008 to work across the justice sector on access to justice issues facing Canadians in civil and family matters. NAC is a national catalyst for reform, fostering engagement, pursuing a strategic collaborative approach to reforms, and coordinating the efforts of all participants. It will undertake various activities including: implementation of its new governance model; holding its annual summit, regional colloquia, and communities of practice events; and, continuing to work on its justice development goals and justice metrics.

Bridges to Belonging will develop a plain language guide for people living with disabilities on their rights and responsibilities as a tenant. The resource will allow individuals in the Waterloo region to better understand the laws governing tenancy regardless of their level of literacy and facilitate more independent living arrangements. It is hoped the format will be disseminated to other agencies in the province to increase access to justice and independence for people with disabilities.

The Bruyere Research Centre will conduct a feasibility assessment for a L(Legal)-Consult system that would establish web-based communications between primary care health practitioners and legal workers to provide appropriate and timely legal information to patients with legal issues. The assessment would set the stage for a 12 to 24 month implementation and evaluation of such a system which if successful, would allow the implementation of legal-medical partnerships by facilitating communication between health and legal workers without the need for the services of an on-site lawyer.

Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic proposes to create a fully public information portal that uses artificial intelligence to process, and provide information regarding telecommunications policy, to be used in consumer protection.