Archives: Grants (page 25)

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.

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.

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.

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.

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 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 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.

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.

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.