Archives: Grants (page 30)

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).

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.

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.