Archives: Grants (page 36)

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.

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.

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.

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.