Alternative Resources to Promote Access to Justice

At Pushor Mitchell, we are proud to offer a wide range of legal services to individuals, businesses and organizations throughout our community and we are happy to be the ‘first call’ when a legal need arises. We also recognize that some issues can best be resolved without retaining one of our lawyers, and we are committed to promoting access to justice by referring people to alternative resources where appropriate.

    • Access Pro Bono (http://www.accessprobono.ca) operates the Lawyer Referral Program, which helps members of the public identify their legal needs and direct them to a lawyer for a free half-hour consultation. They also offer a number of legal services to individuals and non-profit organizations of limited means, including Residential Tenancy matters and Employment Standards matters.

 

    • The Community Legal Assistance Program (https://clasbc.net/) operates several programs throughout the province, including a Community Law Program for housing security, human rights, mental health rights and workers’ rights; a Mental Health Law Program for patients detained involuntarily pursuant to the Mental Health Act or to those subject to the Mental Disorder provisions of the Criminal Code; and a Human Rights Clinic for cases before the BC Human Rights Tribunal.

 

    • The Legal Services Society’s Legal Aid program (https://lss.bc.ca/ ) helps people with lower incomes with family law matters, child protection issues, criminal law representation, and help for refugees or deportation issues.

 

    • The Civil Resolution Tribunal (https://civilresolutionbc.ca/) is an online tribunal that is user-friendly and accessible, and may be appropriate for small claims disputes up to $5,000, strata property disputes, and shared accommodations disputes. While the CRT also adjudicates some motor vehicle injury claims, we strongly suggest that those with ICBC claims obtain advice from a lawyer before relying solely on the CRT process.

 

  • The Office of the BC Ombudsperson (https://bcombudsperson.ca/) investigates complaints about unfair administrative actions in local and provincial public authorities, such as hospitals and health authorities, municipalities and local governments, and schools and universities.

If you have a legal issue and you’re not sure where to go, give us a call. We would be happy to help you find the legal help that you need, whether that’s with one of our many experienced lawyers or with one of the alternative services available to ensure that justice is accessible to everyone.

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