New service offering free legal advice
Lawyer Alex Don initially got the idea to form a network of legal professionals offering free advice to people in the face of the COVID-19 lockdowns in March.
“We realized that what started off as a COVID reaction has quickly become a massive access-to-justice issue for us and it’s Canada-wide,” Don told the Star.
He serves as president of the National Canadian Lawyers’ Initiative — which involves more than 400 senior and new lawyers and law students — providing free legal information and advice on practically any area of the law.
“When this pandemic hit, it was essentially kerosene on the fire. The (legal) system was already stressed, it had many issues and then accessibility broke down further,” said Fahad Diwan, the initiative’s director of legal services.
Diwan explained that when a person reaches out through the website at natcanlaw.com, they can be connected with a lawyer in their province for some pro bono legal advice on a range of legal issues including commercial leases and contracts. He stresses that they don’t offer legal representation.
Hundreds of people have reached out for assistance since March, and
Diwan said the initiative continues to urge lawyers in every province and territory to reach out and volunteer some of their time.
“Please reach out to us, it is incumbent on us as legal professionals to give back to our community, particularly during this time and we need lawyers’ help and Canadians need lawyers’ help,” he said.
There is no income threshhold to qualify for help from the initiative, which is aimed at helping the many Canadians who earn too much to qualify for legal aid but not enough to afford a lawyer.
“There’s just a ton of people out there who might have some disposable income, but they still can’t afford spending $200 to $300 an hour for a lawyer,” Diwan said. “And what happens more often than not is that they end up self-representing, or they end up foregoing their legal problem altogether, and that results in a lot of injustices we see day in and day out.”
Don said the initiative is gaining traction with politicians as well, having met recently with federal International Development Minister Karina Gould. He’s hoping to meet with more members of cabinet soon.
“Small business owners, freelancers, trades workers, farmers, artists, and professionals are struggling,” says the group’s website.
“People need help with reneged or about to be broken contracts, leases, loans, mortgages, lapsed or pending permits, employment rights and a myriad of complex legal obligations.
“The list is endless. People need expert direction, guidance and legal support.”
Don said the initiative is “changing the paradigm of the way legal services are delivered,” as they are a completely virtual operation available to assist Canadians throughout the country.
“This is really breaking down the barriers, the status quo, of the way that legal services are delivered,” Don said.
“We are really trying to use today’s tools to solve today’s problems.”