Help for the General Public

Canadian Bar Association
The CBA’s – Lawyer Referral Service will connect you with a lawyer who practises in the area of administrative law. The lawyer will meet with you for 30 minutes for a fee of $25.00.

Pro Bono Law of BC
Pro Bono Law of BC’s website provides a comprehensive list of legal resources and pro bono legal services in BC. It also offers links to resources for administrative law problems, such as human rights, employment, or residential landlord and tenancy issues.

Community Legal Assistance Society (CLAS)
The Community Legal Assistance Society (CLAS) provides legal advice and assistance for people who are physically, mentally, socially, economically or otherwise disadvantaged or whose human rights need protection. CLAS can provide assistance with these administrative law problems:

• Housing
• Income security (welfare, disability benefits, Canada Pension Plan, Old Age Security)
• Accessibility for people with disabilities:
  • Education
  • Community Living Supports
  • Public Services
• Employment Insurance (EI)
• Workers’ Compensation (WCB)

• Information and Privacy for People with Disabilities
• Mental health issues (legal advice and representation to those who have been involuntarily detained pursuant to the BC Mental Health Act or to those who have custody or conditional discharge orders pursuant to the mental disorder provisions of the Criminal Code of Canada.)
• Human rights (CLAS and the BC Human Rights Coalition represent people throughout the province with complaints before the BC Human Rights Tribunal.)

PovNet
The PovNet website provides information about welfare and housing laws and resources in British Columbia, as well as links to anti-poverty issues and organizations. The website also provides links to advocacy groups throughout the province.

Legal Services Society
Legal representation by a lawyer may be available through legal aid on these issues:

• Mental health and prison issues: and
• Immigration problems.

Law Students Legal Advice Program (UBC)
The UBC Law Students Legal Advice Program (LSLAP) assists low-income earners with these administrative law problems:

• Employment standards;
• Residential landlord and tenant issues;
• Workers’ compensation;
• Employment insurance;
• Social assistance (welfare);
• Civil liberties.

The program also offers representation on a case-by-case basis in such hearings as:

• Welfare appeals;
• Residential Tenancy Branch Arbitrations; and
• Academic Disciplinary Hearings.

The Law Centre (University of Victoria legal advice program)
The Law Centre provides free legal representation for those persons who qualify for legal assistance in these areas of administrative law:

• Human rights complaints; and
• Hearings before some administrative tribunals (employment insurance; welfare; residential landlord and tenant disputes; Canada Pension Plan).

The BC Public Interest Advocacy Centre
The BC Public Interest Advocacy Centre provides representation to groups that would not otherwise have the resources to effectively assert their interests. Currently the Centre is focusing on utility regulation, in which they represent the interests of residential consumers’ organizations before tribunals such as the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) and the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).

Together Against Poverty Society (TAPS):
TAPS in Victoria provides free one-on-one legal advocacy and representation in matters that involve any of the following:

• Disability benefits applications and appeals;
• Social assistance (welfare);
• Employment insurance applications and appeals; and
• Residential landlord and tenant disputes.

BC Supreme Court Self-Help Information Centre
The BC Supreme Court Self-help and Information Centre provides self-represented litigants in Supreme Court civil and family cases with information about court procedure, assistance with filling out court forms, referrals to lawyers, and information about alternatives to going to court. The staff can assist provide legal information, but not legal advice, on issues related to judicial review of a tribunal’s decision.

Justice Access Centre
The Justice Access Centre (JAC) in Nanaimo provides legal information, referrals to other services, and limited legal advice in these administrative law areas: employment, housing, income (including social benefit programs), immigration, and human rights issues.