Q: What kind of free legal help is out there?
A: One big reason people come to the Resource Centre is to get help applying for free legal representation, get free legal advice, or just plain old help navigating a legal issue. For folks who self-identify as First Nations, Inuit or Metis, we can help connect to Indigenous-specific legal resources too.
Depending on your situation, you could be eligible for a free lawyer to represent you during part or all of your criminal, family, or immigration case. For family matters, you need to be under a certain income level (we can help you check your eligibility), but for criminal or immigration matters, you don’t need to be financially eligible. Applying for legal representation is done by connecting with the Legal Aid BC intake line at 1-866-577-2525 / 604-408-2172. Intake workers will hear your story, and where necessary, ask you to submit proof of income (like a pay stub, or bank statement). Once they have this information, and if you are eligible, you will be assigned a lawyer. This process can take a number of business days, so it is good to get the process started as soon as you know you might need a lawyer.
If you don’t qualify for full or partial legal representation through Legal Aid BC, there is a good chance you can still access their advice services. We always encourage people to call, regardless of income.
One of their advice services is The Family LawLINE. It’s a free telephone advice service where family lawyers from across BC provide advice about family matters like parenting time, your rights when separating (whether you are younger or older), child protection matters, family agreements, court procedures etc. It’s worth noting that with the Sunshine Coast being relatively small, we do hear of folks running into a conflict of interest when seeking a local family lawyer. For example, if your former spouse had already consulted with that lawyer, you may not be able to consult with them too. So, it’s handy to know that lawyers you connect with through this advice service may hail from anywhere across B.C. The Family LawLINE is at 604-408-2172/ 1-866-577-2525, and operates Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., with the exception of Wednesday when it closes at 2:30 p.m.
Another advice service funded through Legal Aid BC is called duty counsel. Duty counsel is a fancy term for “local lawyers at the courthouse/ for the courthouse who provide advice to people representing themselves in court.” And, on a first-come first-served basis, those not involved with court, but who simply have criminal or family-related questions – can use duty counsel for free advice as well. For criminal duty counsel, lawyers are in-person at the Sechelt courthouse most Wednesdays about 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. To avoid an unnecessary trek to the Sechelt Courthouse if you are looking for advice, you can call the courthouse at 604-740-8929 to see if criminal duty counsel can fit you in. Family duty counsel lawyers are available over the phone the first and third Thursday of every month with some exceptions, roughly 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. To access the family duty counsel, you call lawyers Judith Wilson at 604-886-1288 or Caroline Plant at 604-399-9563 on duty counsel day. If you don’t reach one, try the other! I refer folks with criminal or family issues to our local duty counsel all the time. It is not available as frequently as say, the Family LawLINE, but if its timing meets your need, it is a great, low-barrier, free local advice service to know about.
Separate from Legal Aid, there is one more advice and legal support organization I’d like to mention is Access ProBono, which I refer people to all the time. This organization runs its own specific legal programs – which would take an entire column to go through – but the one we refer to most often allows all British Columbians to get 30 minutes of free legal advice on a wide variety of topics. If your income is modest, you may be eligible for more than 30 minutes. When you call the Access ProBono intake line, leave a message, and as per their website, you’ll be contacted within two business days, at which point someone will get back to you to nail down a time and date that you can connect with a lawyer. I usually advise clients, in preparation for their phone meeting with the lawyer they are assigned, to make a clear list of their questions, so as to not go off-topic, and make the most of their 30 minutes (or whatever amount of time they are eligible for). Contact Access ProBono here: accessprobono.ca/ or 1-877-762-6664.
One of the roles the Resource Centre can play in helping with this process of connecting to legal representation or advice is to go through the application and intake process with clients. This can look like sitting with clients on the phone while they speak with the intake worker or lawyer who is hearing their story and taking their information. It can mean helping you locate requested documents as part of your application, emailing those documents to the intake workers, following up on your Legal Aid file, or helping to appeal a legal aid decision around your file.
As always, this is just a drop in the bucket of how we can support you in navigating your legal issue. In my next legal-related column (normally two weeks from now) I’ll go into detail about resources that fall under the BC First Nations Justice Council’s umbrella, including Gladue Services and the Virtual Indigenous Justice Centre. In the meantime, if you want more information about legal information and services out there, connect with us/book an appointment and we are happy to hear about your specific situation.
Angie Theilmann is an information and referral specialist at the Sunshine Coast Resource Centre, your community information hub. The Resource Centre is open Monday to Thursday 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Appointments are recommended to be sure we are available to help you. Contact us: [email protected] or 604-885-4088.
