What Access to Justice Can Look Like

In February 2011, Legal Help Centre (“LHC”) first opened its doors to the public. Since then, more than 5000 individuals have been served through the Centre’s drop-in clinics. The sole criteria to access LHC’s drop-in clinic services is household income <$50,000 per year, ensuring that those who are ineligible for Legal Aid but cannot afford private legal services have a place to go for information and support.

The LHC’s pro bono legal clinic model is unique in Canada in two key ways:

• LHC was started by and continues to be supported by two universities – the University of Manitoba and the University of Winnipeg
• LHC takes a multi-disciplinary approach to problem-solving, drawing on both the legal and social work professions

Students form the backbone of the services provided by LHC. Law and social work students provide front-line triage in LHCs semi-weekly drop-in clinics, as well as in the weekly family law clinic and monthly outreach clinics. Criminal Justice students provide essential support in terms of ongoing program evaluation.

Law students gain valuable experience at LHC, translating the theoretical concepts taught in law school into the practical realities of legal problem-solving for those who might otherwise have no access to legal services. Law students are employed in the summer, work in internships programs through the school year and volunteer through the local chapter of Pro Bono Students Canada.

Collaboration is critical to the success of Legal Help Centre – among universities, faculties, community based organizations, various programs and stakeholders. Indeed, the Centre is one of the members of the Access to Justice Stakeholders Committee established by the Law Society of Manitoba. The family law program was developed in collaboration with the Court of Queen’s Bench Family Division. The duty counsel provided at Summary Conviction Drug Court is in collaboration with the Provincial Court of Manitoba. Monthly outreach clinics take part through collaborations with Siloam Mission and Indigenous Family Centre. 

Quite recently, Legal Help Centre moved into new premises in a storefront location in Portage Place, a mall in downtown Winnipeg. Already, more space has translated into more people served each week. The demand for the triage, problem-solving and legal services LHC provides has only increased in the more than 3 years of its existence.

There is a positive energy and a great deal of enthusiasm for helping people among the staff and students at LHC. I’m fortunate to be spending part of my summer working with them. If you’re in the neighbourhood sometime this summer, I do hope you’ll stop by to see what access to justice can look like.