Script 430 gives information only, not legal advice. If you have a legal problem or need legal advice, you should speak to a lawyer. For the name of a lawyer to consult, call Lawyer Referral at 604.687.3221 in the lower mainland or 1.800.663.1919 elsewhere in British Columbia.

People sometimes grumble about the high cost of lawyers’ services. But many people don’t know that there’s a great deal of legal information and advice available at a very low cost – and even free in some cases. Because this script goes into some detail about what’s available, it is fairly long, so if you’re listening to this (as opposed to reading it), make sure you have a pen and paper handy to write down the phone numbers and websites mentioned.

Some sources for free legal information include:

BC Courthouse Library Society: www.bccls.bc.ca
It provides legal information services to the legal community and the general public of British Columbia.  Their toll free number is 1.800.665.2570.

Dial-A-Law
Dial-A-Law is a library of legal information that is available:

• as recorded scripts by phone at 604.687.4680 in the lower mainland or 1.800.565.5297 elsewhere in BC, and
• in writing, on the Canadian Bar Association, British Columbia website at www.cba.org/bc in Public & Media.

Law Courts Education Society (LCES): www.lces.ca
LCES is dedicated to improving access to the legal system through hands-on, targeted, two-way education between the public and those working in the justice system. In “self-help” section of the society’s website, you can find legal information and education related to areas of law including Criminal Law, Civil Law, Family Law and Appeals. Call 604.660.9870 in Vancouver for enquiries.

Legal Services Society (LSS): www.lss.bc.ca
LSS provides free legal information publications in a number of languages, both in print and on their website.

• Publications: www.lss.bc.ca/resources/pubs_main.asp
  These publications deal with family law, child protection, immigration issues, criminal matters and poverty law. Browse the Public Legal Education and Information Resource Catalogue (BC) (PDF) for a description of the print, online, and audio-visual materials, and the workshops/courses offered by eight BC public legal education and information providing organizations.
• Other websites maintained or funded by LSS:
• Electronic Law Library: www.bcpl.gov.bc.ca/ell
  It provides access to legal information to British Columbians. It is an extensive collection of links to government information, legislation, court decisions, and specific areas of law.
• Family Law in British Columbia: www.familylaw.lss.bc.ca
  It includes self-help materials to help people resolve family law problems, current family law information and resources, and links to useful related sites.
• LawLINK: www.lawlink.bc.ca
  It is an online information service for British Columbians. It provides links to plain language tools and resources that can help you resolve your legal problems.
• PovNet: www.povnet.org
  It provides current information about poverty issues in BC and Canada for advocates, community groups, and people on welfare.
• Legal info outreach workers (LIOWs) are staff members at LSS regional centres who can:
  • help people use LawLINK to find legal information and self-help resources on the Internet;
  • give people printed legal information;
  • refer people to other LSS services such as LawLINE and the Family Advice Lawyer Project (more information for this project in the next section), and other community services; and
  • visit community groups to tell them about LSS services, and collect feedback from community workers and the public about LSS programs.

To contact a legal information outreach worker, call the regional centre closest to you:

Kamloops 100 – 125 Fourth Avenue 250.314.1900	Kelowna 307 – 1664 Richter Street 250.763.8613
Prince George 302 – 1488 Fourth Avenue 250.564.9717	Surrey Surrey City Centre Mall Ltd. 1370 – 13450 102nd Avenue 604.585.6595
Terrace 3212 Emerson Street 250.635.2133 or 1.800.787.2511 (toll free)	Vancouver 400 – 510 Burrard Street 604.601.6206
Victoria 200 – 747 Fort Street 250.388.4516

Native Courtworker and Counselling Association of BC: www.nccabc.ca
It provides assistance to aboriginal people in conflict with the law and ensures they participate fully in the justice system through a holistic approach to prevention and intervention.  Their contact numbers are as follows:

The Multilingual Legal Web Site: www.multilingolegal.ca
It is a new online resource designed to access to legal publications in Spanish, French, Vietnamese, Chinese, Punjabi, Persian, Korean, and Arabic. Topics include: abuse, child protection, court orders, family violence, newcomers services and resources, welfare, and victim services. The site is sponsored by the Latin American Community Council and MOSAIC and is funded by the Law Foundation of BC.

The Public Legal Education Society (also know as the People’s Law School)
This non-profit organization sponsors free lectures on a great variety of legal topics, taught mainly by lawyers. To contact the People’s Law School, phone 604.331.5400, or see their website at www.publiclegaled.bc.ca.

The Public Library
Provincial and federal statutes can be found there, as well as many books about the law written especially for non-lawyers. Ask your reference librarian for help in finding what you need.

You have a legal problem, or at least you think you do, and you need some free or inexpensive help. Then the following services may be able to help you:

Lawyer Referral Service
It’s a public service offered by the BC Branch of the Canadian Bar Association, the same organization that operates Dial-A-Law. Call 604.687.3221 in the Lower Mainland or 1.800.663.1919 toll-free elsewhere in British Columbia. Explain briefly the type of problem, and the service will give you the name of a lawyer.  Phone the lawyer and make an appointment. Tell the lawyer that Lawyer Referral Service sent you. The lawyer will give you up to a 30-minute appointment for $25. At the appointment, the lawyer will tell you if you have a legal problem. Then, if you and the lawyer agree, you can hire that lawyer at their normal rate. But you don't have to use that lawyer. You may decide you don't have a legal problem and don't need a lawyer. Or you may decide to shop around and find another lawyer.

Services provided by Legal Services Society (LSS): www.lss.bc.ca

• LawLINE
  Law Line is a telephone service, operated by the Legal Services Society, that provides legal information on most legal issues such as poverty, family, criminal and immigration law. It’s available for people with low incomes whose problems aren’t covered by Legal Aid.  Call the Legal Services Society at 604.408.2172 press “7” in the Lower Mainland or 1.866.577.2525 toll-free elsewhere in BC, and follow the instructions to be transferred to the Law Line. Staff can answer legal questions and refer you to other resources.
• Legal Aid: www.lss.bc.ca/legal_aid/what_is.asp
  Legal representation is available for specific types of criminal, family (including child protection) and immigration cases, as well as for some prison issues and mental health review panels and hearings. Phone 604.408.2172 in the Lower Mainland or 1.866.577.2525 toll-free elsewhere in BC.
• Brydges Line
  If you are being investigated for a crime, or have been arrested or detained, you can get 24-hour access to emergency legal advice by phoning the “Brydges Line,” available through the Legal Services Society at 1.866.458.5500 toll-free in the Lower Mainland or 1.866.458.3300 toll-free throughout the province.
• Duty Counsel
  Duty counsel are lawyers paid by LSS to provide legal services to in- and out-of-custody accused people in Provincial Court. Duty counsel can provide you with advice about the charges against you, court procedures, and your legal rights (including the right to counsel and the right to apply for legal aid). Duty counsel can also represent you at a bail hearing, and, if there is time, help with a guilty plea. While you do not have to be financially eligible for legal aid to receive duty counsel services, you must meet LSS coverage and eligibility requirements to get a referral for ongoing representation.  In Vancouver, limited duty counsel services are available to people detained on immigration matters.
• Family Advice Lawyer Project
  It is a joint project of LSS and the Ministry of Attorney General's Family Justice Services Division. This service is available in family justice counsellors’ offices in Kamloops, Kelowna, Prince George, Surrey, Vancouver, and Victoria. You must be referred to the service by a family justice counsellor or a child support officer.   If you are a low-income parent experiencing separation or divorce, you may be eligible for up to three hours of free legal advice from the Family Advice Lawyer Project.  Project lawyers can provide advice about custody, access, guardianship, and child support; property (limited); tentative settlement agreements; and court procedures.  Call Enquiry BC at 604.660.2421 from Vancouver, 250.387.6121 from Victoria or 1.800.663.7867 from anywhere else in the province, and ask to be connected to a family justice counsellor’s office in one of the locations above.
• Family Duty Counsel (family lawyers)
  Family duty counsel are lawyers paid by LSS to assist people with family law problems or child protection issues (where the Ministry for Children and Families becomes involved with your family). If you do not have your own lawyer, duty counsel can give you advice and speak on your behalf in court on simple matters. Duty counsel may be able to help you even if you are not eligible financially. Duty counsel will not take on your whole case and will not represent you at a trial.  You can make an appointment to see family duty counsel in Port Coquitlam, Surrey, and Vancouver. Walk-ins are also welcome. At other locations, family duty counsel is a drop-in service. No appointments are made and people are helped on a first come, first served basis. The lawyers must first help people who have matters in court that day, but can assist others once they are not needed in court.  Call your local court registry to see if they have started family duty counsel services. To find your local court registry, look in the blue pages of your phone book under "Government of British Columbia — Court Services" or Phone 604.408.2172 in the Lower Mainland or 1.866.577.2525 toll-free elsewhere in BC. Family duty counsel services began as pilot projects in fall 2002 and are now available in 44 locations across BC.
• Supreme Court Advice Lawyer Project
  If you are a low-income parent experiencing separation or divorce, you may be eligible for up to three hours of free legal advice from the Supreme Court Advice Lawyer Project. Project lawyers can provide advice about custody, access, guardianship, and child support; property (limited); tentative settlement agreements; and court procedures. This project operates only in Supreme Court in Kamloops, Kelowna, Prince George, Terrace, Vancouver, and Victoria.  Call the Supreme Court registry find out when the advice lawyer is available. For the addresses and phone numbers of BC Supreme Court registries, look in the blue pages of your phone book under "Government of British Columbia — Court Services" or phone 604.408.2172 in the Lower Mainland or 1.866.577.2525 toll-free elsewhere in BC.

Pro Bono Legal Services
“Pro bono” basically means “free,” and in these programs, private and experienced lawyers volunteer to provide free legal advice to those who can’t reasonably afford a lawyer or can’t get Legal Aid.

• BC Public Interest Advocacy Centre: www.bcpiac.com
  BCPIAC is a non-profit, public interest law office. Its task is to provide representation to groups that would not otherwise have the resources to effectively assert their interests. Call 604.687.3063 in Vancouver.
• Community Legal Assistance Society (CLAS): www2.povnet.org/clas
  The purpose of the Community Legal Assistance Society (CLAS) is to provide legal advice and assistance and to use and develop the law for the benefit of people who are physically, mentally, socially, economically or otherwise disadvantaged or whose human rights need protection. Call 604.685.3425 in Vancouver or toll free 1.888.685.6222.
• Immigration & Multicultural Services:
• Affiliation of Multicultural Societies and Service Agencies of BC (AMSSA): www.amssa.org
  AMSSA provides leadership in advocacy and education in British Columbia for anti-racism, human rights, and social justice. AMSSA supports its members in serving immigrants, refugees and culturally diverse communities. Call 604.718.2780 or 1.888.355.5560 in Vancouver.
• Immigrant Services Society of BC: www.issbc.org
  Immigrant Services Society of BC (ISS) will continue to be a leader in identifying the needs of immigrants and refugees and in developing, demonstrating and delivering effective, quality programs and services which meet those needs.  Call 604.684.7498 or 604.684.2561 in Vancouver.
• MOSAIC: www.mosaicbc.com
  MOSAIC is a multilingual non-profit organization dedicated to addressing issues that affect immigrants and refugees in the course of their settlement and integration into Canadian society. Call 604.254.9626 in Vancouver.
• S.U.C.C.E.S.S.: www.successbc.ca
  S.U.C.C.E.S.S. supports the well being of Canadians and immigrants from diverse ethnic origins through the provision of social, educational and health services, business and community development, and advocacy. Call 604.684.1628 in Vancouver for general inquiries.
• Pro Bono Law of BC: www.probononet.bc.ca
  It is an innovative, collaborative pro bono system advancing access to justice and serving the legal needs of people and non-profit organizations of limited means throughout British Columbia, which is funded by the Law Society of British Columbia and the Law Foundation of British Columbia. Call 604.893.8932 in Vancouver.
• Pro Bono Map of BC: www.probonomap.bc.ca
  This is an interactive, searchable map of free legal services in BC.
• Tenant Resource & Advisory Centre (TRAC): www.tenants.bc.ca
  TRAC is a Vancouver-based non-profit organization that offers services on legal information for tenants, publications on tenants’ rights, organizing tenants and workshops. Call 604.255.0546 in Vancouver or toll free 1.800.665.1185.
• The Salvation Army BC Pro Bono Lawyer Consultant Program: www.probono.ca
  It is offered through the Salvation Army, and clinics are offered throughout the province. The volunteer lawyers won’t actually do the legal work for you, but they will help prepare and lead you through the court process. Call 604.694.6647. You’ll be put in touch with the appropriate clinic closest to you, where you can make an appointment to see a lawyer.
• The Western Canada Society to Access Justice: www.accessjustice.ca
  It is a non-profit society. Their directors and volunteer lawyers are dedicated to justice for those who cannot afford it.  All services are free. The client access number is 604.878.7400 in Greater Vancouver or 1.877.762.6664 from anywhere else in the province. 

Law School Student Services

• The Law Student’s Legal Advice Program (LSLAP): www.lslap.bc.ca
  It is a student-run organization that provides legal advice to those who cannot otherwise afford such assistance.  Since recent cutbacks to Legal Aid in the province, LSLAP has become increasingly important in dispensing free legal advice. The central number is 604.822.5791 (extension 0). Their manual of free legal information is available online.
• The Law Centre: www.thelawcentre.ca
  It is a service of the University of Victoria, Faculty of Law. It provides advice, assistance and representation to clients who cannot afford a lawyer. Free legal representation is for those who are qualified for legal assistance. Call 250.385.1221 or check their website for more information.

Private Lawyers
If you want to talk to a lawyer of your choice, but you’re afraid of what it might cost, call the lawyer and ask what they would charge for an initial consultation. Some lawyers don’t charge for the first interview and others charge very little.

Legal Researches and Websites

• Best Guide to Canadian Legal Research: www.legalresearch.org
  A starting point for legal research. Effective strategies and techniques for Canadian legal research, find and using secondary sources, finding and analyzing cases, updating your research, legal writing, and frequently asked questions.
• Access to Justice Network: www.acjnet.org
  Another starting point for legal research, including information on hundreds of legal topics.
• Department of Justice, Canada: www.canada.justice.gc.ca
  Information on issues related to federal laws. For example, federal statutes and regulations, constitutional documents, court decisions, child support guidelines, and immigration matters.
• BC Ministry of Attorney General: www.gov.bc.ca/ag
  The website has information on the court system, family issues including Family Maintenance Enforcement, dispute resolution and other related links.
• Provincial Court of British Columbia: www.provincialcourt.bc.ca
  Information on appeals, alternatives trial, frequently asked questions, the complaint process, a court locations map as well as some information about criminal, youth, family, small claims, traffic, bylaw matters and related laws.
• BC Supreme Court and BC Appeal Court: www.courts.gov.bc.ca
  This website has the Rules of Court and decisions that you can study.

Other Information and Referral Services

• Information Services Vancouver is BC’s largest provider of information and referral services. Staff can provide information and refer you to the appropriate community, service or government agency. Call 604.875.6381.
• If you live in the Okanagan area of BC, you can call the Social Planning Council for the North Okanagan at 250.545.0091 or visit www.socialplanning.ca. They’ve published a Can We Help You? Guide to community services that are available primarily in the Okanagan.
• Information Services Vancouver operates “VictimLINK”, a 24-hour phone line for victims of all crimes anywhere in BC. Call 1.800.563.0808 toll-free from anywhere in the province.

Other Resources for Legal Information

• Adoption (Ministry of Children & Family Development): www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/adoption
• B.C. Coalition to Eliminate Abuse of Seniors: www.bcceas.ca
• Better Business Bureau: www.bbb.org
• Builders Lien Act Support Materials: www.bcli.org/pages/projects/builderslien
• Canadian Bar Association: www.cba.org
• Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms: http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/charter/index.html
• Canadian Human Rights Commission: www.chrc-ccdp.ca
• Canadian Marketing Association: www.the-cma.org
• Collaborative Family Law: www.collaborativedivorce.ca
• College of Physicians and Surgeons: www.cpsbc.ca
• Competition Bureau: www.cb-bc.gc.ca
• Co-operative Housing Federation of BC: www.chf.bc.ca
• Court Services: www.ag.gov.bc.ca/courts
• Credit Counselling: www.nomoredebts.org
• Dispute Resolution Office: www.ag.gov.bc.ca/dro
• Employer’s Advisers Office: www.labour.gov.bc.ca/eao
• Employment Standards Branch Locations: www.labour.gov.bc.ca/esb/contact/branch.htm
• Federal Court of Canada: www.fct-cf.gc.ca
• Family Maintenance Enforcement Program (FMEP): www.fmep.gov.bc.ca
• Family Justice Services: www.ag.gov.bc.ca/family-justice/index.htm
• Human Rights Protection: www.ag.gov.bc.ca/human-rights-protection/index.htm
• La justice en français: www.ajefcb.ca
• Law Society: www.lawsociety.bc.ca
• Lawyer Referral Services in Canada: www.justice.gc.ca/en/ps/sup/steps/lawyer.html
• Legal Profession Act Review process: www.courts.gov.bc.ca/sc/Legal%20Profession%20Act%20Review%20Process.asp
• Legislative Assembly of BC: www.legis.gov.bc.ca
• Mediator Roster Society of BC: www.mediator-roster.bc.ca
• Men’s Resources: http://victoria.tc.ca/Community/MensCentre/resrcbc.html
• Mental Health and Addictions: www.healthservices.gov.bc.ca/mhd
• Ministry of Finance: www.fin.gov.bc.ca
• Ministry of Health Services: www.hlth.gov.bc.ca
• Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General: www.pssg.gov.bc.ca/consumers
• Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada: www.mssociety.ca
• Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner: www.oipc.bc.ca
• Old Age Security Benefits: www.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/isp/common/oastoc_e.shtml
• Paternity Testing: www.vch.ca/programs/paternity.htm; Genetrack Biolabs: www.genetrack.bc.ca
• Prisoners’ Legal Services: 1.888.839.8889
• Public Guardian and Trustee of Canada: www.trustee.bc.ca
• RCMP: www.rcmp.ca/crimrec/pandp_e.htm
• Real Estate Counsel of BC: www.recbc.ca
• Strata Property Act Information: www.fic.gov.bc.ca/responsibilities/strataowners/overview.htm
• The society of Notaries Public of BC: www.notaries.bc.ca
• Vital Statistics Agency: www.vs.gov.bc.ca
• West Coast Environmental Law: www.wcel.org
• WorkSafeBC: www.worksafebc.com
• Workers’ Advisers Office: www.labour.gov.bc.ca/wab

[updated April 2008]

Dial-A-Law© is a library of legal information that is available:

• by phone, as recorded scripts, and
• in writing, on the CBA BC Branch website.

To access Dial-A-Law, call 604.687.4680 in the lower mainland or 1.800.565.5297 elsewhere in BC. Dial-A-Law is available online at www.cba.org/bc in Public & Media.

The Dial-A-Law library is prepared by lawyers and gives practical information on many areas of law in British Columbia. Dial-A-Law is funded by the Law Foundation of British Columbia and sponsored by the Canadian Bar Association, British Columbia.

© Copyright 1983-2008 Canadian Bar Association, British Columbia