A Working Group of the Canadian Bar Association Access to Justice Committee (CBA Committee) and the Association of Legal Aid Plans of Canada (ALAP) initiated the National Legal Aid Benchmarks project to encourage new ways of thinking about legal aid reform and build support for substantial change. The Working Group hopes that the process of developing national legal aid benchmarks will contribute to a positive dialogue about this critical human services program and a revitalization of its purpose. It calls for a long-term commitment to innovation linked to evidence informed practices, and accompanied by a substantial reinvestment in legal aid.