As of April 1st, 2015, Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) will implement the second (of three) 6% financial eligibility increases for all legal aid services. LAO implemented its first six per cent increase on Nov. 1, 2014. These increases apply to all legal aid services.
Certificate Program
The certificate program provides eligible, low income Ontarians publicly funded legal representation. A certificate is a voucher guaranteeing that the lawyer will get paid for representing the legal aid client for a certain number of hours. Certificates are only for the most serious legal matters, which may include:
- Criminal charges where a jail sentence is likely
- Serious family problems such as child protection issues
- Immigration and refugee matters
The financial threshold for a single applicant without dependents is rising from the current $11,448 in gross annual income to $12,135 in gross annual income. The threshold is scheduled to rise again, to $12,863 in gross annual income, starting April 1, 2016.
| Family Size | Annual gross income | ||
| November 1, 2014 | April 1, 2015 | April 1, 2016 | |
| 1 | $11,448 | $12,135 | $12,863 |
| 2 | $19,805 | $20,993 | $22,253 |
| 3 | $22,577 | $23,932 | $25,367 |
| 4 | $25,511 | $27,042 | $28,664 |
| 5+ | $28,317 | $30,016 | $31,817 |
Duty Counsel Services
The duty counsel program provides legal services in criminal, family law and child protection court cases to low-income Ontarians who do not have a lawyer. These services include:
- Giving advice about legal rights, obligations and the court process
- Providing assistance in the courtroom for bail hearings and sentencing
- Assist with diversion, guilty pleas and adjournments
- Review or prepare court documents to be filed
For this program, the financial threshold for a single applicant without dependents is rising from the current $19,080 in gross annual income to $20,225 in gross annual income. The threshold is scheduled to rise again, to $21,438 in gross annual income, starting April 1, 2016.
| Family Size | Annual gross income | ||
| November 1, 2014 | April 1, 2015 | April 1, 2016 | |
| 1 | $19,080 | $20,225 | $21,438 |
| 2 | $28,620 | $30,337 | $32,131 |
| 3 | $32,860 | $34,832 | $36,921 |
| 4 | $39,220 | $41,573 | $44,068 |
| 5 + | $45,580 | $48,315 | $50,803 |
Clinic Services
Legal Aid Ontario also funds 76 community clinics and six Student Legal Aid Services Societies located throughout the province. These organizations employ lawyers, legal workers, paralegals and administrative staff to provide information, legal advice and representation.
Their financial eligibility guidelines are also increasing by six per cent. Community legal clinics have some discretion in applying these guidelines. Guidelines in the case of a one-adult family:
| Family Size | Annual gross income | ||
| November 1, 2014 | April 1, 2015 | April 1, 2016 | |
| 1 | $ 16,748 | $ 17,753 | $ 18,818 |
| 2 | $ 19,398 | $ 20,562 | $ 21,796 |
| 3 | $ 22,684 | $ 24,045 | $ 25,488 |
| 4 | $ 24,539 | $ 26,011 | $ 27,572 |
| 5 | $ 27,083 | $ 28,708 | $ 30,430 |
| 6 | $ 29,044 | $ 30,787 | $ 32,634 |
Updated on April 1, 2015
Source: http://news.ontario.ca/mag/en/2015/04/new-financial-eligibility-guidelines-for-legal-aid.html
