Fact Sheets

These fact sheets are straightforward summaries of Legal Aid Ontario (LAO)'s programs and activities. They are useful for fact checking, or as reference materials.

About Legal Aid Ontario

How is Legal Aid Ontario funded?
Information about LAO’s revenue and other financial details.
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Legal Aid Ontario at a glance
A brief overview of Legal Aid Ontario, covering funding, operations, programs and services.
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Complaints
A step-by-step outline of LAO's complaints process.
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Services for clients

Toll-free telephone services
Find out about LAO’s toll-free number, which offers legal aid information, summary legal advice and more.
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LAO in the courthouse
An initiative to open offices in courthouses across Ontario.
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Duty counsel services
Duty counsel lawyers assist more than a million people a year in courtrooms across Ontario. Duty counsel are an integral part of Ontario’s justice system, as they represent low-income people appearing in court without a lawyer.
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What is Legal Aid Ontario’s certificate program?
Who qualifies for certificate services? Legal Aid Ontario is committed to clients receiving the right service at the right time.
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Community legal clinics
Community legal clinics are independent, non-profit organizations funded by Legal Aid Ontario. Clinics provide legal help for low-income people and communities for issues that involve basic needs, such as access to housing, health care and education.
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Family Law Service Centres (FLSC)
These centres offer eligible clients a range of legal resources and support for family law matters.
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Mediation services
Legal Aid Ontario offers family mediation services in the Milton courthouse for low-income clients with family law matters such as child support, custody and access.
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Initiatives and departments

Responding to the Aboriginal community
Legal Aid Ontario supports programs that combine traditional Native practices and customs with the justice system to address the over-representation of First Nations people in Canada's prisons.
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Big Case Management (BCM)
The Big Case Management (BCM) program is a cost-monitoring and control system for big criminal cases. It is a key part of Legal Aid Ontario's mandate to provide quality service to clients, and accountability to taxpayers.
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Legal Aid Ontario and lawyers

Panel memberships
Legal Aid Ontario’s panel standards detail the minimum experience levels and ongoing professional development requirements for lawyers working with legal aid clients.
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Services for lawyers
Over 4,500 lawyers across the province assist legal aid clients with legal matters ranging from criminal trials to family law disputes. Legal Aid Ontario acknowledges the importance of this work with a commitment to improving services for these lawyers, including online billing, training and support.
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