LAO has services for people who have been charged with a crime. This includes:

• a free summary advice line that can give you up to 20 minutes of information and general advice about your criminal law matter
• criminal duty counsel who can give you free legal advice if you don’t have a lawyer on the day of your hearing
• a legal aid certificate program if you have a low income and if your legal issue is one that LAO covers

If you get a legal aid certificate, this means that LAO pays a lawyer to work for you. To get a certificate you must show that you have a low income by giving information about your income, property, and savings.

And, your legal issue must be one that LAO covers. You may get a certificate for some legal issues about:

• domestic violence
• family law
• criminal law
• immigration law
• refugee law

To apply for a legal aid certificate:

• call LAO at 1-800-668-8258
• use their online service
• visit one of their regional offices

Criminal duty counsel give free legal advice to people who don’t have a lawyer on the day of their hearing. Criminal duty counsel are paid for by Legal Aid Ontario and work in most courts in Ontario. If they aren’t in court, they’ll have an office nearby.

Duty counsel usually can’t represent you at your trial, but they may be able to:

• help with a pre-trial meeting
• give information and advice
• help you find out if you qualify for a legal aid certificate

Inside the courtroom, they can:

• give information to the court for you
• reschedule your hearing if you appear without a lawyer
• tell the court what’s going on with your case when they reschedule it

In Toronto, ALS provides Indigenous court workers and the Community Council diversion program. They also write Gladue reports in various locations in Ontario. They don’t provide criminal lawyers to represent you in court. Outside of Toronto, there are other Indigenous organizations that offer support to Indigenous people charged with a crime.

If you live in the Ottawa or Champlain region and have a disability, ABLE2’s Reach Legal Referral Services may be able to help. They can refer you to a lawyer or paralegal for up to 3 hours of free legal advice in any area of law. But they cannot help with urgent legal issues.

If ABLE2 cannot help, they may refer you to community resources.

Book a meeting online, or call 613-761-9522 extension 452 or 453. You can also email reachlegalreferral@able2.org.