In brief: News for lawyers

As you may be aware, on March 26, 2026, Bill C-12 received royal assent. The bill introduces significant changes to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) that directly affect the refugee claim process. Most notably, the bill creates two new eligibility bars that prevent claims from being referred to the Refugee Protection Division (RPD). A claim is now ineligible to be referred to the RPD if it is submitted: More than one year after the claimant’s first entry into Canada after June…

LAO has introduced a new process to speed up legal aid applications for clients facing deportation. Lawyers on the Refugee-Appellate roster can now use a lawyer-assisted application form to request coverage by email on behalf of clients who need the following services: Requests to Canada Border Services Agency to defer removal Motions in Federal Court…

This is a reminder that all Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) roster members admitted prior to January 1, 2025 must submit their annual self-report by March 31, 2026. You may find the self-report on Legal Aid Online in the Personal Information section. Roster lawyers who do not file their self-report by the deadline will be automatically…

Legal Aid Ontario has updated the following forms to help reduce delays and improve processing for vulnerable criminal clients: Lawyer Assisted Application for Adult and Youth Criminal Court Proceedings (Out of Custody) Lawyer Assisted Inmate Request for Legal Aid Services What’s new The Charges / Legal Details section now includes additional questions to help identify…

Each year, Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) closes duty counsel purchase orders and creates new ones for the upcoming year. Old purchase orders are closed on March 27, 2026 and new purchase orders will be created to be effective March 30, 2026. Please prepare for this change by reviewing what you need to do. Per diem…

If you need to translate more than 3,500 words in documents for an immigration or refugee matter, LAO has updated two key documents with clearer instructions that that will make the approval process smoother. Disbursements Handbook The Translation section has been updated and expanded. Roster lawyers are strongly encouraged to take the time to read…

The annual self-report for 2025 opened on Jan. 2, 2026. As in previous years, the 2025 Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) lawyer self-report is available through Legal Aid Online. All roster members who have been a member of the LAO roster for the entirety of the 2025 calendar year (from Jan. 1, 2025 to Dec. 31, 2025 inclusive) are…

Starting January 2026, Legal Aid Ontario will require roster lawyers to annually confirm through the annual Lawyer Self-Report that they have read and are complying with the following from the Law Society of Ontario: Generative AI: Your professional obligations Practice tips for using AI Licensee use of generative artificial intelligence The requirement reflects the growing…

Legal Aid Ontario has introduced new coverage for Section 19 Youth Conferences under the Youth Criminal Justice Act. This update recognizes the time and expertise roster lawyers dedicate to supporting youth in these proceedings. Starting Dec.14, 2025, roster lawyers can request this coverage through Legal Aid Online when submitting a judicial pre-trial request. Similar to…

Beginning Dec. 7, you will need to set the court addresses where you provide legal aid services in the ‘My location’ and ‘sub location’ in the duty counsel worksheet. Making it mandatory to set court locations will ensure a seamless start to the account generation process as service codes will now be automatically added to…