In brief: News for lawyers

In accordance with the Legal Aid Services Act, 2020 (LASA 2020), Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) is implementing minimum experience requirements that roster (formerly panel) members must meet in order to provide legal aid certificate services and duty counsel services in specific areas of law. These new minimum experience requirements replace the existing standards for roster members…

Due to routine maintenance and system upgrades, Legal Aid Online will be unavailable from 6 pm ET on August 11, 2022 to 11:55 pm ET on August 14, 2022. Please refrain from using the site during this period. For any questions or technical difficulties, please contact the Lawyer Service Centre.

Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) is launching a live chat feature to allow website visitors to send general inquiries to a live agent from Monday to Friday between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. The chat will be available in both English and French. During the pilot phase of this project, users will have the option to…

Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) has amended the rates for billing transcription disbursements and now requires roster members to follow specific guidelines when ordering transcripts, following the introduction of updated rates for court transcription services pursuant to O. Reg 145/22 under the Administration of Justice Act. The rates applicable for transcription orders placed as of April 1, 2022 are:…

As of April 4, Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) will begin to transition back to in-person services. We are currently assessing the safest means of providing our services in our physical workspaces. We request that anyone visiting a legal aid office wear a mask at all times until further notice, including those in courthouses across the…

Please be advised that I.T. will be completing some system maintenance on the following days: Thursday, March 31, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday, April 2, from 6 a.m. until 10 p.m. During the maintenance period, Legal Aid Online and the solicitor portal will be unavailable, and you will be unable to log in. Please refrain from using…

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 April 2, 2022 and new purchase orders will be created to be effective April 4, 2022. Please prepare for this change by reviewing what you need to do. Per Diem Duty Counsel,…

This is a news posting. Please read “COVID-19: Several temporary emergency COVID measures set to end on November 18 – Legal Aid Ontario” for additional, up-to-date information. Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) implemented temporary certificate authorizations to assist lawyers representing immigration and refugee clients during the COVID-19 pandemic. In light of the continuing public health measures…

New lawyer assisted application forms are now available in the coverage areas of child protection proceedings, family law proceedings (where the applicant is experiencing domestic violence), and immigration and refugee proceedings. You may find these new forms linked below: Lawyer assisted application form for child protection proceedings Lawyer assisted application form for family law proceedings…

The annual self-report for roster lawyers is now available in the Personal Info section of Legal Aid Online. Legal Aid Services Act, 2020 On Oct. 18, 2021, the Legal Aid Services Act 2020 (LASA 2020) came into force. It replaces the Legal Aid Services Act 1998 (LASA 1998). LASA 2020 has made a number of changes that affect…