Contacts for lawyers

First point of contact

The Lawyer Service Centre (LSC) is your first point of contact. It provides the bar with assistance, over the telephone, for:

  • Billing/tariff instruction/enquiries
  • Account status/outstanding payment status
  • Block fee enquiries
  • Application status
  • Portal amendment request status
  • New solicitor assistance
  • Deposit slip reconciliation
  • Technical support, including password reset
  • Escalates to other LAO departments (LSP, Finance, District Office)
  • Other

Lawyers can contact the LSC toll-free Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Accounts & certificates

Lawyers can send all account and certificate-specific communication to Lawyer Services & Payments (LSP) via electronic document submission on Legal Aid Online.

Please use the forms posted on Legal Aid Online for:

  • discretion
  • reviews
  • expedites
  • disbursements

Please fax non-certificate specific correspondence, via iFax, to LSP at 416-979-8562.

Contacts to escalate specific issues

Subject/issue Who to contact
Account enquiries LSC or in writing through Legal Aid Online
Hardcap & Late-billed accounts LSC, then Regional Payment Specialists for your region
Disbursements For status updates contact LSC
For urgent matters contact Regional Lawyer Manager
Accounts over $20,000 Regional Lawyer Manager
Costs and settlements Regional Lawyer Manager
Reviews For status updates contact LSC
For other questions contact LSC in writing through Legal Aid Online
Expedite requests LSC, then Regional administrator
Complaints Director
Billing/portal suspension Director
Other issues Director, Regional Lawyer Manager

How to escalate an issue

  • If your issue is not being resolved, contact LSP management:
  • If you are not satisfied with service, consider the LAO Complaints process.

Brydges duty counsel

Requesting Brydges duty counsel reports

The request must be in writing, on firm letterhead, and should include a return fax number.

The request must include:

  • the client’s name
  • confirmation that the lawyer represents the client
  • a signed authorization, from the client, directing release of the notes to the lawyer and
  • acknowledgement of the $45 (+HST) fee for the report (if the request includes the Legal Aid certificate number, there is no charge for Legal Aid clients).

It is helpful if the following is also provided:

  • the date, location and time of the arrest
  • the charges against the accused and
  • the name of telephone duty counsel (if known).

Fax the request to 1-888-963-1035.

Please note that requests take 2 to 3 business days to process.

After the request has been fulfilled, an invoice will be mailed to the lawyer.

If you are an LAO lawyer and need a Brydges duty counsel report for clients who are paying for your services themselves rather than through a certificate, please send your cheque to:

Sykes Assistance Services
(attn: Legal Assistance Division)
248 Pall Mall Street
London, ON N6A 4T4

Questions

Questions relating to Duty Counsel Reports can be directed to a Duty Counsel Hotline representative at 1-888-225-6824 (press 1 for English; next press 2 to enter the extension number 75249).

Empanelment

Contact Lawyer Services and Payments for

  • recovery letters
  • recovery cheques

Contact district offices for

  • lawyer empanelment applications
  • staff lawyer empanelment applications with manager approval
  • duty counsel purchase orders

Email Solicitor Accounting and Empanelment Services for

  • tier-level increases
  • vendor records (address, banking information changes, etc.)
  • HST refunds
  • government withholdings
  • mediation account processing (Milton Mediation Program)
  • solicitor electronic fund transfer (bank EFT) rejections

You can also call Solicitor Accounting and Empanelment Services Monday through Friday from 8 am to 5 pm at (416) 979-2352, extension 6487 or 6252.

Fax: (647) 260-0548

Districts

Please contact the district office for the geographic catchment areas listed below.

  • Central East District
    – includes the counties of Haliburton, Bracebridge, Peterborough, Coburg, Durham, Kawartha Lakes, Orillia, Newmarket and Barrie

  • Central West District
    – includes the counties of Norfolk, Haldimand, Brant, Hamilton, Niagara, Halton, Peel and Dufferin

  • East District
    – includes the counties of Hastings, Lennox and Addington, Frontenac, Leeds and Grenville, Lanark, Renfrew, Ottawa and Carleton, Prescott and Russell and Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry

  • North District
    – includes the districts of Kenora, Rainy River, Thunder Bay, Cochrane, Algoma, Timiskaming, Parry Sound and Sudbury

  • Toronto District
    – includes East York, Etobicoke, North York, Scarborough and Old Toronto

  • West District
    – includes the counties of Essex, Lambton, Chatham-Kent, Bruce, Grey, Huron, Perth, Oxford, Elgin, Middlesex, Wellington and Waterloo

LAO LAW

LAO LAW provides research support to lawyers representing legally aided clients.

LAO LAW is available to Ontario lawyers representing clients on legal aid certificates.

Service issues

Complaints department

If you are unhappy with our services, please contact our Complaints department.

Ethics hotline

To anonymously report suspected fraud or wrong doing, please contact LAO’s Ethics Hotline at: