For Aboriginal legal issues
Legal Aid Ontario has made services to First Nation, Métis and Inuit clients a priority. This page includes links for lawyers on LAO rosters or working on legal aid cases who work Aboriginal clients.
Aboriginal self-identification
The Aboriginal Self-Identification Question (ASIQ) is a standardized question to be utilized at point of contact for legal aid services that allows all clients the opportunity to identify as Aboriginal, including First Nation, Métis or Inuit, regardless of legal status or where they live.
Gladue related services
In 1999, the Supreme Court ruled in R v. Gladue that courts must consider an Aboriginal offender’s background when they are being sentenced for a crime. Every criminal court in Canada is required to take Gladue factors and principles into consideration when sentencing an Aboriginal person. Courts in Ontario are also required to take an Aboriginal person’sbackground and the Gladue principles into account at bail hearings.
- Information on Gladue (from LAO blog)
- Minimum Experience Requirements for criminal lawyers representing clients who self identify as Aboriginal
- Gladue report programs in Ontario
Questions
If you have any questions, please contact LAO’s Aboriginal Justice Strategy team via aboriginalstrategy@lao.on.ca