Legal clinics get funding to support survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence

Published: March 23, 2022

Nine community clinics will provide legal support for survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence. The funding for these projects comes from the Government of Canada’s broader strategy to respond to the increased need to address gender-based violence that was magnified during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) commends the government for its initiative in funding these projects, which addresses some of the core goals under LAO’s Domestic Violence Strategy. The projects also recognize the importance of the work done by community legal clinics in providing legal support for this particularly vulnerable client group.

Under the first initiative, nine legal clinics coordinated by Justice for Children and Youth will receive $6.6 million over five years to give legal education, advice, representation and holistic services for survivors including children and youth who are victims of sexual assault, physical violence or domestic violence, or those who are exploited in the sex trade. The clinics participating in this project include:

In addition, Centre Francophone du Grand Toronto is receiving $1.26 million over five years to improve access to legal advice and legal representation for francophone victims and survivors by helping to train criminal and family justice professionals on legal frameworks and dynamics that exist in cases of intimate partner violence.

For more information, read the Government of Canada’s press release: Providing support to survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence in Ontario is a priority for the Government of Canada