Legal Aid Worker

Company Bio

Legal Aid Ontario employees are committed to making a difference in the lives of our clients.
As an integral partner in the Justice system, working at Legal Aid Ontario is more than just a job. It's an opportunity to help people who need it the most; to ensure each client receives the access to justice afforded to them under the law.
If you are looking for a new challenge in your already meaningful career with a team dedicated to justice, and innovation in a flexible and supportive work environment consider this opportunity below.
Primary function
This position is responsible for supporting the mandate of the West District including the provision of duty counsel services in Walkerton criminal and family courts and the summary legal advice programs and occasional support for the Goderich and Owen Sound Duty counsel services as needed. The Legal Aid Worker (LAW) works with their manager, staff lawyers, and other LAWs to provide direct client service and administrative support in a busy client service environment. The legal aid worker will be responsible for the initial assessment and intake of criminal and family law clients to assist in determining the appropriate service for the client, the referral to appropriate services and resources, providing basic procedural advice to criminal and family law clients, interviewing sureties, possible appearances in criminal set date court, drafting documents for family and criminal clients as needed, and other duties as assigned. LAWs provide some administrative support for the staff duty counsel lawyers in terms of bring forward/ tickler systems, maintaining organized computer filing system for criminal (SI) and communicating with certificate and per diem duty counsel lawyers.
The LAW will be required to conduct intake interviews with clients, perform ongoing case management, participate in community and stakeholder outreach and will help support and implement Legal Aid Ontario initiatives and priorities.

**Home Location**: Walkerton

**Other Locations**: Owen Sound and Goderich

**Reporting to**: Manager, Legal Services, Grey/Bruce/Huron
Key accountabilities
- Assessment of the client need to determine the appropriate service for the client, including the early identification of vulnerable clients so that the appropriate service and referrals can be made, under the supervision of staff lawyers;
- Interview clients to gather information about case, field telephone calls from clients, and assist the lawyer manager and staff lawyers with client queries, referrals, requests for information etc.;
- Maintaining tickler systems, conflict checking systems, file records, file organization, court filing
- Perform office administration tasks such as data input, ordering supplies, maintaining files, scheduling per diem duty counsel and other tasks as assigned
- Familiarity and competence with proper maintenance of client data base, computer information databases such as service integration, conflict of interest systems, file tickler systems, and basic principles of criminal and family law;
- Familiarity with financial eligibility, certificate coverage and tariff guidelines;
Intake
- Triage and assess client needs, including early identification of vulnerable clients, to determine the appropriate service for clients and make referrals to appropriate services.
- Perform intake by interviewing clients (in-person, phone, video) to gather necessary information (case history) required for decision making.
- Make entitlement decisions (including ongoing eligibility) based on LAO’s financial and legal eligibility policies and guidelines.

Direct Client Services (Criminal and family law)
- Provide services for the Walkerton, Goderich and Owen Sound courthouse locations or summary legal advice programs in the West District as needed including client intake, administration and supporting duty counsel/staff lawyer services.
- Triage and assess client needs, including early identification of vulnerable clients, to determine the appropriate service for clients and make referrals to appropriate services.
- Assist duty counsel/staff lawyers by providing clients with public legal information including procedural legal information and referrals to appropriate legal services.
- Assist clients/duty counsel with bail hearing process (i.e. interview sureties).
- Assist clients/duty counsel with routine administrative matters (i.e. adjournments in criminal court, Service Integration data entry, managing communications for Duty Counsel, etc.).
- Draft documents family court under the direct supervision of a lawyer including financial statements, Applications, Answers, Motions to Change and simple affidavits.
- Provide supports for clients receiving representation through staff lawyer services.

Client Management
- Communicate with and respond to clients, lawyers, and other legal system partners in-person, by phone, video, and through written correspondence.

Communications and Outreach
-