The Edmonton Community Legal Centre (ECLC) recently recognized incoming Assistant Professor Anna Lund and Associate Professor Matthew Lewans for their contributions to the non-profit organization. Prof. Lund received the Distinguished Service Award and Prof. Lewans was recognized for his work on the Board of Directors. The ECLC's Distinguished Service Awards are presented each year at the organization's AGM to ECLC volunteers and supporters who have contributed significantly to the organization or client service.
Q: Prof. Lund, could you tell me a little bit about the ECLC?
AL: The ECLC provides legal services to individuals living with low income. The organization provides a mix of different programs, including summary legal advice and public legal education, which includes public seminars. A lot of the legal work they see relates to residential tenancy, family, and immigration law.
The ECLC's work is carried out by volunteers, and a group of employees, who work full time and will take on files on a more sustained basis.
Q: Prof. Lewans, I understand you're currently serving on the ECLC's Board of Directors. Can you tell us more about your role?
ML: The Board of Directors deals with issues relating to the long-term policy role of the ECLC in relation to other institutions in the province that provide legal services to low income individuals. Policy and strategic planning are a big part of what we do, including geographical considerations. We need to determine whether we limit service to the urban centre of Edmonton or if we need to branch out further. The Board of Directors also engages in advocacy work to the extent that there are issues relating to legal reform projects. We also deal with fundraising to keep the lights on and the heaters working.
Q: How important is the ECLC's role in providing access to justice in Edmonton?
AL: Legal Aid is largely focused on criminal matters where life and liberty is at stake, with some limited coverage of family, civil, and immigration law issues. ECLC, by contrast, takes on family, civil, and immigration issues that Legal Aid does not cover. In terms of financial requirements, ECLC is a little bit more flexible, but individuals who access our services are still living in very reduced circumstances.
ML: There was actually a period of time where if you were receiving long term disability from the province, you did not meet the requirements to access Legal Aid.* When your financial eligibility threshold is such that people on permanent disability make too much to qualify for Legal Aid, you have an understanding of how constrained Legal Aid is. If you don't qualify for Legal Aid and you're facing some of these issues, ECLC may be your only option.
*Note: In 2014, the Government of Alberta increased the financial threshold to ensure that people living on Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped are eligible to receive Legal Aid.
Q: What are some of the ECLC's other key challenges or successes?
ML: The ECLC is incredibly well run. It is financially very sound and receives an incredible amount of support from the local bar. Certainly there is access to justice issues for low income individuals - serious issues - but the clinic and its success is amazing.
The ECLC opened its doors in 2002, and now 20,000 low income individuals receive legal information annually, 2,500 receive free legal advice annually, and 1,000 of these individuals receive additional support from the staff. The ECLC has also grown in terms of its scope and the services that it provides. The Board has been measured in making those changes, ensuring that we consider the demand.
The success story is also more than just the involvement from the bar. The Executive Director, Debbie Klein, deserves a lot of credit for its success, as do the past and present chairpersons: Donald Cranston, Q.C. (Bennett Jones LLP), Marie Gordon, Q.C. (Gordon Zwaenepoel), and Brian Summers (Dentons Canada LLP). There are also community members like Peter Faid, Joanne Pawluk, and Lanny Der that provide an incredible amount of knowledge and expertise.
AL: In terms of challenges, wills, immigration, bankruptcy, debt, family, and insurance are areas of law where we need an increased volunteer base. There are also the challenges that face any clinic, often individuals have complex legal problems that are combined with more systemic issues that we can't address, like lack of affordable housing.
ML: There are certainly efforts within the ECLC to go beyond providing summary legal advice, and advocate for larger social issues. Sarah Eadie, an ECLC staff lawyer, is also on Mayor Iveson's task force for the elimination of poverty in Edmonton.
Q: Are you looking for volunteer lawyers or law students? What advice do you have for lawyers or law students looking to volunteer with the ECLC?
ML: The Family Law Project has a partnership with the University of Alberta Faculty of Law. Volunteer students participate in clinics run by the Family Law Project lawyers. Students do basic intake work, like compiling information for child support guidelines. It's really a win-win situation; the students learn the nuts and bolts of legal practice, and the volunteer lawyers benefit from increased efficiency. The client is also served very well by the arrangement.
There is also a great roster of young lawyers in Edmonton, and they benefit as well. There's a sense of giving back to the community, as well as professional networking opportunities.
AL: For students, there's also Professor Cathy Bell and Katherine Weaver's Low Income Individuals and the Law Clinic course, which is a great opportunity for students to get involved.
Q: Do you think lawyers and law students should be professionally or ethically obliged to participate in pro bono initiatives, temporarily or permanent?
ML: I see pro bono work as inspirational, not a question of duty. The great benefit to me of volunteering on the Board is working with a group of intelligent, community-minded people who want to take action and make Edmonton a better place. That I find really fulfilling and inspiring.
AL: The Law Society of Alberta's Code of Conduct does indicate that lawyers have a duty to facilitate access to justice and suggests that they can fulfill this duty by carrying out pro bono work. But there are many other reasons to do pro bono, and I think Matt's right that connecting with these other reasons is going to sustain an individual's pro bono practice in the long run better than a sense of obligation.
Q: What made you get involved? What aspects do you find most challenging or compelling?
AL: We have a set of skills and knowledge that we can leverage to assist people in very serious situations like homelessness, and that is incredibly rewarding. Sometimes in a clinic situation you can come up with a really good solution for someone, by helping them to draft legal documents, to compose a letter, or to put together a basic contract.
ML: I would add that the skills that a lawyer has, like problem solving, are incredibly helpful for someone who is overwhelmed by their circumstances. You can't wave a wand and make it go away, but if someone has lost their home, their landlord has evicted them, and their belongings are in storage somewhere, they are distraught and they need somebody to help make sense of what's happened.
Q: What does your recent recognition by the ECLC mean to you?
AL: It was an incredibly meaningful experience, but at the same time I am just one of many individuals contributing, so it feels a little awkward to be singled out. One of the best feelings associated with my work at the ECLC is when the staff lawyers are able to help one of the people I've seen at a clinic, because then I know that person is going to receive excellent legal representation.
Q: Anna, I understand that you're planning a pro bono event at the Law Centre for September. Could you tell us about that event?
AL: The Pro Bono Presentation Night on September 15, 2016 at 6 p.m. at the Law Centre is an evening for law students and lawyers to do short presentations on any aspect of pro bono work that interests them. I am hoping it will be a chance for students, lawyers, and academics to engage in a discussion about pro bono work. A lot of pro bono you do alone, so it will be a great opportunity to celebrate, reflect on, and ask questions about pro bono law.
We are currently seeking expressions of interest from lawyers and law students who would like to share short presentations (5-7 minutes) on an aspect of pro bono law that they find inspiring, compelling, or challenging. Interested individuals are encouraged to submit a short proposal (100-250 words) to Anna Lund (ajlund@ualberta.ca) by August 1, 2016. The proposal should include: (1) the presentation topic, (2) a short biography of the presenter, and (3) the presenter's contact information.
The Pro Bono Presentation Night is part of a month of pro bono events across Alberta organized by Pro Bono Law Alberta, and other legal clinics, including ECLC's own Advice-A-Thon on September 24, 2016.
Q: Is there anything else about the ECLC that people should know about?
ML: In terms of student involvement, there are intern students and articling positions available. The alumni association has been funding an articling student for a few years now, increasing the presence of U of A students at the ECLC.
Matthew Lewans is an Associate Professor of Law at the University of Alberta. Called to the Saskatchewan Bar, he practiced law for several years before pursuing graduate degrees at the University of Oxford, the University of Auckland, and the University of Toronto. His research and teaching interests concern the interface between administrative law, constitutional law, jurisprudence, and professional responsibility.
Anna Lund joins the University of Alberta Faculty of Law on July 1, 2016 as an Assistant Professor. Her research and teaching interests include bankruptcy and insolvency law and pro bono work.