Difference between revisions of "Introduction to Legal Help for British Columbians"

Latest revision as of 23:45, 26 May 2017

Legal Help for British Columbians is a resource for people with common legal problems who want to know about:

the first steps they should take toward addressing their legal problem, and
the best resources available for further information assistance, advice or legal representation.

This guide may also be useful to non-legal professionals in British Columbia who have clients or patients with legal problems and little money to deal with them.

Reason for this guide[edit]

Many people who face legal problems cannot afford to retain a lawyer. Sometimes their first contact about a legal issue is not with a lawyer or legally trained advocate, but a friend or helping professional such as a counselor, doctor, nurse, teacher, government worker, public librarian, or religious leader.

It is hoped that this guide will not only help people with legal problems, but will also assist friends or helping professionals share basic information and appropriate referrals with friends, clients or patients who find themselves with common legal problems.

Organization of this guide[edit]

There are three parts to this guide:

The first part describes common legal problems faced by low-income persons in British Columbia, organized by topics such as "Consumer and Debt," "Criminal Law," and "Family Law."
The second part is a Resource List describing legal resources and how to obtain them. It includes sources of legal information, assistance, advice and representation, such as legal aid representation, workers' advisers, and the website Clicklaw.
This guide concludes with a form to help a client prepare for their interview. When completed, it will contain a lot of the information a lawyer or advocate will want to know at a first interview with a client.

Who's involved[edit]

Legal Help for British Columbians is a collaborative effort. Cliff Thorstenson, the guide's founding author, is supported by a team of reviewers and contributors, all volunteers from the BC legal profession. As with other Clicklaw Wikibooks, Courthouse Libraries BC serves in the role of publisher, with support and funding from the Law Foundation of British Columbia and the LawMatters program. Clicklaw Wikibooks are collaboratively developed, plain language legal publications that are published and kept up-to-date on a wiki, where they can also be printed and downloaded. The author and contributors update the guide online on Clicklaw Wikibooks at wiki.clicklaw.bc.ca, which should be consulted for the most recent information on topics covered by this guide.

A special thanks to Allan Parker, QC, Andree Harley, Linda Locke, QC, and Glen Ferrier for their input and assistance with initial development of this guide.

Please note[edit]

This guide explains the law and legal procedures in general. It is not intended to give legal advice on your particular legal problem, and should not be relied on for that purpose. Please note that fees and guidelines outlined in the guide are subject to change.

Your comments[edit]

Your comments on the content and format of this Guide are most appreciated. Please forward them to:

Courthouse Libraries BC

Phone: 1-800-665-2570

Email: editor@clicklaw.bc.ca

Photo credit: Dylan Thorstenson

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{:Legal_Guide_Caveat}}
+{{Template:Legal Help Guide TOC}}''[[Legal Help for British Columbians]]'' is a resource for people with common legal problems who want to know about:
+* the first steps they should take toward addressing their legal problem, and
+* the best resources available for further information assistance, advice or legal <span class="noglossary">representation</span>.
-{{:Legal_Guide_for_Rural_British_Columbians_TOC}}
+This guide may also be useful to non-legal professionals in British Columbia who have clients or patients with legal problems and little money to deal with them.
-==Purpose of this Guide==
+==Reason for this guide==
-This Legal Help guide is a resource for non-legal professionals in rural British Columbia who have clients or patients with legal problems and little money to deal with them.
+Many people who face legal problems cannot afford to retain a lawyer.  Sometimes their first <span class="noglossary">contact</span> about a legal issue is not with a lawyer or legally trained advocate, but a friend or helping professional such as a counselor, doctor, nurse, teacher, government worker, public librarian, or religious leader.
-It is meant to help you:
+It is hoped that this guide will not only help people with legal problems, but will also assist friends or helping professionals share basic information and appropriate referrals with friends, clients or patients who find themselves with common legal problems.
-* guide your client or patient in taking the '''first steps''' toward addressing their legal problem; and
+==Organization of this guide==
-* make the best '''referrals''' for your client or patient to information, assistance, advice or representation to address the legal issue.
+There are three parts to this guide:
+* The first part describes '''common legal problems''' faced by low-income persons in British Columbia, organized by topics such as "[[Consumer and Debt Problems|Consumer and Debt]]," "[[Criminal Law Problems|Criminal Law]]," and "[[Family Law Problems|Family Law]]."
+* The second part is a [[Resource List for Legal Help for British Columbians|Resource List]] describing '''legal resources''' and how to obtain them. It includes sources of legal information, assistance, advice and <span class="noglossary">representation</span>, such as legal aid <span class="noglossary">representation</span>, workers' advisers, and the website [http://www.clicklaw.bc.ca/ Clicklaw].
+* This guide concludes with [[Preparing for Your Interview| a form to help a client]] '''prepare for their interview'''. When completed, it <span class="noglossary">will</span> contain a lot of the information a lawyer or advocate <span class="noglossary">will</span> want to know at a first interview with a client.
-==Reason for this Guide==
+==Who's involved==
-Because legal resources are often not available locally in rural British Columbia, the usual first “point of contact” to get help with a legal problem is not a lawyer or legally trained advocate, but a friend or helping professional such as a counsellor, doctor, nurse, teacher, government worker or religious leader.
+''Legal Help for British Columbians'' is a collaborative effort. [[Cliff Thorstenson]], the guide's founding author, is supported by [[Legal Help Guide Contributors|a team of reviewers and contributors]], all volunteers from the BC legal profession. As with other [[Clicklaw Wikibooks]], Courthouse Libraries BC serves in the role of publisher, with support and funding from the [http://www.lawfoundationbc.org Law Foundation of British Columbia] and the LawMatters program. [[Clicklaw Wikibooks]] are collaboratively developed, plain language legal publications that are published and kept up-to-date on a wiki, where they can also be printed and downloaded. The author and contributors update the guide online on Clicklaw Wikibooks at wiki.clicklaw.bc.ca, which should be consulted for the most recent information on topics covered by this guide.
-It is hoped that this guide will help you—the friend or helping professional— provide basic information and appropriate referrals to friends, clients or patients who find themselves with common legal problems.
+A special thanks to [[Allan Parker, QC]], Andree Harley, Linda Locke, QC, and Glen Ferrier for their input and assistance with initial development of this guide.
-==What is “rural” B.C.?==
+==Please note==
-There is no formal definition of the term “rural” in this guide, but the term generally describes those areas of British Columbia that do not have services such as lawyers, legal advocates, government agents or court registries accessible by local transportation or a drive of less than 45 minutes.
+This guide explains the law and legal procedures in general. It is not intended to give legal advice on your particular legal problem, and should not be relied on for that purpose. Please note that fees and guidelines outlined in the guide are subject to change.
-==Organization of this Guide==
+==Your comments==
-There are three sections to this guide.
+Your comments on the content and format of this Guide are most appreciated. Please forward them to:
-* [[Part_1:_Common_Legal_Problems | '''''Part One''''']] describes '''common legal problems''' faced by low-income clients in rural BC, such as “Family”, “Consumer & Debt” and “Human Rights”.
+: Courthouse Libraries BC
-* [[Part_2:_Resource_Guide | '''''Part Two''''']]  describes '''legal resources''' and how to obtain them. It includes sources of legal information, assistance, advice and representation, such as Legal Aid, Workers Advisers and Electronic Law Library. Each resource is numbered for easy reference.
+: Phone: 1-800-665-2570
-* [[Part_3:_Preparing_for_your_Interview | '''''Part Three''''']] is a form entitled '''Preparing for Your Interview'''. When completed, it will contain a lot of the information a lawyer or advocate will want to know at a first interview with a client.
+: Email: editor@clicklaw.bc.ca
-==Thanks to==
+[[image:Legal Help for British Columbians cover image.jpg|thumb|center|600px|Photo credit: Dylan Thorstenson]]
-A special thanks to Allan Parker, Andree Harley, Linda Locke and Glen Ferrier for their input and assistance with this guide. Also, thank you to the Law Foundation for providing the funding and to Jill Veitch for editing and layout support.
+{{Legal Help Guide Navbox|type=started}}
-==Please Note==
+__NOTOC__
-This Guide explains the law and legal procedures in general. It is not intended to give legal advice on your particular legal problem, and should not be relied on for that purpose. Information in this guide is accurate as at November 2007. Please note that fees and guidelines outlined in the guide are subject to change.
-==Your Comments==
-Your comments on the content and format of this booklet are most appreciated. Please forward them to:
-: Cliff Thorstenson, Lawyer
-: Nicola Valley Advocacy Centre
-: Box 819, Merritt, B.C. V1K 1B8
-: Tel. (250) 378-9632   Fax. (250) 378-9796
-: Email: [mailto:cthor@uniserve.com cthor@uniserve.com]