DLS is pleased to announce expansion of its family law program, thanks to generous new funding from our primary funder, Legal Aid Ontario.  DLS launched its family law program in 2005 in response to overwhelming community need.   Since this time, we have provided desperately needed family law services to clients who, but for DLS, would have had to navigate the legal system alone.   However, our ability to assist clients and offer valuable clinical placements in family law has been hampered by our limited resources.  We are very grateful to LAO for this additional funding, which will allow us significantly expand this innovative program.

For more information about the new funding, see Legal Aid Ontario’s funding announcement.  Visit our family law page to learn more about the work of this exciting division.

It is with a mixture of sadness and gratitude that we note the approaching retirement of Linn Kennedy, our office manager. Linn is putting the finishing touches on a career that includes nearly two decades of exemplary service to our clinic. If you have had the pleasure of working with Linn as a student or staff member, please add your well-wishes to our virtual retirement card. You can do so via Facebook comment here, or by tweeting @downtownlegal with the hashtag #thanksLK . We’ll collect your submissions near the end of August and share them with Linn.

DLS’s Social Work  program is featured in the Spring 2014 Edition of REACH, the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work’s magazine.   Read the article  (see page 5) and visit our social work page  to find out more about this innovative new program, and to learn how law students and social work students are working side by side to enhance our client services and their own learning and skills development.

We want the Class of 2012 to have an impact on the daily life of Downtown Legal Services! Our target is to raise more than $600 – so that a new binding machine can be purchased for the clinic—but there’s no need to stop at that number: any extra money we raise will go to support programs at DLS, which is always in need of additional support. Continue reading The class of 2012 is buying DLS a new binding machine! →