About Us
Community Legal Aid is a joint project of the University of Windsor, Faculty of Law and Legal Aid Ontario. We are located at the Faculty of Law Building at the University of Windsor. CLA is a Student Legal Service Organization (SLSO) offering services to members of the Windsor-Essex community living on low income and University of Windsor undergraduate students.
We provide legal services for low-income residents of Windsor-Essex County and full-time University of Windsor undergraduate students. For over 50 years our clinic has served as a learning environment for law students to build their advocacy and litigation skills, while providing necessary legal services to our community.
We represent our clients in following practice areas:
- Criminal law
- Provincial Offences
- Employment law
- Housing law
- Elder law – Wills, Estates, and Powers of Attorney
- Consumer Protection
- Small Claims Court matters
- Family law (limited)
Each case must meet our financial eligibility criteria. Every case is different. We will assess the merits of your case and set out a strategic plan for your matter. CLA may offer summary legal information, negotiate on your behalf with the other side or represent you at court or before a tribunal.
CLA also participates in community outreach programs. Our supervising lawyers and law students conduct legal information sessions within the community.
Mission
Community Legal Aid endeavors to promote access to justice by offering legal services to low income, vulnerable people and to full time undergraduate students at the University of Windsor. We structure the delivery of our legal services in a manner that empowers our clients to avoid, prepare for and overcome poverty law problems. This is achieved through a combination of community development and action. We strive to provide meaningful opportunities to Windsor law students to facilitate their learning through the development of their legal skills used to practice legal representation, summary legal advice and community legal education.
Vision
Our Vision for Community Legal Aid is that it is recognized for its dependable, consistent, quality legal services that are responsive to the individual and systemic needs of the community and University.
Values
Our Values include ethics and professionalism, excellence in education and client service, integrity, resilience and social conscience.
Who We Help
Our clients are low-income residents of Windsor and Essex County or full-time University of Windsor undergraduate students, who require assistance with matters within our practice areas.
Our clients are individuals that meet Legal Aid Ontario’s financial eligibility requirements.
If you are not eligible for our services, we may be able to refer you to other resources within the community.
If your main source of income is one of the following; you may financially qualify for our services:
- Ontario Disability Support Pension (ODSP)
- Ontario Works (OW)
- Old Age Security Pension and Guaranteed Income Supplement
- War Veterans' Allowance
- Canada Pension Plan (CPP)
- Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB)
Eligibility depends on family size and total family income. Assets you own can also affect your eligibility.
Applicant Information Form
We handle criminal summary conviction matters (or hybrid matters proceeding summarily) of a relatively minor nature, where there is no possibility of jail time, such as:
- Simple assault
- Mischief
- Peace Bond Applications
- Theft under $5000
We represent individuals charged with intimate partner violence offences and peace bonds subject to the above restrictions.
If your criminal matter is one of a more serious nature, please contact Legal Aid Ontario for assistance at 1-800-668-8258.
We also handle Provincial Offences such as traffic tickets, trespass violations, and municipal by-law infractions. We do not represent persons charged with parking violations.
CLA may represent you in the Windsor Provincial Offences court for offences such as:
- Driving while licence suspended
- Driving without valid insurance
- Careless driving
- Failing to stop or yield
- Speeding
- Municipal by-law infractions
- Various other Provincial Offences including those under the Highway Traffic Act or Compulsory Automobile Insurance Act
CLA may be able to help you with minor criminal offences being heard in a Windsor Court, such as:
- Theft, mischief or fraud under $5,000
- Possession of narcotics
- Trespass of property
- Assault
- Harassment
- Uttering threats
- Intimate partner violence related charges
- Mental Health Court
CLA can represent you if you are involved in a civil lawsuit under $50,000. This means that you:
- Are being sued for more than $500 and up to $50,000
- Want to sue for damages of more than $500 and up to $50,000
- Are involved in a Consumer Protection dispute of more than $500 and up to $50,000
* Decided on a case by case basis.
CLA can assist students who are facing University of Windsor academic and non-academic misconduct appeals.
Our clinic provides representation, summary advice and public legal education on family law matters such as decision-making responsibility (custody), parenting time (access), child support, spousal support and uncontested divorces. If you have a family law matter, please contact us and we will advise what service we can provide. If we are unable to assist, we will provide referral information.
Please note that CLA does not assist with divorce, property division, or child protection.
Our clinic represents tenants only in landlord and tenant disputes. Our team deals with a broad range of housing issues that arise under the Residential Tenancies Act such as, the following:
- Maintenance and repair issues
- Tenants’ rights
- Illegal deposits and charges
- Rent disputes
- Above Guideline Increase
- Harassment
- Evictions
- Applications to the Landlord and Tenant Board
- Enforcement of specific housing orders in Small Claims Court
Whether you were fired from work or are being treated unfairly, if you have a problem at work, we may be able to assist you. We provide legal representation to workers, not employers. We offer a range of legal services from summary advice through to full representation. We also offer public legal education workshops and presentations.
We represent workers before the Ministry of Labour and in the Small Claims Court in upholding their Employment Standards Act and common law rights. Examples of areas where we can assist our clients include unpaid wages, wrongful dismissal, workplace harassment and reprisals.
Currently, we do not represent workers on matters related to Workplace Safety and Insurance Benefits, insurance claims and unsafe workplace practices under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. If we cannot assist you on a matter, we will refer you to other resources.
CLA can assist with:
- Financial fraud and manipulation
- Physical abuse and intimidation
- Drafting Will, Powers of Attorney for Property and Personal Care, Guardianship Applications
- Estate administration
- Beneficiary rights
We advocate for the dignified treatment of older adults and offer assistance as they interact with the justice system. Whether you are an older person looking to learn more about your rights or a caregiver or someone who suspects elder abuse, we may be able to assist you. We offer a range of legal services from summary advice through to full representation. We also strive to educate our community on ageism and the abuse of older persons by offering public legal education workshops and presentations.
Examples of areas where we can assist include, home care invoice disputes, financial fraud, elder discrimination, abuse and neglect, administering estates and providing advice on beneficiary rights such as inheritance rights and navigating estate administration.
Currently, we only handle estate matters that do not exceed the Small Claims Court monetary jurisdiction of $50,000.00. CLA is part of the Elder Abuse Response Service, if we cannot assist you on a matter, we will refer you to other available services and resources.
If you or someone you know is experiencing elder abuse, contact us or our partners at the Elder Abuse Response Service.
Are you having difficulty resolving an issue with a business? Did you sign up for a service and are surprised with the fees? We may be able to assist you with a variety of consumer problems. We represent consumers, not businesses. We do not represent individuals in a dispute between one another. We offer a range of legal services from summary advice through to full representation. We also offer public legal education workshops and presentations.
We offer legal representation to consumers enforcing their rights under the Consumer Protection Act, the Payday Loans Act, the Repair and Storage Liens Act and a variety of other consumer laws and contract rights. We represent our clients before the Ministry of Business and Consumer Affairs and in the Small Claims Court.
Examples of areas where we can assist include[HB4] [LB5] , cancellation of contracts, disputing motor vehicle repairs etc.
We can assist you to determine whether your consumer rights were violated, and how best to resolve your matter.
University of Windsor full-time undergraduate students and individuals that meet Legal Aid Ontario's financial eligibility requirements will not be charged for the first two copies of commissioning and notarial documents. For all others, the below charges apply. Please note: CLA does NOT prepare affidavits. You must bring your prepared, printed and unsigned affidavit with you and photo identification. Only cash is accepted for payment.
- Notarization: $40.00 per document
- Commissioning Service: $30.00 per document
Please contact us to schedule an appointment.
Navigating your way through legal problems can be confusing and stressful. It is often helpful to learn about your legal rights before you encounter legal problems. Our workshops are conducted by law students and supervising lawyers. They provide general legal information on our areas of practice. We will be glad to follow up with individual advice sessions as needed. If you are a local community agency, we also conduct presentations for your staff and members you serve.
For further information or to coordinate a workshop, please contact us.
Resources
(Include Icons)
Below you will find some helpful resources for more information on an array of legal matters. If you would like a direct referral to some local clinics, please give us a call.
Legal Aid Ontario provides legal aid certificates, which select lawyers will accept as payment. You must meet qualifications to obtain a legal aid certificate for matters involving criminal law, family law, immigration issues, intimate partner violence, and mental health legal issues.
CLEO provides resources and information on the legal system and topics such as abuse and intimate partner violence, family law, income assistance, criminal law, health and disability, debt and consumer rights, housing law, employment and work related matters, and immigration matters.
Steps to Justice provides step-by-step legal information on topics such as housing law, intimate partner violence, debt and consumer rights, provincial offences, family law, criminal law, human rights, immigration law, employment and work related matters, income assistance, wills and powers of attorney, education law, refugee law, health and disability, French language rights and information on tribunals and courts.
Tribunals Ontario is a group of 13 adjudicative tribunals. The tribunals include Animal Care Review Board, Assessment Review Board, Child and Family Services Board, Custody Review Board, Fire Safety Commission, Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, Landlord and Tenant Board, Licence Appeal Tribunal, Ontario Civilian Police Commission, Ontario Parole Board, Ontario Special Education Tribunal, and Social Benefits Tribunal.
The Law Commission of Ontario provides independent, balanced and authoritative advice on complex legal policy issues.
The Law Society of Ontario governs Ontario's Lawyers and Paralegals in the public interest. They provide resources to find a lawyer or paralegal in your area that specializes in the area of law you need as well as information on steps to justice and legal resources.
The Ontario Legal Information Centre provides a free 30 minute legal advice over the phone with a lawyer. This service is confidential and does not have any eligibility criteria.
If you are living in an official University Residence, we cannot assist you as the Residential Tenancies Act does not apply. You may visit the Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board Website for their FAQs Home - Tribunals Ontario.
Housing Law Resources:
Information on Renting
Information on Subletting
Family Law Resources:
CLA Complaints Policy Document
- (provide PAC document when updated)
Contact Us
Please be advised that Community Legal Aid undergoes a transition period between University of Windsor academic terms. The transition periods fall in the months of April, August and December of each year. Expect delays in communications and no intakes will be conducted during these periods. If your issue is urgent, please call.
In-person attendances must be scheduled in advance. We do not accept walk-ins.
Community Legal Aid
University of Windsor, Faculty of Law
401 Sunset Avenue, Windsor
ON N9B 3P4
Hours of Operation
Mon-Fri 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Phone
519-253-7150
Email
cla@uwindsor.ca
Do You Have Questions?
Email us and and we can provide you further assistance. Please include your full name.
