People can access this service if:

• they self-identify as a woman, non-binary or gender diverse person;

• they have a legal issue for which they wish to receive summary legal advice;

• they do not already have a lawyer;

• they understand and agree to the risk associated with the transmission of information online through platforms like Zoom.

No. This free service is for summary legal advice and unbundled legal services only.

The VLC program uses the popular and easy-to-use online videoconferencing service Zoom.

As a volunteer lawyer with the VLC, you will provide legal advice to clients using Zoom. These meetings will be hosted through the Community Partner’s computer, whenever possible, to help ensure that women are using safer technology which there ex-spouse has not had access to.

For most women this will be safe, but any internet activity carries some level of risk. To mitigate these risks, any written information transmitted through email or Zoom is printed immediately and never downloaded or saved to a Community Partner’s computer.

We ask all incoming lawyers to complete the volunteer lawyer application.

Once the application is submitted, you will get an email to book an appointment with the Virtual Legal Clinic (VLC) lawyer.

After the phone appointment, the VLC lawyer will confirm that your application has been accepted and you will be asked to complete the VLC Volunteer Lawyer training.

The training is mandatory and can be completed online. It is mandatory because it covers information on the VLC, what you can expect, and expectations from you. As s majority of Rise clients experience family violence, the training also covers modules on understanding and screening for family violence. You can claim upto 3.5 CPD credits for this training.

The training is uploaded to Rise’s e-learning platform Thinkific. We will send you a link to the course. You will need to register for an account on Thinkific. There is no expiration date to access to the course and can be rewatched whenever you need a refresher.

As the training is pre-recorded and online, we ask you to confirm with us that you have completed the training. The VLC program assistant can start sending you client files post completion.

You will mainly be communicating with the program assistant. Once client files can be sent to you, you will first receive a brief email with information to complete a check for conflict. If there are is no conflict , you will be sent client documents and asked for your availability.

As the VLC works with clients and community partners, you will be informed of when the summary advice time has been confirmed. This can take a few emails due to the number of people involved.

The summary advice appointment is set up on zoom and you will be sent a link.

During a summary advice appointment, the client will explain their matter to the volunteer lawyer and they will receive summary advice and possibly unbundled legal services.

After the meeting, the volunteer lawyer will complete a summary advice memo which Rise will keep on file and forward to the client.

The program assistant send you a fillable memo when client documents are sent. We ask you complete the memo and email it back to the program assistant. You are able to note in the memo if the client can reach back to you for a follow-up appointment.

We also ask you to track your time as we report volunteer hours.

Rise works with clients, who are self-representing in courts. In some cases, they may avail summary advice while waiting to hear from legal aid. If you are open to taking legal aid files, you can let them know as well as note it in your memo. We can put the client in touch with you after the summary advice appointment?

If you have agreed for a follow-up appointment in your memo, the second appointment will depend on when the community partner reaches back to the VLC. It can be a matter of weeks.

For appointment with a new client, you can let us know off your availability and files can be sent to you accordingly.