Welfare and Disability Problems

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Legal Help for British Columbians has not been updated since 2017. Much of the information will be out-of-date. Please visit Clicklaw to find more current and reliable sources of legal information.

Legal Help Guide
This page is from the wikibook Legal Help for British Columbians. See the full contents and contributors.
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Here are the first steps and some useful resources for people in BC facing welfare and disability-related problems such as:

Legal Help for British Columbians

Getting Started

Introduction · Know Any Good Lawyers?

Common Legal Problems

Complaints about Authorities	I Was Harassed or Assaulted by the Police · A Provincial Government Worker Was Abusive to Me · A Federal Government Worker Was Abusive to Me · I Was Abused in a Residential School

Consumer and Debt	I Don't Have Enough Money to Pay My Debts · The Bank Is Threatening Foreclosure on My Home · A Debt Collector Is Harassing Me · I Bought a Product from a Door-to-Door Salesperson and No Longer Want It · My Car Broke Down and the Dealer Won't Fix It · I Want to Get out of My Cellphone Contract

Criminal Law	I've Been Charged with a Criminal Offence and Have to Go to Court · I've Been Offered "Diversion" · I Want to Change My Release Conditions · I Want to Move My Criminal Case Closer to Home · I Want to Have My Criminal Record Removed · I Want My Criminal Case to Be Dealt with in First Nations Court

Employment Law	My Employer Isn't Paying My Wages · I Have Been Dismissed (Fired) without Just Cause · I've Been Turned down for Employment Insurance Benefits · I've Been Cut off Workers' Compensation Benefits

Family Law	I Have a Family Problem and I Want to Resolve It out of Court · I Just Separated from the Other Parent of My Children · My Partner Is Abusing Me and My Kids · My Ex Is Not Paying Child Support · I Don't Want the Ministry to Take My Kids · The Ministry Has Taken My Kids

Housing	My Landlord Wants to Enter My Unit without My Permission · My Landlord Wants to Evict Me · My Landlord Wants to Keep My Deposit

Human Rights	I Am Being Discriminated against or Sexually Harassed

Immigration	I Want to Claim Refugee Status in Canada · I'm a Permanent Resident and Have Been Charged with a Criminal Offence · My Husband Sponsored Me and We Have Now Separated

Mental Health	A Relative Has Been Held against Their Will in a Mental Health Facility

Personal Planning	I Want to Get My Affairs in Order in Case I Become Incapable · I Want to Help a Friend or Relative Manage Their Affairs

Suing and Being Sued	I Am Being Sued · I Need to Take Someone to Court

Welfare and Disability	I Have No Money for Food or Shelter · I Have Been Denied or Cut off Welfare · I Need to Apply for Disability Benefits · I'm Being Investigated by the Welfare Ministry

Wills and Estates	I Want to Write a Will · I Am the Executor or Administrator of an Estate

Resource List

(see all resource listings on one page)

Information or self-help	AdminLawBC.ca · BC Civil Liberties Association · Clicklaw · Consumer Protection BC · Courthouse Libraries BC · Credit Counselling Society of BC · Dial-A-Law (People's Law School) · Family Law in BC · Legal Services Society · Nidus Personal Planning Resource Centre · People's Law School · PovNet · Public Libraries · Tenant Resource & Advisory Centre · Vehicle Sales Authority of BC · Victims Info · VictimLINK

Legal advocacy, advice or representation	Access Pro Bono · Advocacy Access Program · BC Human Rights Clinic · Community Legal Assistance Society · Duty Counsel · Family LawLINE · First Nations Court Duty Counsel · Law Students' Legal Advice Program · Lawyer Referral Service · Legal Aid Representation · Legal Services Society · Mediate BC · Native Courtworkers · Private Bar Lawyers · Salvation Army Pro Bono Lawyer Consultation Program · Seniors First BC

Counselling or support	BC Society of Transition Houses · Elizabeth Fry Society of Greater Vancouver · Indian Residential School Survivors Society · MOSAIC

Government services	BC Employment and Assistance · Employment Standards Branch of BC · Employment Standards (Canada) · Family Justice Centres · Family Maintenance Enforcement Program · Government of Canada's Settlement Services Directory · Helpline for Children in BC · Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada · Indian Residential Schools of AANDC · Ombudsperson · Parole Board of Canada · Police Complaints Commissioner (BC) · Public Guardian and Trustee · Residential Tenancy Branch · Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP · Service BC · Service Canada · Vital Statistics Agency · Workers' Advisers

Laws, cases & rules	BC Laws · CanLII · Courts of BC · Federal Court of Canada · Small Claims Court

Preparing for Your Interview

Sample form to prepare for meeting with a lawyer or advocate

Legal Help for British Columbians © Cliff Thorstenson and Courthouse Libraries BC is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 Canada Licence.

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