2020/2021 Projects
Check out this academic year's projects below.
|
A WAY HOME KAMLOOPS – YOUTH HOUSING FRAMEWORK PROJECT
A Way Home is part of the British Columbia Coalition to end youth homelessness. The Coalition has started a project to develop a Youth Housing Framework for the province. Students will assist with the project by reviewing literature, completing environmental scans, and producing a model of care that will inform a provincial plan to end youth homelessness.
|
ACCESS TO JUSTICE BC – COMMUNICATIONS INTERNSHIP
This internship provides an opportunity for law students to contribute to access to justice in BC and to learn about the current work in action to improve access to justice.
Students will focus on supporting the Access to Justice BC narrative strategy which will include assisting with the development of written and video “access to justice” stories; doing interviews and videos related to various access to justice events; supporting A2JBC’s social media activity – students will participate in planning, input and distribution; being part of the organizing group for access to justice week 2021, and participating in the Access to Justice Engagement Committee. |
CANADIAN CIVIL LIBERTIES ASSOCIATION – RIGHTS WATCH MONITORING
Students are assigned a particular Canadian jurisdiction to monitor and review significant reports by rights-protecting and other public bodies and some larger municipalities. Students are assigned a jurisdiction and are provided with at least one report to review. Students are asked to review the report(s) and provide CCLA with a memo summarizing the key civil liberties issues that are raised in the report. The purpose of these memoranda is to allow CCLA to monitor key civil liberties issues in all jurisdictions across the country and consider issues and areas for future advocacy and/or litigation.
|
|
CFBX "THE X" RADIO – PUBLIC LEGAL EDUCATION BROADCAST
Despite advances in technology, especially those designed for mass media, the medium of radio still reaches a broad cross-section of society. Information disseminated through radio has a high likelihood of reaching people from a variety of social and economic backgrounds.
Working in teams of two, student volunteers will research and prepare one thirty minute radio show on the legal topic of their choosing. Students will choose a research question, area of law, or issue with the supervising lawyer and prepare and record a show that explains the current state of the law surrounding that topic. The shows will solely contain a legal information session. Students explain the law without providing legal advice. |
HEALTH JUSTICE BC –
COVID-19 AND PSYCHIATRIC FACILITIES RESEARCH COVID-19 has had significant impacts on the patients at psychiatric facilities across Canada. This research project will have students research and create a library of materials, such as cases, reports, and academic articles, which will ultimately be used to assist with patient advocacy. This research will have both legal and scientific aspects as students will be looking into the impacts of COVID-19 transmission risk and human rights law.
|
JOHN HOWARD SOCIETY OF THE THOMPSON REGION - COURT PREP PROJECT
JHS has clients who must navigate the provincial court system for the first time often without any court support. Procedurally and substantively, the court system can be convoluted and confusing along with the expected courtroom etiquette that many citizens are unaware of. This will be a Public Legal Education project focused on compiling important “tips and tricks” of the courtroom in conjunction with the procedural aspects of the court process when charged with a criminal offence.
The information will be gathered and then summarized in an easily accessible electronic form which may later be uploaded to the JHS website or sent to clients for assistance. |
|
JHS OF THE THOMPSON REGION - PARENTING RIGHTS ACROSS CANADA
JHS has many clients who are parents and often find themselves navigating the Family Law system in their respective province. At times parents do not understand their rights under provincial legislation and can find it challenging to find resources to assist. This project will entail research into legislation of each province and the rights of parents who may not have custody of their children or are having access issues.
The information will be gathered and then summarized in an easily accessible electronic form which may later be uploaded to the JHS website or sent to clients for assistance. |
KAMLOOPS IMMIGRANT SERVICES – EMPLOYEE RIGHTS PROJECT
Students will help to organize and prepare a FAQ electronic brochure with the aim of helping new Canadians understand their employment rights in British Columbia. Students will conduct research and work with KIS to identify the most common areas of need and clarification.
If allowed under the provincial guidelines for the current global pandemic, the students will also present a Public Legal Education seminar for clients of KIS provided the lawyer supervisor is able to be present. |
LEGAL SERVICES SOCIETY (LEGAL AID) OF BC – LIVEHELP
LiveHelp is an instant messaging service available through the Family Law in BC website. It allows users to ask questions and receive legal information online regarding family law issues. Students involved in this project will provide remote online support, providing legal information to these users. In addition, students will also provide research support to ensure the information used by LiveHelp is current and up-to-date. In particular this year we expect this work to be focused around the upcoming Divorce Act and changes to Provincial Court regulations.
|
|
MS SOCIETY OF BC AND THE YUKON – VOLUNTEER LEGAL ADVOCACY PROGRAM
The Volunteer Legal Advocacy Program (VLAP), partially funded by the Law Foundation of BC, assists individuals affected by Multiple Sclerosis with legal and/or advocacy issues. Our program serves the entire province of BC and the Yukon. The majority of the staff Coordinator’s time involves assisting clients with end of work life issues. This includes applications and appeals for Short and Long-Term Disability, Canada Pension Plan – Disability Benefit, Persons with Disabilities Benefits, and the Disability Tax Credit.
Many of these applications are time consuming, including the one for the Canada Pension Plan – Disability (CPP-D) benefit. Since MS is an episodic disease with multiple symptoms, it is often difficult for our clients to articulate their symptoms for their benefit application. Clients find it difficult to articulate how their MS symptoms prevent them from working at any job, for example. |
SOUTH ASIAN LEGAL CLINIC OF BC - RESOURCE LIBRARY PROJECT
This project provides law students with the opportunity to assist with providing a free and accessible legal resource library for low-income South Asian people in the Lower Mainland. Subject to the review and approval of the supervising lawyer, law students will prepare a summary of free and low-cost legal and social services resources available in British Columbia for people dealing with legal issues in the following areas:
● Poverty law ● Residential tenancy law ● Disability Law ● Employment Law ● Human Rights Law ● Wills/Estates/Probate/Elder Law ● Immigration/Refugee Law |
NATIONAL SELF-REPRESENTED LITIGANTS WEST - RESEARCH PROJECT
NSRLP West will engage in research projects into access to justice issues throughout the 2020-2021 academic year. PBSC students will have the opportunity to participate in one or some of these research projects. While these projects may change, they are likely to focus on understanding the prevalence of self-representation in civil matters in the Kamloops registry, exploring the online search behaviours of people with legal problems, and/or developing materials to improve how BC’s human rights tribunal engages with Indigenous Peoples. This project is ideal for students who are interested in legal writing and research and who are interested in exploring one of the most pressing issues of the access to justice crisis in Canada.
|
|
CENTRAL OKANAGAN ELIZABETH FRY SOCIETY -FAMILY LAW RESOURCE PROJECT
Many clients of COEFS must navigate the provincial family law court system, often for the first time and without court support. Procedurally and substantively, the court system can be convoluted and confusing. This project will entail updating a procedural binder that COEFS has already created to assist clients with navigating the family law side of the BC courts. This will include researching the appropriate forms and requirements needed to apply for court orders, complete affidavits, make various application, etc. Further, COEFS has created a presentation in the past for a workshop on the above information for clients. This project will include updating the presentation to ensure it has accurate information. In March 2021 the students will then present and facilitate a workshop with this updated information to COEFS clients if provincial health guidelines and orders permit. If COVID-19 government measures do not allow for an in person workshop, an online presentation will be conducted and recorded for future use.
|
CANADIAN ASSOCIATION OF ELIZABETH FRY SOCIETIES - FEDERAL INCARCERATION RESEARCH
CAEFS has a collection of documentation from years of Regional Advocacy work in Canadian federal prisons for women. This documentation includes issues reported by those incarcerated in federal prisons for women throughout the years. While these concerning issues have been passed on to authority figures to be appropriately addressed, this data has yet to be compiled and analyzed thoroughly. Students will review the documentation, organize/code, and analyze it – outlining and researching the trends and key issues. CAEFS will then use these results to assist with public awareness of issues facing those incarcerated in federal institutions for women through fact sheets, social media, and their annual public report.
|
FEDERATION OF ASIAN CANADIAN LAWYERS OF BC - EQUITY AND DIVERSITY IN THE LEGAL PROFESSION RESEARCH PROJECT
FACLBC promotes equity, justice, and opportunity for Asian Canadian legal professionals and the commmunity. FACLBC fosters advocacy, community involvement, legal scholarship, and professional development. For this project students will gather and create legal information surrounding equity and diversity in the legal profession. From their research and information gathered, students will then create equity and diversity guidelines which will assist FACLBC in their recommendations to organizations and firms.
|
|
RESTORATIVE JUSTICE BC RESEARCH SUPPORT
This project will focus on legal research and resource development for Restorative Justice organizations in British Columbia. Restorative Justice organizations from across the province will provide topics for legal research projects that will help them with the work that they do. Student volunteers will then be assigned from UBC, TRU and UVic to each of these research projects. The goal of this project is to support restorative justice work throughout the province by addressing the legal research needs/resources of many different organizations through a centralized restorative justice research database.
Pending sign off from partner organizations, the legal resources created by PBSC student volunteers will then be available to other restorative justice organizations in BC and the communities they serve. This project will be a collaborative effort between British Columbia Pro Bono Students Canada Chapters at UVic, UBC and TRU. The Restorative Justice Advisory committee will help provide mentorship and guidance to student volunteers. |
KAMLOOPS PRIDE - KNOWING YOUR RIGHTS
Students will organize and create an electronic FAQ brochure with the aim of helping the LGBTQ2S+ community understand their rights when interacting with police, healthcare professionals, and their parents/guardians. Students will include the current law on doctor-patient confidentiality, including for youth. Some of the questions this project will answer include: If arrested and held in custody, are you detained in the appropriate gendered cell? Are you allowed to keep the gender-affirming prosthesis worn such as binders, packers, breastplates, gaffs, etc? What information can a doctor divulge to a youth’s parents, despite doctor-patient confidentiality? In regards to hormone blockers, can a trans* youth’s parents prevent them from having this treatment? What are your options if a parent/guardian (if separated) refuses to use gender-affirming pronouns and acknowledge transition needs? Are there protections for the child if the time spent is court-ordered? Are there any protections for trans* parents that have transphobic/homophobic co-parents when it comes to gender-affirming pronouns/ presentation in front of the child? What rights do they have to inhibit gender identity/sexual orientation and medical transition.
|
|
