
December 14, 2009
LSS update This is an update about the changes happening at the Legal Services Society (LSS). Keeping community agencies accurately informed is extremely important to us, so we intend to keep you up to date about what’s going on at LSS to ensure you know where to send clients and who to contact in your local area. At the end of March, the Legal Services Society will replace regional centres in five communities — Victoria, Surrey, Prince George, Kelowna, and Kamloops — with local agents. For clients formerly served by the Surrey Regional Centre, the change means they will be able to apply closer to home as LSS plans to have local agents in New Westminster, North Surrey, and the Cloverdale/Langley regions. Local agents are lawyers who provide legal aid services, including taking applications for legal aid, and providing legal information and advice. Twenty-two communities around the province are already served by local agents, a proven and effective way to deliver legal aid services since 2002. We expect to complete the selection process in February 2010 and will advise community agencies soon thereafter. Please go to www.lss.bc.ca and click Local Agent Opportunities for all the details. In addition to handling applications for representation, the local agent schedules duty counsel and provides public legal education and information (PLEI) services. Among other things, they will maintain and distribute a current supply of LSS and other PLEI materials. They will refer people to other agencies for help where appropriate and will assist people in using web and print resources. LSS will assist the local agent to develop a strategic plan for community outreach and the delivery of PLEI. To help spread the word about these new locations, LSS will advertise in the community and distribute a new brochure highlighting locations and services. Did you know? Almost 30% of all applications are taken by local agents in 22 locations around BC.

December 14, 2009

LSS update

This is an update about the changes happening at the Legal Services Society (LSS). Keeping community agencies accurately informed is extremely important to us, so we intend to keep you up to date about what’s going on at LSS to ensure you know where to send clients and who to contact in your local area.

At the end of March, the Legal Services Society will replace regional centres in five communities — Victoria, Surrey, Prince George, Kelowna, and Kamloops — with local agents. For clients formerly served by the Surrey Regional Centre, the change means they will be able to apply closer to home as LSS plans to have local agents in New Westminster, North Surrey, and the Cloverdale/Langley regions. Local agents are lawyers who provide legal aid services, including taking applications for legal aid, and providing legal information and advice. Twenty-two communities around the province are already served by local agents, a proven and effective way to deliver legal aid services since 2002.

We expect to complete the selection process in February 2010 and will advise community agencies soon thereafter. Please go to www.lss.bc.ca and click Local Agent Opportunities for all the details.

In addition to handling applications for representation, the local agent schedules duty counsel and provides public legal education and information (PLEI) services. Among other things, they will maintain and distribute a current supply of LSS and other PLEI materials. They will refer people to other agencies for help where appropriate and will assist people in using web and print resources. LSS will assist the local agent to develop a strategic plan for community outreach and the delivery of PLEI.

To help spread the word about these new locations, LSS will advertise in the community and distribute a new brochure highlighting locations and services.

Did you know?

Almost 30% of all applications are taken by local agents in 22 locations around BC.