Legal Information/ Legal Briefs
Legal Briefs
Until 2010, these legal briefs provide examples of judgments pertaining to everyday situations. Beginning in 2012, they deal with various topics of general interest, such as rental issues, family law, human rights, civil liability, insurance, dealings between spouses and social aid. They are intended to inform and to prevent undesirable situations.
Legal Briefs 2015
June/July
Breathalyzers and impaired faculties
Offences related to driving under the influence of alcohol are probably the ones most likely to affect the « ordinary » person, that is, someone without a criminal past. Unfortunately, these offences can have serious consequences which the public does not always fully grasp.
If a police offi
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May
What exactly is the Social Security Tribunal?
On April 1, 2013, a new tribunal was created in Canada—the Social Security Tribunal—which falls under federal jurisdiction. It replaced the following four administrative tribunals: the Board of Referees, the employment insurance umpires, the Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security review tribunals,
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February
Free or low-cost legal aid
You may be granted free legal aid if your income, property and liquid assets do not exceed the eligibility scale provided for in the Act respecting legal aid and the provision of certain other legal services and the Regulation respecting legal aid.
Even if you are above the eligibility scale, you should contact your nearest legal aid office, because other factors may qualify you for legal aid.
For example, the child care costs you are required to assume and any support you have to pay for a child or former spouse may be deducted from your income. There are also other deductions, such as school fees, which is why it is important to contact your legal aid office. Otherwise, you might be depriving yourself of the right to legal aid.
If you are above the eligibility scale for free legal aid, you may still qualify for legal aid in return for the payment of a contribution ranging from $100 to $800. In such a case, you will be asked to sign an agreement for the payment of these fees so that you can then defend yourself or exercise your rights.
Please note that only legal aid can claim the contribution or the reimbursement of any costs provided for by law.
Therefore, if you are being represented by a lawyer in private practice who has accepted a legal aid mandate, you do not have to pay anything directly to your lawyer at any point during the mandate.
If you are asked to pay any amount, regardless of the circumstances, it is important to inform your legal aid office.
For more information, visit the website of the Commission des services juridiques at www.csj.qc.ca, under « Legal aid / Am I financially eligible? »
Legal brief *
February
2015
Number
02
Text prepared by Me Marie Fillion,Directrice générale au Centre communautaire juridique du Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean
* The information set out in this document is not a legal interpretation.
The masculine is used to designate persons solely in order to simplify the text.
January
Is shared custody in the best interests of your child?
For the majority of parents who are in the process of a separation or divorce, custody of their children is often their primary concern. How can their children’s time be managed best so that they can spend as much of this precious commodity with their children?
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