The fight against funding cuts to legal aid services continues.
The Northwest Community Legal Clinic participated in a provincial day of action yesterday with events at both its Fort Frances and Kenora offices.
Executive Director Trudy McCormick says the clinic is feeling the impact of a 35 per cent provincial funding reduction to Legal Aid Ontario made earlier this year.
She says they can no longer help injured workers.
“Because the injured workers’ clinics in Toronto took a huge cut so they can’t help us anymore. They used to help us deliver those services locally because it’s a very complex area of law. We also had an injured workers lawyer that was shared by the eleven northern community legal clinics, trying to leverage services and allow people to do things in smaller offices, that position was cut too,” says McCormick.
Residents were also asked to sign a petition calling on the provincial government to reverse the cuts.
“We’ve got a petition that we plan to present later, partially as evidence of how many people came out today and care about what we’re doing.”
McCormick adds it’s not about lawyers.
It’s about all those folks in the community that are out here today supporting us at the barbecue. Our clients are there, our members are there, our board members are there. That’s the message we want to give, everyone cares.”
