Articling Student, Disability Law Clinic

About this position

Our Mission

For 45 years, Disability Alliance BC (DABC) has been a provincial, cross-disability voice in British Columbia. Our mission is to support people with all disabilities to live with dignity, independence, and as equal and full participants in the community. We champion issues impacting the lives of people with disabilities through our direct services, community partnerships, advocacy, research, and publications. We are a member organization of the Council of Canadians with Disabilities and the BC Poverty Reduction Coalition.

In 2020, DABC opened the Disability Law Clinic (DLC). Funded by the Law Foundation of BC, the DLC is the first non-profit legal clinic in BC that works exclusively in the area of disability rights. The DLC provides free legal advice and assistance to low-income people with disabilities throughout BC, in certain disability-related areas of law, including:

• Human rights and discrimination, including disability-related complaints to the BC Human Rights Tribunal (BCHRT) and federal human rights agencies.

• Disputes about income support for people with disabilities, especially disability assistance from BC’s Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction. The DLC works with DABC’s Advocacy Access program on appeals of Ministry decisions, at the Employment and Assistance Appeal Tribunal (EAAT). The DLC also represents clients in applications for judicial review of EAAT decisions.

• Questions or disputes related to decision-making rights, especially in cases where BC’s Public Guardian and Trustee or a court-appointed committee make decisions on behalf of a person.

• Questions about private long-term disability insurance benefits.

You can find more information about our services on our website, at https://disabilityalliancebc.org/program/disability-law-clinic/

The DLC currently consists of two lawyers, one articling student, a full-time legal assistant/advocate, and a part-time intake worker/legal assistant. We are seeking a new articling student for 1 year, starting in August 2023.

Duties and Responsibilities of the articling student

• Interviewing clients, conducting legal research, preparing pleadings, and representing clients in disability-related human rights complaints to the BC Human Rights Tribunal (BCHRT) and federal human rights agencies.

• Representing clients in appeals to BC’s Employment and Assistance Appeal Tribunal (EAAT), in cases involving disputes about provincial government disability benefits.

• Providing research support and helping the DLC’s staff lawyers to prepare applications for judicial review of tribunal decisions.

• Preparing research and briefing notes to support DABC’s ongoing systemic policy advocacy on behalf of people with disabilities.

• Delivering public legal education sessions and workshops, for people with disabilities and disability-related organizations.

• Reviewing DABC’s help-sheets and other publications about government disability benefits, to ensure they are accurate and up to date, and developing new help-sheets in cooperation with DABC staff.

• Responding to inquiries from the public, going through the intake process with prospective clients, triaging requests for assistance, and ascertaining what information is needed in order to determine if a potential claim has merit.

• Helping develop updated training materials for legal advocates.

• Attending DABC staff meetings and community events.

Desired Skills and Experience

• You must have completed and graduated from law school before August 2023, and be eligible to article as per the requirements of the Law Society of British Columbia.

• We encourage applications from members of communities that experience structural discrimination and marginalization, particularly people with disabilities.

• Experience working with people with disabilities and other marginalized communities is preferred.

• Experience working with people in crisis and familiarity with trauma-informed practice would be assets.

• You must have some understanding of legal issues affecting people with disabilities, and strong research and communication skills.

You may be expected to work at home on two or three days per week, so the ability to work independently is important.

The articling student’s salary will be $55,000.00 for 12 months. The articling student’s Professional Legal Training Course (PLTC) fees will also be covered.

To apply: Applicants should submit a resume, cover letter, law school transcripts, and a writing sample of no more than 5 pages, to Andrew Robb, Managing Lawyer, Disability Law Clinic, at andrew@disabilityalliancebc.org.

Closing date: January 13, 2023

*This position is funded by the Law Foundation of BC*