Disability Law Clinic
Disability Law Clinic (DLC) Legal Services
The DLC provides a Summary Advice and Referral Service which is a free, confidential legal service, directly to persons with disabilities from across BC, on certain disability-related areas of law, including:
Accessibility laws: The DLC can offer summary legal advice and legal information about the Accessible BC Act and the Accessible Canada Act as applicable.
Discrimination/human rights: If you have been discriminated against because of your disability in certain contexts, we may be able to give you legal advice on your rights.
We provide summary legal advice on your rights under BC’s Human Rights Code and the Canadian Human Rights Act, as applicable.
Access to Services: The DLC can provide legal advice on your rights if you have been denied access to a service because of your disability.
The DLC can also give you legal advice if you experienced discrimination due to your disability by a service provider while you were using their service.
Accommodation in the workplace: If you are an employee with a disability and you need accommodations at work, the DLC can give you legal advice on your rights. The DLC also offers summary advice if you believe you have been fired or let go for a reason related to your disability.
If you are looking for a job and you need accommodations for a job interview, the DLC can advise you of your rights to be accommodated during the interview process.
The DLC does not advise employees who are members of a union.
Post-secondary education: If you are a student with a disability in a post-secondary institution, such as a college or university, and you require accommodations at school, the DLC can advise you on your right to be accommodated.
Transportation: The DLC offers summary advice on transportation-related legal issues which includes municipal, provincial, and federally regulated transportation. This includes city buses, accessible transportation, trains, and airplanes.
If you were denied access to any of these types of transportation in BC due to your disability, or experienced discrimination because of your disability while using their service, the DLC can advise you of your rights.
Decision-making rights: Decision-making rights include your right to make your own decisions on important aspects of your life. The DLC can provide you with legal advice on your rights.
Removing committeeship: If you are under court-ordered committeeship or someone is acting as your representative under a representation agreement or power of attorney, the representative may be making decisions on your behalf for things such as your finances and personal/health care. If you need to remove or change your representative or committee, the DLC can advise you on your legal options.
Public Guardian and Trustee: If the Public Guardian and Trustee (PGT) is controlling your finances, the DLC may be able to give you legal advice if you want to know how to regain control of your own finances from the PGT and make your own decisions, or if you believe the PGT is mismanaging your finances.
Long-term disability insurance: If you applied for long-term disability insurance benefits and your application was denied, or if the insurance company tells you they may stop your benefits, the DLC can advise you on your legal options.
Resource Referral Guide
In an effort to support people facing difficult situations we cannot assist with, the DLC has created a resource guide with information about other resources that may be useful to you. These include legal resources arranged by topic, and some non-legal resources. Find it at: https://disabilityalliancebc.org/programs/disability-law-clinic-resource-referral-guide/.
Contact Information
If you live in British Columbia, have a disability, and need legal advice about one of these issues, you can contact the Disability Law Clinic for assistance.
Email: lawclinic@dabc.ca
Phone: Leave a message at 236-427-1108 (Toll-free 1-800-663-1278).
Interpretation Services
If you are a client accessing the services of the Disability Law Clinic and require interpretation assistance in any language other than English, or require ASL interpretation during your appointment, please let us know and we will arrange that for you.
Publications
The Disability Law Clinic has produced three Help Sheets:
- Help Sheet #17 – Long-Term Disability Insurance
- Help Sheet #18 – What Can You Do if You Experience Discrimination in Health Care?
- Help Sheet #19: The Duty to Accommodate Employees with Disabilities
The Disability Law Clinic is generously funded by the Law Foundation of BC.
