Pro Bono Ontario is a nonprofit organization that seeks to increase access to justice for low-income Ontarians with civil, non-family, legal problems. PBO develops special projects through law firms, legal clinics, or community-based organizations to provide free legal services to eligible members of the public. These services are also available for nonprofit or charitable groups.
Pro Bono Ontario offers a hotline that provides up to 30 minutes of free legal help and advice over the telephone on civil law matters, which include:
- employment
- housing
- consumer issues
- Powers of Attorney
- corporate law for charities, non-profits, and small businesses
It doesn’t help with family law, immigration law, or criminal law problems.
The hotline generally accepts calls Monday to Friday between 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Pro Bono Ontario uses volunteer lawyers, so clients must be low-income to qualify and may have to meet other criteria to be eligible for help.