Public Legal Education

Partner Organization: WomenatthecentrE (WATC) 
Project Name: Building a Reproductive Justice Framework – Research & PLE
Full Project Description.

Content Warning: Working on this project requires conversations and includes content about gender-based violence, anti-Black racism, racial capitalism, settler colonialism, reproductive injustice, and other forms of violence. This may be triggering or activating for some folks. We ask that you please consider this carefully when selecting this project and prioritize your needs before, during, and after the work. Please reach out to your local support systems as required.

Brief Description:
Over-Represented, and Under-Protected: Building A Reproductive Justice Framework Centering Indigenous, Black, and Afro-Indigenous Women, Girls, Two-Spirit, Gender-Diverse and Trans (IB- WG2SGDT) Communities in the Greater Toronto Area. 

Reproductive justice advocacy focuses on ensuring that women and those facing gender-based discrimination are able to make their own decisions about their reproductive lives, and have access to the resources and supports they need to be able to do so. 

Student volunteers will assist with the legal dimensions of Reproductive Justice by researching and outlining relevant laws and legal procedures to accessing reproductive justice in Canada for Black and Indigenous communities.

The project’s objectives include:

• Examine and document the systemic barriers impacting IB-WG2SGDT peoples' reproductive and sexual health, including access to culturally safe healthcare, the effects of GBV, and policy gaps
• Engage community members through community-based participatory research (CBPR) that prioritizes lived experiences of survivors and frontline advocates in shaping the research framework and findings
• Build solidarity within and between Indigenous, Black, and Afro-Indigenous communities by recognizing shared histories of oppression and reclaiming ancestral knowledge
• Encourage allyship / accompliceship by involving Indigenous, Black, and Afro-Indigenous men and boys in critical discussions on GBV and its intersection with reproductive rights
• Support sustainable change by sharing research findings through a Reproductive Justice Exchange Hub to inform advocacy, policy recommendations, and service improvements

Role of Student Volunteers 
Students will research and canvas relevant Canadian laws and resources to accessing reproductive justice in Canada. Students will work closely with each other and the lawyer supervisor to determine a work plan and divide up work. 

This project has two components: 

(1) Researching Access to Reproductive Justice: Students will research and canvas relevant Canadian laws and resources to accessing reproductive justice in Canada. 

(2) Public Legal Education Development: Students will then either create a workshop or plan-language resource outlining their findings. These resources will be published to be used by relevant populations, and will support WATC’s research. Please note that the final deliverable will be communicated to students in October, once they are matched with the organization.   

Mode of Delivery: Virtual
Prerequisites: None
Eligibility: Open to all years
Number of Placements: 2

Area of Law: Human Rights Law and Health Law
Communities Served: Domestic violence survivors; Indigenous; racialized communities

Partner Organization: The Legal Kid Foundation (TLKF) 
Project Name: Empowerment Without Borders: Bridging U.S. and Canadian Legal Literacy
Full Project Description.

Brief Description:
This project supports the international expansion of The Legal Kid Foundation (TLKF) by adapting. Its U.S.-based Student Ambassador Program curriculum for Canadian legal and civic frameworks. The goal is to ensure that youth in Canada, particularly those in underserved communities, gain early access to legal literacy, civic empowerment, and leadership development.

Project Tasks:

• Review TLKF’s current U.S.-based legal education curriculum
• Research Canadian laws and civic principles to guide content adaptation
• Collaboratively revise lesson plans, rights-based activities, and justice-themed learning modules
• Join virtual check-ins with TLKF staff for guidance and mentorship
• Finalize and submit 1–2 adapted modules by March 2026

Role of Student Volunteer:
Research Canadian legal principles that align with topics in TLKF’s existing modules (e.g., rights, rule of law, environmental protections) and provide simplified, age-appropriate summaries suitable for youth audiences. Volunteers will not modify or rewrite TLKF’s curriculum. Instead, they will produce reference notes to guide TLKF’s internal curriculum team in adapting content.

Mode of Delivery: Virtual
Prerequisites: None
Eligibility: Open to all years
Number of Placements: 1-2

Area of Law: Constitutional law, human rights law, criminal and youth justice law, immigration law, environmental law
Communities Served: Children & youth; immigrants, refugees & newcomers; racialized communities 

Partner Organization: Ontario Native Women’s Association (ONWA) 
Project Name: Ending Violence Against Women PLE
Full Project Description.

Brief Description: 
Students will develop informational guides to assist front-line workers who work with the Community Development Ending Violence Against Indigenous Women (EVAIW) and Community Safety team at ONWA. This includes researching relevant legal resources (clinics, programs, supports, shelters, etc.) that can assist Indigenous women in vulnerable situations including intimate partner violence, family violence, child welfare, gang involvement and human trafficking. After collating resources, students will develop a guide to be disseminated to staff. Students will be given existing ONWA resources as examples.

Role of Student Volunteer:
Students will conduct research to develop informational guides to support front-line workers who engage with vulnerable populations. These new public legal education resources will explain in clear language, various aspects of the law and legal processes that Indigenous women are likely to encounter, some of which may be related to domestic violence, human trafficking, and child welfare.

Mode of Delivery: Virtual
Prerequisites: Familiarity with Indigenous history and the cultural nuances particular to ending violence against Indigenous women
Eligibility: Open to all years
Number of Placements: 2

Area of Law: Indigenous Family Law, Human Rights Law, Child Welfare
Communities Served: Indigenous; women; domestic violence survivors

Partner Organization: METRAC (Metropolitan Action Committee on Violence Against Women and Children)
Project Name: Gender Based Violence – PLE and Research Project
Full Project Description.

Brief Description: 
This project has two components. Students may choose to prepare and presenting PLE presentation or research and writing to publish on the METRAC Ontario Women’s Justice Network (OWJN) website. 

Role of Student Volunteer: 
Students will work with METRAC’s legal information materials, to conduct legal research and to develop and adapt new presentation materials as needed. PLE presentations will explain in clear language, various aspects of the law and legal processes that women are likely to encounter, some of which may be related to information posted on the OWJN and FLEW websites.

Mode of Delivery: Virtual
Prerequisites: It would be helpful for students to have a basic understanding of one or more areas of family law; immigration law; labour/employment law; human rights law; privacy law; criminal law
Eligibility: Open to All Years
Number of Placements: 2 (4-6 total)

Area of Law: Family, Criminal, Human Rights, Employment
Communities Served: Domestic violence survivors; women; other - General
 

Partner Organization: Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres (OFIFC) 
Project Name: Indigenous Specific – Intimate Partner Violence Prevention Toolkit
Full Project Description.

Brief Description:
The OFIFC seeks to develop an Indigenous Specific – Intimate Partner Violence Prevention (IS – IPVP) Toolkit to support survivors navigate the legal system accordingly. Ultimately, there are two key deliverables:

1. a research memo outlining the relevant trends, referral process, and key issues in family and criminal case law, and
2. a public legal education resource articulating the step-by-step process for participating in either a PAR or IS-IPVP Program.

Phase 1: Legal Research – Reviewing IS-IPV Criminal and Family Law Cases
From October – November (Fall term), students will conduct a landscape review of Indigenous intimate partner violence (IPV) criminal and family case law, with a specific focus on Crown Attorney referrals to either Partner Assault Response (PAR) Programs or an Indigenous-Specific – Intimate Partner Violence Prevention (IS-IPVP) Programs.

Students will research relevant case law and produce an internal legal memo for the OFIFC summarizing trends, referral processes, and key issues identified through the review. This review will support the OFIFC in understanding relevant case law and the processes by which eligible individuals are referred to either a PAR or IS-IPVP Program.

Phase 2: Public Legal Education Development
From January – March (Winter term), students will develop a public legal education (PLE) resource that accessibly articulates the step-by-step process of participating in either a PAR or IS-IPVP program for clients. Students will then assist with delivering a virtual/online PLE workshop to share the developed content and information.

Examples include:

• Explain what clients should and should not do during the duration of the program
• How to communicate with legal professionals
• When to communicate with the Crown Attorney
• Outline possible outcomes of completing the PAR or IS-IPVP Program and what it might
• mean for their criminal record

Phase 3: Developing Precedents to Support Clients
Provided Phase 1 and Phase 2 are completed on or ahead of schedule, students may also assistwith developing resources for an IS-IPVP Toolkit. This may include template letters and advocacy materials to support referrals from Crown Attorneys and Probation and Parole Offices. Students will develop these resources for the OFIFC to consolidate into an advocacy and support toolkit for IS-IPVP.

Role of Student Volunteer:
As outlined above. Students can anticipate conducting case law research, writing a legal memo, developing PLE content and assisting with a PLE workshop.

Mode of Delivery: Virtual
Prerequisites: None; interest in Indigenous and Aboriginal Law is preferred
Eligibility: Open to all years
Number of Placements: 1-2 

Area of Law: Indigenous Law, Family Law, and Criminal Law
Communities Served: Indigenous; domestic violence survivors; women