What services are available at Justice Access Centres?

On this page

• Information and self-help resources
• Access to services
• Assessing your needs
• Help with parenting and child support arrangements
• Legal help
• How much will it cost?
• Your privacy

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Information and self-help resources

Justice Access Centres provide one-on-one help from staff and self-help and information services. Resources include booklets, videos and websites.

If the centre does not have the materials you need, they will refer you to resources outside of the centre that can help you.

The self-help resource room is for people who need help finding out about options for solving their family and civil law problems. Here, you can find information about your issue, the legal system, the services available for you and how disputes can be solved without going to court. If you're going to court, we can explain court procedures and help you prepare to represent yourself.

We provide a wide range of information and resources to serve you at any stage in your situation. You'll find:

• Computers for doing research and word processing
• Printers to print forms and other materials
• Booklets and brochures to take home
• Access to a photocopier, a fax machine and phones

You'll find staff to help you:

• Identify your problem and your legal options
• Find publications that explain the law in plain language, including many in languages other than English
• Access reading material
• Use the Internet, especially if you have little or no experience using computers
• Print out materials from the computer
• Use self-help guides
• Get information about government services and agencies
• Help you understand court forms

Self-help room staff provide legal information, but not legal advice. Legal information is general information about the law that helps someone identify a legal issue and related options. Legal advice involves applying the law to a particular situation and providing a legal opinion and specific advice about the next steps to take.

We're here to help you with family and civil law issues, including:

• Separation and divorce
• Guardianship, parenting arrangements or contact with a child/youth when there is a separation or divorce
• Child and spousal support
• Parenting after separation issues
• Family Law Act protection orders for prevention of family violence
• Simple probate
• Requesting a review of decisions of the Residential Tenancy Branch and various tribunals
• Appeals to the Supreme Court; and
• General Supreme Court information

The centres do not deal with criminal issues, small claims court forms and filings and some other specific legal solutions.

Access to services

At the justice access centres, we can tell you about key community and government agencies for issues such as mental health, alcohol and drug use, income security, debt or housing. These services are located right in your community and sometimes their staff even work at our centre. We can contact them for you if you wish and book appointments as needed.

If you have immediate safety concerns, staff may refer you to a community support organization, VictimLinkBC or the police. (If necessary, staff may give you information about how to get into court quickly, and refer you to legal advice.)

If you need help resolving a dispute about child support, staff can refer you to a family justice counsellor or the child support officer at the centre.

If you're not receiving the child support your child is entitled to receive, staff may refer you to the Family Maintenance Enforcement Program (FMEP).

Assessing your needs

We work closely with you to consider your needs and discuss your options. With our network of support services, including legal services, we know how to connect you with the right kind of help, whether it’s at the centre or in the community.

Here is what you can expect:

• You can meet with an Interviewer over the phone or in-person for an initial determination of your needs, where you can receive some information relevant for your situation and learn about the options for further service with a family justice counsellor or child support officer.
• Once you have an appointment with a family justice counsellor or child support officer to discuss the issues you want help with, you will be asked to complete a client information and assessment form so we can understand your situation (we can help you fill it out).
• If you file an application to Provincial Court on a contested family matter, you may have to meet with a family justice counsellor before you proceed to a court appearance.
• Depending on your situation, the meeting may take up to an hour. People often face several problems at once, such as a family breakdown and concerns about housing, income and employment. These issues may also be complicated by challenges with communication, drugs or alcohol.
• We’ll describe the range of services that are available for you. Whether you follow up on any of these referrals is entirely up to you.

Help with parenting and child support arrangements

Justice access centres offer dispute resolution services (mediation with a family justice counsellor or facilitated negotiation with a child support officer). If dispute resolution services at the justice access centre are not appropriate for your situation, staff will do their best to either help you with the next step or refer you to others who can help you.

Legal help

Depending on your situation, you may be eligible to receive advice from a lawyer at the centre. If not, staff can refer you to other lawyers or to organizations that can give you advice, sometimes for free.

Staff can also give you information about getting help from a legal aid lawyer (if you qualify), community agency, pro bono clinic where lawyers provide free services, or private lawyer.

How much will it cost?

Services provided by justice access centre staff are free. You may be asked about your income, because staff may refer you to services that are based on financial need.

Your privacy

The personal information you provide is confidential. Your basic identifying information and a record of the services you receive may be accessed by staff at the centre as needed. The Freedom of Information and Privacy Act applies to all information you may share with staff.