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Who we are
"In times of economic hardship, it is particularly important that people have access to reliable information and advice so they can effectively address their legal problems and get on with their lives."
Every year the Legal Services Society (LSS) helps tens of thousands of British Columbians with serious family, child protection, immigration, and criminal law issues. We do this by providing a range of legal information, advice, and representation services that help people resolve their legal problems. These services include booklets about the law and referrals to other agencies, or a lawyer to represent someone in court.
While we give priority to people with low incomes, many of our services are available to all British Columbians. LSS is also committed to working with its many partners in the justice system, sharing knowledge and improving access to justice for the disadvantaged. For more about what we do, see our fact sheets.
Created by the Legal Services Society Act in 1979, LSS is a non-profit organization accountable to the public and funded primarily by the Ministry of Attorney General (more about funding). The society's dedicated staff work in 2 regional centres and 31 local agents' offices across BC. Our senior management is located in our Vancouver office and our board of directors meet in our Vancouver office.
What we stand for
Our mission is to provide innovative and collaborative legal aid services that enable people with low incomes to effectively address their issues within the justice system.
Our vision is a British Columbia where all people are able to find timely and lasting solutions to their legal issues.
Our values:
- We work with clients to help them find solutions to their legal issues and prevent future issues.
- We strive to ensure people with low incomes get equal access to and the intended benefits from the law.
- We strive to understand our clients' needs and collaborate with our justice system and community partners to develop innovative services to respond to those needs.
- We strive to ensure that all staff understand the society's vision and values, and support each other to achieve our mission.
- We recognize diverse cultures, needs, and perspectives.
- We act with compassion, tolerance, consideration, and integrity in our relationships with our clients, community and justice system partners, and co-workers.
- We engage stakeholders in the design of our services and evaluate our services to ensure that our clients are achieving the best possible outcomes.
- We recognize that the work of all LSS staff and partners contributes to service excellence.