Housing Law

PROJECT SUMMARY:

Low-income renters face multiple barriers to exercising their rights when facing a major rent increase, fighting an eviction, and dealing with a landlord neglecting repairs or harassing their tenants. The high cost of legal representation, not understanding their rights or how the justice system works, and feeling overwhelmed by complicated legal forms, are major barriers tenants have identified for moving forward on important claims to improve their housing situation. Meanwhile, landlords and property management companies have the financial resources to retain lawyers during times of dispute whereas limited availability of and restrictions on free legal resources is a severe impediment for marginalized tenants.

This project will primarily involve legal research in support of ACORN Canada’s tenant organizing work and housing law reform campaigns. Students will work with ACORN to identify a focused research topic that aligns with ongoing legislative or policy priorities—such as rent control, eviction protections, or enforcement gaps in tenancy law. The goal is to produce actionable legal research that can inform advocacy, support public campaigns, and contribute to systemic change in housing law.

In addition to the core research project, if the opportunity arises, students will create a deliverable that provides legal information to low-income tenants regarding Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) forms and procedures.

ROLE OF STUDENT VOLENTEERS: 

Students will be responsible for reaching out to the organization contact and lawyer supervisor at the onset of the project to discuss the project, training, and resources. A team lead will be appointed who will be responsible for communicating bi-weekly progress reports to ACORN, the partnering organization, on the status and development of the groups’ work. The organization contact will also be available to the student’s should any questions arise. 

The students, along with the organization contact and the lawyer supervisor, will determine tasks, deadlines, and project details in the work plan. It is up to the students to ensure they meet these deadlines. If the students have any issues, they must bring it to the attention of the organization contact and lawyer supervisor immediately. 

It is expected that students will complete the primary final deliverable by the end of March. If they are finished sooner than anticipated, their focus should shift to the second deliverable outlines in the project description section.

TYPE:

Public Legal Education and Research

AREA(S) OF LAW:

Poverty, housing/tenant, and human rights law

COMMUNITY SERVED:

Homeless & marginally housed, people living in poverty, self-represented litigants

NUMBER OF STUDENT VOLUNTEER POSITIONS: 

1 student 

COMMITMENT:

3-5 hours/week - Virtual 

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS: 

The following are strongly desired skills: An interest in social justice, a general openness to public interest work, an ability to work well under pressure, experience interacting with marginalized clients, strong verbal communication skills. 

PROJECT SUMMARY:

Student volunteers will assist with the creation of legal information guides as well as conduct legal research, as required. The scope of research will be determined in consultation with individual students, such as: A guide or research memo(s) summarizing maximum heat regulations for tenants, a guide or research memo(s) on Above Guideline Rent Increases (AGI’s), A guide or research memo(s) summarizing Fire Safety laws for tenants, a guide to tenant organizing to supplement existing FMTA materials. Other guides will be determined based on emerging issues and students’ interests and skills.

We might also want students to conduct a review of existing FMTA resources with a view to create “plain language versions” of existing education and training materials. Plain language versions of our most popular guides would start to address the need for public legal education materials which are easy to read and understand.

ROLE OF STUDENT VOLUNTEERS:

Students will be responsible for information gathering, the creation of public legal education materials, conducting legal research (e.g. looking up case law) as mentioned above. Other tasks can be added based on student interest.

For legal research, we would like a review of recent case law dealing with the Residential Tenancies Act- particularly relevant divisional law cases. Depending on particular tenant inquiries and/ or organizing in various buildings, we might ask law students for additional legal research not discussed above.

TYPE:

Public Legal Education and Research.

AREA(S) OF LAW:

Provincial and municipal laws impacting tenant (eg Residential Tenancies Act, its regulations, municipal code Chapter 629, and applicable municipal by-laws, occasionally referencing the Ontario Human Rights Code).

COMMUNITY SERVED:

Self-represented litigants, homeless & marginally housed, people living in poverty.

NUMBER OF STUDENT VOLUNTEER POSITIONS:

6 students

COMMITMENT:

3-5 hours/week. Hybrid - Volunteers will meet virtually once every two weeks with the organization contact. Opportunities for job shadowing and attending events can be decided between the volunteers and the organization. Research, information gathering, and writing will be done by students remotely.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

Students from equity-seeking groups are highly encouraged to apply. We would be interested in working with students from an Indigenous, QTBIPOC, and/or immigrant/refugee background. We would also welcome the contribution of law students with disabilities. Students with lived experience as tenants, or experience working with tenant groups, are also highly encouraged to apply.

PROJECT SUMMARY:

Students will assist with the intake of clients at KBCLS. Students will be trained on the types of law that callers need information on and KBCLS intake procedures. Students will then provide the callers with legal information, referrals, or gather the information needed to process the intake.

ROLE OF STUDENT VOLUNTEERS:

The students will be performing general intake duties under the supervision of KBCLS staff. Staff will be available, in person and remotely, to assist students.

TYPE:

Client Services

AREA(S) OF LAW:

Housing, Administrative, Immigration, Social Assistance Law.

COMMUNITY SERVED:

Homeless & marginally housed, people living in poverty, people living with disabilities & chronic illnesses.

NUMBER OF STUDENT VOLUNTEER POSITIONS:

4 students

COMMITMENT:

3-5 hours/week - In Person

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

Clinic/social justice experience an asset but not required.

PROJECT SUMMARY & ROLE OF STUDENT VOLUNTEERS:

Student volunteers will assist with the creation of digital/audio/physical PLE materials on renting basics in Toronto, as well as conduct legal research, as required. The topics covered by PLE materials will be determined in consultation with individual students, such as:

• The Standard Form Lease vs OREA forms

• RTA versus Condo/coop bylaws etc.

• A guide to preparing tenant applications

• Guidelines for self-representation at the Landlord and Tenant Board

Other PLE and research topics will be determined based on emerging issues and students’ interests

and skills.

Materials may include digitally produced content for distribution through the organization’s website, internal networks, or social media, where appropriate. The organization may also request that students prepare physical materials that are easily accessible to clients with limited access to digital media, such as pamphlets and flyers. The organization will determine whether there are opportunities for students to deliver a PLE presentation during the year where students may use prepared slide decks.

TYPE:

Public Legal Education

AREA(S) OF LAW:

Housing, Administrative, Immigration, Social Assistance

COMMUNITY SERVED:

Homeless & marginally housed, People living in poverty, Self represented litigants

NUMBER OF STUDENT VOLUNTEER POSITIONS:

2 students

COMMITMENT:

3-5 hours/week - This is a hybrid project that requires students to be in person for some portion of their work to attend meetings at the office or to attend PLE presentations.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

Social justice experience is an asset but not required. Interest in Tenant Rights issues and housing

justice is also highly desirable.