Downtown Legal Services (DLS)
Downtown Legal Services is both a community legal clinic and a clinical education program, operated by the Faculty of Law at the University of Toronto. Our free services are provided by law students, who work under the close supervision of our expert staff lawyers. Approximately 140 law students work at the clinic every year, enabling us to serve over two thousand people.Our goal is to offer friendly, client-centred services that are designed to provide our clients with practical solutions. At the same time, our clinical education programs allow students to learn in an intellectually lively environment, where they can acquire the professional skills and insight to become successful lawyers.
We provide a range of free legal services for low-income residents of Toronto and University of Toronto students in six areas of law: criminal law, employment law, family law, refugee and immigration law, housing law and university affairs. Depending on your case, this may include providing advice about the law and your options, negotiating with the other side and representing you at a trial or hearing. We also provide notary/affidavit services for a small fee.
In addition to individual legal services, we also participate in a wide variety of community outreach activities including delivering public legal education workshops, participating in community forums and collaborating on advocacy initiatives. Find out more about our community outreach program or to request a plain language workshop.
They also provide notary services at no charge.
Contact
Email: law.dls@utoronto.ca
Phone: 416-934-4535
Instagram: http://instagram.com/dlstoronto
Website: http://downtownlegalservices.ca
Fasken Martineau Building
655 Spadina Avenue
Toronto, Ontario, M5S 2H9
Levy Fee Opt-out Dates
DLS receives $1.50/per term from each full-time GSU student as part of your incidental fees. This term fee is 100% refundable before September 30, 2025. To obtain a refund, contact law.dls@utoronto.ca to request to opt-out, in which we will provide a cash reimbursement in person at DLS.
Note: Students who opt-out of the DLS fee will not be able to access our free legal services unless they meet the financial eligibility criteria established by our primary funder, Legal Aid Ontario.