A Legal Aid Ontario lawyer wrote in to tell us this story about helping a young mother get her child out of danger. The names are changed to protect privacy.

I assisted Amanda* recently in preparing for and arguing an emergency motion in family court. Amanda was seeking to change access in a hurry because her ex was drinking and driving with their son Dylan* in the car.  The Children's Aid Society had told Amanda to do that when she called them for help. Her materials were very incomplete and wouldn't get her the order needed as she was self-represented because she couldn't afford a lawyer. So I drafted the necessary affidavits and Amanda ended up getting the order needed to limit her ex to supervised access.

Amanda has clean hands, is a nice, presentable young woman who was doing the best she could to keep Dylan safe.

This is the kind of life-saving work Legal Aid lawyers routinely do. But it's now at-risk because the Premier Doug Ford's Ontario government has cut 35% from Legal Aid Ontario's budget. People like Amanda aren't going to get the representation they need so they can protect vulnerable children like Dylan from abusive situations.

If you agree that it's wrong to cut Legal Aid, join the movement to stop the cuts and send Premier Doug Ford and your MPP an email now.