Volunteer

Our vision is a province where people have the knowledge, skills and attitudes to resolve everyday legal matters. By providing education and information people can understand and empowering them to take action, we support people in improving their lives. By volunteering with us, you can be part of strengthening our community.

Critically, you can also be part of improving public confidence and trust in the justice system. The more people know about the law, the more confidence they have in the system and in its participants, such as lawyers and notaries. Together, we can improve access to justice by putting the public first.

On contributing to a People’s Law School program or resource, volunteers are recognized on our website with their name, photo, short bio, and a link to their own website.

Showcasing your expertise through your People’s Law School contribution raises your profile in the community.

As well, a volunteer contribution to People’s Law School may qualify for continuing professional development credits with professional regulatory organizations. For example, for lawyers in BC, approved education activities include teaching the general public and writing articles intended for publication for any audience.

Volunteering enables people to realize their potential. It provides a chance to build problem solving, communication, and other skills, as well as confidence and resilience. Studies show volunteering has positive mental and physical effects on volunteers. As is highlighted by the UK non-profit Citizens Advice Bureau in their report Volunteering: How Everyone Benefits, volunteers feel good about giving back to their communities.

We have over 500 pages on our People's Law School and Dial-A-Law websites, as well as and over two dozen publications. We respond to over 1,000 questions a year through our Q&A service. We focus on everyday legal problems, such as consumer problems, workplace issues, and dealing with an estate. Our information is written in easy-to-understand language and contains step-by-step guidance to empower people to take action on their legal problems.

Our legal staff write this information, but we need volunteers with current practical legal experience to review content to ensure it is legally accurate.

You must have:

• qualifications to practice as a lawyer, notary or other professional,

• minimum of two years’ experience in your practice, and

• a desire to help people.

We offer webinars for the public on law-related topics. We are always looking for lawyers, notaries and other experts to be speakers at our webinars.  

You must have:

• qualifications to practice as a lawyer, notary or other professional,

• minimum two years’ experience as a lawyer, notary or other professional,

• good communication and presentation skills in front of a public audience, and

• a desire to help people.

The more British Columbians know about People's Law, the more access to justice we can provide. If you're social-media savvy and have the time and interest to get the word out about our digital offerings, we'd love to hear from you.