''Community Legal Assistance Society (CLAS)'', which previously went by the name ''Vancouver Community Legal Assistance Society (V-CLAS)'', is a

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from g ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

which provides legal services to low- and moderate-income persons in the areas of

mental health law Mental health law includes a wide variety of legal topics and pertain to people with a diagnosis or possible diagnosis of a mental health condition, and to those involved in managing or treating such people. Laws that relate to mental health incl ...

human rights law International human rights law (IHRL) is the body of international law designed to promote human rights on social, regional, and domestic levels. As a form of international law, international human rights law are primarily made up of treaties, a ...

, and

poverty law Harvard Law defines poverty law as, "the legal statutes, regulations and cases that apply particularly to the financially poor in his or her day to day life". In a commonsense understanding and in practice, the goal of poverty law is to protect the ...

. Founded in 1971, CLAS is often referred to as Canada's first community law office. CLAS operates a BC Human Rights Clinic, a Mental Health Law Program, and a

-focused Community Law Program.

History

CLAS was founded by future

premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...

Mike Harcourt. In the summer of 1971, it opened its first office at 527 East Broadway in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...

. Its staff have been considered leaders in the field of

disability Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, s ...

and

and the

Supreme Court of Canada The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC; french: Cour suprême du Canada, CSC) is the highest court in the judicial system of Canada. It comprises nine justices, whose decisions are the ultimate application of Canadian law, and grants permission to ...

has noted how frequently CLAS represents accused persons with

mental health Mental health encompasses emotional, psychological, and social well-being, influencing cognition, perception, and behavior. It likewise determines how an individual handles stress, interpersonal relationships, and decision-making. Mental hea ...

issues. CLAS is billed as seeking to advance access to justice through the use of innovative legal tools. For instance, when a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solici ...

at CLAS, former MLA, Ian Waddell launched the first successful consumer

class action A class action, also known as a class-action lawsuit, class suit, or representative action, is a type of lawsuit where one of the parties is a group of people who are represented collectively by a member or members of that group. The class action ...

in Canada.{{Cite web, url=https://vancouversun.com/mobile/story.html?id=7746161, title=Ian Mulgrew: Lawyer’s BC Hydro fight was class-action genesis, last=Mulgrew, first=Ian, website=www.vancouversun.com, access-date=2016-10-14

History

References

See also