Legal Aid Cuts in Ontario

Fatima Syed & Declan Keogh of the National Observer interviewed Omar Ha-Redeye on the 2019 Ontario Budget cuts to Legal Aid in Ford government cuts legal support for refugees and immigrants,

Finance Minister Fedeli justified the cuts to legal aid in his budget as an effort to “modernize” how justice services are delivered, which many in the legal industry have long advocated for.

Toronto lawyer Omar Ha-Redeye said that he was encouraged by the budget’s commitment to modernizing the province’s legal services, but worried that the cuts to legal aid will counter that.

“Although it’s true that many vulnerable members of society will be significantly affected by these cuts, these same members of society have the most to benefit from a modernization of the system,” he said.

“But, it won’t matter how modern the justice system is, if people can’t access it,” he said in an interview.

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