The legal group said that the changes restrict access to justice especially in rural areas
The Indigenous Bar Association has pushed back against proposed amendments to the Legal Profession Act that will require the Alberta Law Foundation to double its statutory contribution to Legal Aid Alberta.
The pitched changes call for 50 percent of the annual interest amount received by ALF from Alberta lawyers’ pooled trust accounts to be allocated to LAA, up from of 25 percent previously. The IBA said that the move merely redirected community-sourced resources away from critical service providers.
IBA President Drew Lafond said that the proposed amendments indicated “a lack of insight into the responsibility of the Alberta government to consistently and reliably fund legal aid services.” He added that the move would disproportionately impact “Indigenous peoples, women, low income families and others who are already overrepresented and underserved in the justice system.”
“We are deeply concerned that, by requiring the Alberta Law Foundation to increase its funding to Legal Aid Alberta, the Alberta government is creating a deeper disparity for other notable non-profit organizations that provide vital, culturally competent, and community-based legal services for Albertans,” Lafond said in a statement.
The IBA outlined the following negative outcomes from the pitched changes:
“We urge the province to recognize that access to justice is a fundamental right that cannot be achieved by jeopardizing the work of organizations that serve those most in need,” the IBA said, citing the Alberta government’s obligation to support legal aid services through adequate and sustainable funding.
In the 2024 fiscal year, ALF earmarked about $39 million for Legal Aid Alberta. Other Alberta-based community organizations the foundation funds include:
