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Department of Justice Canada
http://canada.justice.gc.ca/
Justice and the Law in Canada - Integrated resource of reference sources dealing with the Canadian justice system, legislation, the courts, law enforcement and other public justice institutions.

Library of Parliament: Immigration Constitutional Issues
http://www.parl.gc.ca/information/library/PRBpubs/bp273-e.htm#B.%20The%20Legaltxt
The Constitution, The Immigration Act, The Regulations

The Canadian Legal Information Institute (CanLII)
http://www.canlii.org/about-apropos_en.html
Not-for-profit organization initiated by the Federation of Law Societies of Canada. CanLII's goal is to make primary sources of Canadian law accessible for free on the Internet. CanLII seeks to gather legislative and judicial texts, as well as legal commentaries, from federal, provincial and territorial jurisdictions on a single Web site.

Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO)
http://www.cleo.on.ca/english/pub/onpub/subject/refugee.htm
Community legal clinic that produces clear language material for people with low incomes. Main topics include social assistance, landlord and tenant law, refugee and immigration law, workers' compensation, women's issues, family law, employment insurance and human rights. See also http://www.cleonet.ca/.

Best Guide to Canadian Legal Research
http://legalresearch.org
Guide for researching Canadian federal and provincial statutes and regulations in print and electronically.

Canadalegal.com™
http://www.canadalegal.com
Searchable database of Canadian legal resources.

Legal Studies FAQs
http://www.law-faqs.org
Answers to frequently asked questions - program of University of Alberta.

Strategies for Challenging Discriminatory Barriers to Foreign Credential Recognition - Legal cases in Canada
http://www.cavalluzzo.com/publications/newsletters/access_website.PDF
The Bitonti et al and College of Physicians and Surgeons et al decision was released by the B.C. Council of Human Rights. A group of doctors were successful in their claim that the B.C. College of Physicians and Surgeons had discriminated against them in the requirements they placed on foreign-trained doctors in the period before 1993… The Bitonti decision found that the distinction “was based on assumptions about the merits of the British education system” and that the College had failed over an period of some 40 or 50 years “to have made any effort to obtain an understanding of the medical education system anywhere else in the world”….

Human Rights Program – Canadian Heritage
http://www.pch.gc.ca/progs/pdp-hrp/index_e.cfm
The mission of the Program is to promote the development, understanding, respect for and enjoyment of human rights in Canada. To accomplish this, the program undertakes educational and promotional activities involving the public, educators, non-governmental organizations, government departments and others.

Living in Toronto - Information for new immigrants
http://www.toronto.ca/immigration/human_rights.htm#1
Links to Human rights issues and legislation

Immigration laws
http://www.yorku.ca/ohlj/archive/articles/37_3_dauvergne.pdf
As they are asking for a gift in a realm with no justice standard, they cannot assert a right or claim to be equals… The author argues that liberalism does not provide a meaningful standard for assessing whether immigration laws are just. In the absence of a justice standard, immigration laws occupy an amoral realm. Varying strands of liberal theory about membership in society do converge around the humanitarian ideal that some people are so needy that they must be admitted on a moral basis. The humanitarian consensus, however, is unhelpful for most of the broad societal debates about immigration, and is a front for discursive cohesion without any underlying agreement. Humanitarianism is a pragmatic tool for shifting law and policy, but must be used with caution because of its foundation in inequality... The core tension in liberal thought between individualism and equality means that we cannot achieve a lasting consensus in liberal democratic societies to answer the question “how many is just"…

African Canadian Legal Clinic (ACLC)
http://www.aclc.net/submissions/immigration_refugee_policy.html
The ACLC provides advice and representation to African Canadians in all legal forums, especially race-based test case litigation, which are likely to result in significant legal precedence. Since its inception in 1994, the ACLC has been an advocate on behalf of African Canadians’ human rights in groundbreaking cases before every level of the Canadian judicial system, including the Supreme Court of Canada as well as administrative agencies, legislative bodies and executive regulatory agencies.

Immigration and Refugee Law Services in Canada
http://canada.justice.gc.ca/en/ps/rs/rep/2003/rr03lars-18/toc.html
Eligibility for legal aid is determined on the basis of financial assessment and merit testing... Legal aid applicants are required to undergo a financial assessment…which includes an asset test and an income test. In most cases, clients receiving social assistance or with similarly low incomes are eligible for legal aid, subject to asset limitations (Ontario)... Legal aid representatives in Manitoba indicated that legal aid coverage for immigration and refugee law matters is inconsistent, largely due to the difficulty of recruiting private bar lawyers to handle cases in the province. Respondents from Ontario also pointed to gaps in coverage, in terms of issues for which no legal aid is available, and inconsistencies among Community Legal Clinics in terms of the issues covered and the geographic distribution of services.

Representation for Immigrants and Refugee Claimants
http://canada.justice.gc.ca/en/ps/rs/rep/2003/rr03lars-16/rr03_16_02.html
Legal aid services are delivered in a variety of different ways. Under the judicare model, which is the service delivery model most commonly used in Canada, the legal aid authority authorizes individuals who qualify for legal aid to retain a lawyer in private practice to represent them. The legal aid authority issues a certificate that confirms that the lawyer will be paid for the particular matter for which legal aid has been approved. The amount to be paid is established in accordance with a tariff of fees that lawyers are permitted to charge for specific services. Under the staff model, legal services are provided by lawyers (and sometimes by paralegals) working on salary for the legal aid authority. Some jurisdictions use a mix of the two models, providing some services through staff and contracting out other services to lawyers in private practice on a case-by-case basis under judicare arrangements.

Legal Aid and Community Legal Clinics
http://www.settlement.org/site/LS/legalaid.asp
The role of legal aid is to ensure that all people, regardless of income, have access to the legal assistance they need.

An Analysis of Immigration and Refugee Law Services in Canada
http://www.justicecanada.ca/en/ps/rs/rep/2003/rr03lars-18/lars-18.pdf
Immigration and Refugee Law Legal Aid
Immigration and Refugee Law Services Provided by Community Organizations
The National Picture

The Regularization of Non-Status Immigrants in Canada, 1960-2004
http://www.ocasi.org/status/documents.shtml
Non-status immigrants work, pay taxes, raise families, and contribute to their communities… Non-status immigrants are people who do not have the legal status that would allow them to live permanently in Canada. People can become ‘non-status’ when their refugee claim has been rejected, if they don’t have official identity documents, or because their student visa, visitor’s visa, or work permit has expired. The government does not collect official statistics on people living without status, so it is difficult to say how many non-status immigrants live in Canada. However, recent estimates suggest that there are anywhere between 50,000 to 200,000 people in Canada with less than full legal status, with 50% living in Toronto.

An Effective Canadian Legal Framework to Meet Emerging Threats to National Security - Department of Justice Canada
http://canada.justice.gc.ca/en/news/sp/2002/doc_30694.html
History teaches us that overreacting to a perceived national security threat leads to the trampling of human rights of those designated as ‘others,’ but ultimately weakens us all… Critical need for a balance between security and fundamental rights and freedoms… Prevention and information sharing, Relations with minority communities, How and where should the discussion occur? The courts.

Virtual Human Rights Library
http://www.cdp-hrc.uottawa.ca/library/index.html
Comprehensive and specialized domestic and international human rights documentation collections, Human Rights Research and Education Centre, University of Ottawa

Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs - The WWW Virtual Library
http://www2.etown.edu/vl/humrts.html
“Internet directory with annotated links to high-quality sources of information and analysis in a wide range of international affairs, international studies, and international relations topics.”

Lawyershop.ca – Immigration Law
http://info.lawyershop.ca/immigration/index.php/archives/category/government/
Exploring the mechanics of immigration to Canada and the stories of those who immigrate.

E-refugee
http://www.e-refugee.ca
E-Newsletter on Canadian Refugee Law. Legislative activity and recent decisions of IRB and Federal Court of Canada…

Canada needs national watchdog, ombudsmen tell Gomery inquiry
http://thechronicleherald.ca/Canada/465272.html
People with grievances about their treatment at the hands of federal officials are frustrated there is no independent, national ombudsman to whom they can turn… A federal ombudsman of general jurisdiction could receive complaints from all sources. November 17, 2005.

An Analysis of Immigration and Refugee Law Services in Canada - Department of Justice Canada
http://canada.justice.gc.ca/en/ps/rs/rep/2003/rr03lars-18/p1.html
Descriptive profile of legal services available to refugees and immigrants in each of the Canadian provinces. Included in this profile are the services offered through legal aid and the services provided by a variety of community organizations serving refugees and immigrants.

Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network
http://www.aidslaw.ca/Maincontent/issues/Immigration/finalreport/currentpolicy.htm
Canada's current Immigration Act does not mention HIV/AIDS or any other disease or illness specifically. However, the Act sets out the classes of persons who are inadmissible because of their medical condition. This provision applies to all classes of persons seeking entry into Canada other than those specifically exempted from its application by some other provision of the Immigration Act… Visitors who are required to undergo medical examinations are listed in the Immigration Regulations as: Visitors in particular occupations where the protection of public health is essential; Persons who wish to remain in Canada for longer than six months; and Visitors who have recently resided in a country where the incidence of communicable disease is higher than in Canada. This latter category may include many residents of sub-Saharan Africa, parts of Asia, and Latin America.

Comments on Immigration Legislative Review
http://uregina.ca/~gingrich/cilr.htm
To the document “Not Just Numbers” on the Citizenship and Immigration website.

Broken Promises 
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20051119/
w5_broken_promises_051119/20051121?hub=WFive
The point system isn't working? That's an understatement. - As for Prem and Nessa Premakumaran of Edmonton, their fight to hold Ottawa accountable suffered a setback, when a Federal Court judge recently dismissed their claim ruling: "It is not the role of the courts to order that agencies be set up to assist immigrant workers. These issues … have to be settled at the ballot box." The couple is not giving up. They've taken their case to the Federal Court of Appeal.

Underground workers have chance
http://info.lawyershop.ca/immigration/index.php/archives/2005/05/15/underground-workers-have-chance/
There is still hope to regularize the status of those who are working without authorization in Canada… Immigration Minister Joe Volpe announced a “six-point plan” on immigration, which sought a way that workers without status could “be recognized as full and productive members of Canadian society without jeopardizing the integrity of Canada’s immigration program.” He explained that he received estimates of the number of illegal workers ranging from 120,000-400,000, but conceded that these numbers were extremely unreliable.

Canada's National Response to the UN Questionnaire on Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action
http://www.swc-cfc.gc.ca/pubs/unquestionnaire/unquestionnaire_5_e.html
Implementation of the critical areas of concern of the Beijing Platform for Action
Women and poverty - Overview of Trends; Financial and Institutional Measures; Implementation of the Critical Areas of Concern of the Beijing Platform for Action
ANNEX I: Response of the Government of New Brunswick to the UN Questionnaire on Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action
ANNEX II: Response of the Government of Ontario to the UN Questionnaire on Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action
ANNEX III: Highlights of Action Taken by Quebec to Promote Equality between Men and Women, Pursuant to the Commitments Set out in the Beijing Platform for Action

Immigrants claim that Canada conned them
http://www.straight.com/content.cfm?id=15526
Provincial governments have turned over licensing to self-regulating professional organizations in medicine, engineering, teaching, nursing, dentistry, architecture, law, and many other areas... They enroll you in job clubs, whereas a new immigrant needs immediate work to begin life in a new country... Both the Canadian immigration and these groups mislead people, who end up doing odd jobs.

Human Rights Day – Foreign affairs Canada
http://www.fac-aec.gc.ca/department/highlights/2005/humanrights-en.asp
UN Commission on the Status of Women and the UN Commission on Human Rights.
The Department of Justice and the Department of Canadian Heritage work closely with Canada's provinces and territories to ensure provision of timely, accurate and up-to-date information on implementation of Canada's continuing commitment to protecting human rights domestically based on the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
http://www.ohchr.org/english/law/cescr.htm
Recognizing that, in accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the ideal of free human beings enjoying freedom from fear and want can only be achieved if conditions are created whereby everyone may enjoy his economic, social and cultural rights, as well as his civil and political rights

Canadian Jurisprudence on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights: Using Canadian Case Law to Advance Charter Litigation and Domestic Implementation of ESC Rights
http://www.hri.ca/fortherecordCanada/vol1/guide-part_12.htm
Although the Court in Gosselin seems to have rejected enforcing economic rights as part of Canadian law, section 36(1) of the Charter appears to indicate otherwise. This section shows that the government is committed to ensuring that the basic economic needs of Canadians are met through the promotion of equal opportunity, the provision of essential public services and the reduction of disparity through economic development. It is uncertain whether or not section 36(1) could be used to place any positive obligations on the state. However, this provision is useful as an "interpretative tool" and a way to support an individual's claim for economic rights under the Charter.

UN Reports on Canada - Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
http://www.hri.ca/fortherecordCanada/vol3/canadacerd.htm
In March 2001, Canada submitted its thirteenth and fourteenth periodic reports to the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (the Committee) on measures taken by the different levels of government to fulfill its obligations under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. The reports submitted by Canada as one document, are an official UN document, which is also available on Canadian Heritage's Website.

Canadian Social Welfare Policy Conference
http://www.ccsd.ca/cswp/2005/f/abstracts6.htm
Abstract. A considerable percentage of Canadians continue to experience deep and persistent poverty. In theory, Canada is legally obligated to honour its international treaty commitments vis-à-vis the safeguarding of fundamental human rights. In reality, however, Canadian courts have failed to provide substantive effect to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (hereinafter the ICESCR). To what extent do Canada’s international economic human rights obligations influence judicial interpretation of the Charter and the scope of domestic human rights protection? While the application of the ICESCR in domestic law has the potential to achieve justice for the marginalized, it is fraught with inchoate discrepancies within the Canadian judiciary system…

Ontario Legal Aid Review
http://www.attorneygeneral.jus.gov.on.ca/english/about/pubs/olar/
The Ontario Legal Aid Review was established by the Ontario Government in December 1996 as an independent task force ... with the objective of identifying aspects that should be reduced, maintained or enhanced in order that the current and future legal needs of low-income residents of Ontario can be met in the most effective and efficient way possible.

Representation for Immigrants and Refugee Claimants
http://canada.justice.gc.ca/en/ps/rs/rep/2003/rr03lars-16/rr03_16_01.html
Consistent with the fact that over 90 % of legal aid spending on immigration and refugee matters is directed to providing representation for refugee claimants, the respondents interviewed for the study focussed most of their comments on issues relating to representation for refugee claimants, as distinct from the immigrant population in general.

Strategies for Challenging Discriminatory Barriers to Foreign Credential Recognition
http://www.cavalluzzo.com/publications/newsletters/access_website.PDF
This paper argues that many of these barriers constitute systemic discrimination against foreign-trained individuals on the basis of at least their place of origin and arguably also, depending on the facts, on the basis of their ethnic origin, ancestry, race, colour and/or gender. Such discrimination is unlawful under both the governing provincial\territorial\federal human rights legislation and under section 15(1) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This paper reviews why barriers to foreign trained professionals can be discriminatory, sets out the relevant legislative framework, explains why courts cases to date have been largely unsuccessful, and proposes legal strategies for foreign-trained professionals to effectively challenge these discriminatory barriers.

Equality Rights
http://www.equalityrights.org/ngoun98/
Welcome to the website for the Canadian Non-Governmental Organizations that participated in the recent review of Canada's compliance with the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESC). NGOs play an important part in the United Nations review process, providing reliable and well-documented information to the U.N. Committee on which an objective assessment can be made of the state’s compliance with fundamental human rights. We hope to provide you with complete information in one place of the whole process of the review of Canada.

Canadian Human Rights Commission
http://www.chrc-ccdp.ca/publications/2001_lr/page37-en.asp#Economic,%20Social%20and%20Cultural%20Rights%20(ESCR)
Racism and Racial Discrimination; Rights of Aboriginal Peoples; Economic, Social and Cultural Rights(ESCR)

The long road to equal rights – Department of Justice
http://www.justice.gc.ca/en/s15/c_history.html
You can’t rewrite history. But you can ensure inequalities are addressed and eliminated. With Section 15 and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, politicians and ordinary people took a large step forward in building a better Canada.

Community Legal Clinic - CLEO
http://www.cleo.on.ca/english/pub/onpub/subject/refugee.htm
Founded in 1974, specializes in public legal education. CLEO is administered by a volunteer board of directors, and funded by Legal Aid Ontario and the Department of Justice Canada.  
Immigration & refugee law issues - fact sheets (listed alphabetically).

Lesbian and Gay Immigration Task Force LEGIT
http://www.ncf.carleton.ca/legit/
Formed in 1991 as a national organization actively working towards changing Canada`s discriminatory immigration laws… Lesbian/Gay Canadians have feared speaking out for our non-Canadian partners because of the power Canadian immigration laws have over our relationships. Coming together as LEGIT has helped us to break the silence. Members of LEGIT are courageously persuing court challenges and human rights complaints. We have met with politicians and the media in our efforts to become more visible.

Legal Services: Immigration
http://www.getbestinfo.com/odp.php?browse=/Regional/North_America/Canada/
Business_and_Economy/Legal_Services/Immigration/
List of links. Find: Business and Economy/Legal Services/Immigration

Poverty and Human Rights BC
http://www.povnet.org/ICESCR.htm
In its 1998 Concluding Observations, the Committee expressed serious concerns about the ability of people in Canada to seek and obtain effective remedies under domestic law for violations of their social and economic rights. It noted that provincial governments have urged upon their courts an interpretation of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which would deny any protection of ICESCR rights and would leave the complainants without the basic necessities of life and without any legal remedy. The Committee also repeatedly expressed its concern about access to civil legal aid because of its importance to vulnerable groups seeking remedies for social and economic rights violations. 2002

A role for labour organizations
Engagement with Regional Stakeholders on Integrating Internationally Trained Workers into the Workforce
http://www.clbc.ca/files/Reports/Roundtables_report_-_en.pdf
Immigrants need better information on employee rights and on how to act on those rights. The point was made that unions are well placed to provide access to such information. In addition, he suggested that a collaboration with the Human Rights Commission should be explored in order to undertake best practices or studies on this issue. immigrant workers need to be protected from unscrupulous employers who want to pay less than the norm, and some form of a monitoring system could be put in place to ensure such things do not happen. Unions can obviously play an important role in ensuring the immigrants’ protection in the workplace. 2005

The Continuing Legal Education Society of British Columbia
http://www.cle.bc.ca/CLE/Analysis/Collection/06-immigrationupdate
CLE Online - Instant access to books, courses and materials.

Citizens for Public Justice
http://www.publicjustice.ca/
Promotes public justice in Canada by shaping key public policy debates through research and analysis, publishing and public dialogue of  … citizens, leaders in society and governments.

Multilingual Legal Web Site
http://www.multilingolegal.ca
Comprehensive and critical legal information in languages other than English, including Spanish, French, Vietnamese, Chinese, Punjabi, Persian, Korean, and Arabic.

Access to Justice Network
http://www.acjnet.org/nahome/default.aspx
Canada's connection to the world of law and justice.

Labour and Employment Standards
Alberta - http://www.gov.ab.ca/home/index.cfm
British Columbia - http://www.labour.gov.bc.ca/esb/
New Brunswick - http://www.gnb.ca/0308/0001e.htm
Newfoundland and Labrador - http://www.hrle.gov.nl.ca/lra/
Northwest Territories - http://www.gov.nt.ca/
Nova Scotia - http://www.gov.ns.ca/enla/
Nunavut - http://www.gov.nu.ca/
Manitoba - http://www.gov.mb.ca/labour/standards/index.html
Ontario - http://www.labour.gov.on.ca/index.html
Prince Edward Island - http://www.gov.pe.ca/commcul/lair-info/index.php3
Quebec - http://www.cnt.gouv.qc.ca/en/index.asp
Saskatchewan - http://www.labour.gov.sk.ca/standards/index.htm
Yukon - http://www.community.gov.yk.ca/

Youth Employment Links
http://www.workrights.ca/Finding+a+Job/Youth+Employment+Links.htm
Work Issues – Know your Rights: Employment Links, Getting Paid; Health and Safety; Human Rights; Losing a Job; Make a complaint; Taking time off; Work Environment; Work Time.

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