The number of legal services listed on the Clicklaw HelpMap continues to grow with 78 services offered in over 750 locations across BC! Recently, the Legal Services Society added their Provincial Court Family Duty Counsel and Supreme Court Family Duty Counsel programs to the map. Check out what’s available in your community: www.clicklaw.bc.ca/helpmap.

Now that Clicklaw has been up & running for closing in on a year (wow, time flies!), we’re learning more about how the site is being used. Among the more popular features on the site are the common questions, which offer good starting points for 80 questions that are, well, common. Over the last six months, here are the top 10 most visited common questions on Clicklaw:

• I am the executor of my mother’s will and am doing the work myself
• I’ve been dismissed (fired) without just cause
• I want to find out about getting BC disability benefits
• I’ve missed a few mortgage payments and am facing foreclosure
• How long will my EI last if I get laid off?
• I am being harassed by debt collectors. Are they allowed to do that?
• Our marriage is over; do we have to go to court?
• Should I have an enduring power of attorney or a representation agreement?
• I’m being sued in small claims court
• Can they search my school locker without my consent?

The People’s Law School recently added the following titles to Clicklaw: You Owe Money and Someone Owes You Money are video animations of a character experiencing debt collection problems. Accompanying the videos are the fact sheets You Owe Money and Someone Owes You Money.

Cliff Thorstenson of the Nicola Valley Advocacy Centre has recently updated the 2008 Legal Help for Rural British Columbians  legal guide. The updated 2009 guide, Legal Help for British Columbians: A Guide to Help Non-legal Professionals Make Legal Referrals for Clients, is now available on Clicklaw. The LawMatters project of Courthouse Libraries BC assisted with printing the update for distribution to all BC public and courthouse libraries.

HelpMap is a new feature that we’ve just added to Clicklaw this month. Integrated with Google Maps, HelpMap assists the public in finding those who can provide assistance with legal problems in their community. It also assists service providers who are making referrals for clients who have legal issues.

HelpMap includes information about free and low-cost legal services provided by groups including:

• pro bono clinics, community legal clinics, and legal aid offices
• court registries
• courthouse libraries
• organizations with community legal advocates,
• Native Courtworkers, and
• other law-related helping services

We will continue to add more services to HelpMap in the future. If you have any feedback about the new HelpMap, please post a comment below, or email editor@clicklaw.bc.ca.

The Tenant Resource and Advisory Centre has recently added a new video to Clicklaw titled 5 Ways to Protect Yourself When Renting. The video is available in Cantonese, Mandarin, Arabic, English, French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Punjabi, Farsi (Persian), Spanish and Vietnamese. There is also a factsheet available in Chinese (traditional), Chinese (simplified), Arabic, English, French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese,  Punjabi,  Farsi (Persian),  Spanish and Vietnamese.

The Law Centre in Victoria added a new website to Clicklaw this week.  PATHWAYS: The Family Law Diagnostic Tool  is an interactive website that can help you identify the issues you may need to address as a result of the breakdown of a relationship. It also provides the information and procedures you will need to deal with these issues.

Legal Services Society has recently added three new titles to Clicklaw:

• What You Need to Know About Fraud Charges and Social Assistance alerts clients to the serious consequences of being convicted of welfare fraud (a ban from receiving welfare for one or two years, or possibly even for life). Intended to be handed out as needed to LSS clients, this publication is also available online.
• If You Can’t Get a Lawyer for Your Criminal Trial is for people who have been charged with serious and complex criminal offences and cannot get legal aid but cannot afford a lawyer. This booklet explains why, how, and when they can ask the judge to appoint a free lawyer (a Rowbotham application), and includes a checklist of points to cover in court and copies of the necessary court forms.  
• How Does a Court Order Affect Me? describes what a court order is and the conditions that must be followed when there is a court order in place. It also sets out the possible consequences if someone breaches a court order.

The UBC Law Students Legal Advice Program (LSLAP) Manual, 2009 version, was added to Clicklaw on September 16. The Manual contains 23 chapters of legal topics, plus one chapter of referral resources.

People’s Law School added a series of animated videos and factsheets to Clicklaw this week. The series explores problems that arise with credit cards with the following video titles: What’s a Credit Card?, It’s Not Free Money!, Call the Company!, and Ask For Help!. The four fact sheet titles are: What is a Credit Card?, What Does a Credit Card Cost?, Lost or Stolen Cards and Chargebacks , and What to Do When You Are in Debt.