Kensington-Bellwoods Community Legal Services (KBCLS): Rooming Houses Public Legal Education Project

Project Type: 

  • Public Legal Education (presentations, workshops, podcasts, brochures, blogs, etc.)
  • Research (memoranda used for internal purposes only)

Fields of Law: Housing Law, Administrative Law

Positions Available: 3

 

About Kensington-Bellwoods Community Legal Services (KBCLS):

KBCLS is a non-profit community legal clinic funded by Legal Aid Ontario. KBCLS gives people living on a low income in the Kensington-Bellwoods neighbourhood free legal services for certain problems. 

  

Project Details:

Students will research rooming houses in Toronto to create Public Legal Education materials. This work will build upon the research already completed by the KBCLS 2023 summer student. Students will review the Residential Tenancies Act, Landlord and Tenant Board decisions, City of Toronto Council Meetings & Bylaws, and other applicable statutes and government records to determine the current legal landscape of rooming houses in the catchment. Students will research how a rooming house works legally, how their legal standing affects the KBCLS catchment, and how it compares to other catchments in the GTA where rules about rooming houses differ.

The final result of the research will be (1) a brochure/pocket guide about rooming houses in the catchment; (2) preparation of PLE materials for navigating a rooming house lease; (3) potentially giving a workshop about rooming houses (depending on community partner availability); and (4) a blog post about how the current legal landscape around rooming houses affects KBCLS to be published on our socials and presented to our Board.

  

Will the student(s) be expected to show up for regular shifts each week, or is the schedule flexible?

The schedule will be flexible. Work will likely be conducted remotely with web-based access to resources. Students will be able to complete work on their own time with regular check ins.

  

Requirements and Expectations:

Clinic/social justice experience is an asset but not required.