
In 2019, Émilie Therrien, a resident of the Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough and a lawyer at Gascon, wants to support a new cooperative that is setting up near her home. Working with people in the co-op, she realized that there were no neighborhood organizations promoting access to justice. It was in this context that the idea was born to found an organization whose mission would be to improve access to justice for local citizens, NPOs and start-ups, all free of charge.
Émilie shares her idea withMe Yoann Gauthier, who immediately joins the project. Together, they put out a call to other lawyers in the area. The response was swift. More than thirty lawyers and notaries, including Marie-ChantaleDubé of the Gascon firm, joined them. A few months later, HocheLégal was officially born.
Inspired by the workings and popularity of other active legal clinics, HocheLégal helps local citizens, charities and small businesses who don’t have access to legal aid, but who also can’t afford the fees of a lawyer or notary. This kind of community legal clinic fills a gap in the system, making justice accessible to all. “Legal information is the sinews of war for citizens or NPOs who can’t afford the services of a lawyer, and we’re here to help them in this respect,” says Émilie Therrien, co-founder of HocheLégal and winner of the 2020 JBM Lawyers of the Year award in the Pro Bono/Social Involvement category.
However, the NPO’s official debut coincided with the arrival of the pandemic. HocheLégal therefore had to organize its first online legal clinics, where it also offers virtual conferences. The clinics cover a wide range of topics, including family law, housing law, criminal and penal law, immigration and administrative law.
HocheLégal’s student volunteers and legal professionals invite citizens to describe their situation and inform them of the legal principles applicable to their situation.
Since it was founded, over 3,000 people have benefited from HocheLégal’s free services, demonstrating the public’s need for such services and the value of such a legal clinic for access to justice.