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Support for Legal Advice

Need Legal Advice?

Proceedings under the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act (the Act) are meant to be as informal as possible. To help you better understand your rights and obligations under the Act, the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner (the Commissioner) can pay up to $1,500, or $3,000 if there are exceptional circumstances, for you to obtain legal advice from a lawyer of your choice. Under some circumstances, legal advice may be provided by a lawyer employed in the Commissioner’s Office.

Any legal advice that you receive under this service is protected by solicitor-client privilege, meaning that the information shared between you and the lawyer is confidential.

Access to this service is at the discretion of the Commissioner. The Act sets out the conditions and eligibility criteria, including that you must not already have access to legal advice at no cost to you and the degree to which you may be affected by your involvement in a proceeding under the Act. When applying, it is important that you provide the Commissioner with as much relevant information about your situation as possible.

The total annual budget for this program is set at $50,000 (Fiscal Year from April 1 to March 31). Although applications for access to legal advice will be considered on an ongoing basis, approval will be subject to the availability of funds.

You can submit your request for funding by completing the online form.

Who Can Apply?

  • Any person who is considering making a protected disclosure of wrongdoing under the Act, either to the Commissioner, their supervisor or the Senior Officer for Disclosure (Senior Officer) in their workplace;
  • Any public servant who has made a disclosure to the Commissioner, their supervisor or the Senior Officer in their workplace;
  • Any person who is considering making a reprisal complaint under the Act;
  • Any person who is or has been involved in a reprisal complaint, including a person who has made a complaint or has been accused of taking a reprisal measure;
  • Any person who is or has been involved in any investigation conducted by the Commissioner’s Office or the Senior Officer in their workplace.

How Can Legal Advice Be Useful?

You may seek legal advice to discuss your situation and concerns in relation to a disclosure of wrongdoing or reprisal complaint by:

  • Helping you understand your rights and obligations under the Act, including determining whether a disclosure or complaint is the most appropriate recourse for you;
  • Assisting you in focussing on key issues regarding the disclosure or complaint you are considering making to ensure that relevant information is provided to the Commissioner or a Senior Officer;
  • Helping you understand your rights and obligations if you are involved in a proceeding under the Act. For example, your lawyer can help you:
    • Prepare for an interview with an investigator;
    • Respond to a request for information from the Commissioner or a Senior Officer;
    • Provide comments on a preliminary investigation report;
  • Assisting you during a conciliation process related to a reprisal complaint;
  • Assisting you before the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Tribunal.

Tips

If you have more questions, please contact us.

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