How do I talk to a lawyer, and what do I say? FAQ about meeting a lawyer at JFCY

If you are under the age of 18 and have a legal problem that needs to be resolved, you can get in touch with JFCY. They will provide you with expert legal advice and ensure that you receive the legal protection that you are entitled to as a rights-holder. If you are unsure about how to contact JFCY, or if you would like to know what to expect when speaking to a lawyer, you may want to check out the answers to some of our frequently-asked questions:

How do people get referred to JFCY? Do they usually just walk in or call, or does another agency refer them?

JFCY resources (including our contact info and publications) are available at many schools (including the offices of school guidance counselors, social workers, child and youth workers and teachers), youth courts, shelters, community centres, youth drop-in facilities and other community agencies.  As a result, people who work at our use services at these places often refer young people to JFCY. Also, the Kids Help Phone has our contact info and gives it out when kids are calling with an issue that has a legal component.  Youth also contact us after finding our info on the internet, or learning about us from family and friends.

What are some of the most common issues that JFCY lawyers help with?

JFCY lawyers help with many different legal issues, including school problems (ie suspensions, expulsions), charges under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, social assistance entitlements (ie Ontario Works), and some family law issues. JFCY lawyers do their best to answer any legal questions that young people have, or provide referrals to other people or places to get more help. JFCY generally does not get involved in family law custody issues.  

Do my parents need to be with me when I speak to a lawyer?

JFCY lawyers always speak directly to the young person, NOT their parents. Everything that you discuss is held completely confidential. The information is kept between you and the lawyer (as well as other lawyers on staff, if necessary). The exception to this is for school problems: the JFCY lawyer will speak with the young person and, when they have the young person’s permission, they will also speak with their parent(s).  You can expect that the lawyer will keep whatever you tell them confidential, and wont talk to your parents about it unless you specifically ask the lawyer to do so. 

How long does it take to see a lawyer, and does the lawyer usually just talk to clients on the phone, or do clients come into the office?

When a young person calls JFCY for assistance, they first speak with a trained intake worker, who is usually one of our administrative staff, a law student or a social work student.  The intake worker will ask the young person for their contact info, birth date and details about their legal issue or questions. The information is then passed along to a lawyer and that lawyer will call the young person back within 2 business days, or 48 hours.  For example, if someone called on Friday at lunch time, they can expect a call back no later than Tuesday at lunch.  Using this timeline as a guide, the lawyer will try and get back to the young person as soon as possible, especially if their situation is urgent.  Once the lawyer phones back, they will try and answer all of the young person’s questions over the phone.  Occasionally, they will need to meet in person at the JFCY Office. Many legal questions can be answered over the phone.  Other issues may involve the need for representation. This is when the lawyer will attend court with the young person or advocate on their behalf to other people.  

If I need to set up an appointment with a lawyer, are there any forms or documents that I should bring with me? Do I need to prepare for the meeting in any way?

When you talk on the phone, the lawyer will tell you if you need to bring anything with you.  You should be ready to talk about your legal issue with the lawyer.  Remember that any conversations you have with your lawyer are confidential, which means that the lawyer will not tell anyone what you have talked about (unless you specifically ask them to do so).  Your lawyer is not there to judge you in any way, but to represent you and give you advice on legal issues. 

Can I see what the JFCY office looks like before arriving to meet with a lawyer?

You can check out our office tour on our Facebook page!

When does a legal issue require going to court? How long do court cases usually last?

Sometimes young people must to go to court or to a tribunal to solve a legal issue.  A tribunal is like a smaller "court" that deals with specific legal problems.  Sometimes it is less formal than a regular court.  Some examples of tribunals are the Landlord and Tenant Board (for housing issues) or the Discipline Committee of a school board.  If a case requires attendance at court/tribunal, this often means that the young person must meet with their lawyer more frequently, and that the lawyer will be doing additional work to prepare for the case. There is no strict time-frame that applies to all legal cases. Some require more of a time commitment than others, depending on the complexity of the issue.  Since cases can last for a long time, it is important for clients to tell their lawyers if they are moving or their contact information changes.  

Other than court cases, how do other legal issues get resolved?

Many legal issues do not require attendance in court and instead are resolved through information sharing, phone calls or meetings.  Many times, a young person’s legal questions will be answered directly by the JFCY lawyer and no trips to court are necessary.  Other times, JFCY lawyers will help to resolve a legal issue by writing a letter on behalf of a young person or by negotiating a resolution to their legal problem with someone who is on the other side of the legal disagreement.

The entrance to the JFCY office

Thanks to PLE Team member Stefan Venier for writing this post, and JFCY lawyer Andrea Luey for providing the information about talking to a JFCY lawyer.

Teen Pregnancy - Part Two (non-medical decisions)

Kiran and her boyfriend Rick are fifteen years old and in grade ten.  They have been dating for several months and spend most of their time together.  They care about each other and trust each other very much.  A few months into their relationship, Kiran and Rick felt ready to begin having a sexually intimate relationship. 

Kiran has a lot of questions about sex and the emotions that she is feeling but she has only discussed her relationship with her peers at school.  She has not told her parents or her doctor about her sexual relationship.  She is afraid that if she tells her parents she will get in trouble.  She also believes that she cannot see a doctor without her parents’ permission and if she does see a doctor, she is afraid they will tell her parents what they have discussed.

Since Kiran has not spoken with a doctor, she is not using any methods of birth control, (such as the birth control pill) other than condoms.  Both Rick and Kiran are shy and embarrassed to buy condoms in the store, so they only use condoms when Rick asks his older brother. 

This month Kiran missed her period and thinks she might be pregnant.  She and her friend go to the pharmacy and purchase a pregnancy test.  When she takes the test she sees a positive result, indicating that she is pregnant.  Kiran is overwhelmed, scared and doesn’t know what to do next.  What are her options?  What are her rights?

There are two parts to Kiran’s decision-making about the pregnancy: medical decisions, and non-medical decisions (like adoption, involving Rick in the pregnancy, and supporting a baby).  Last week’s post covered Kiran’s medical rights and decisions – today’s post is about her non-medical decisions and providing care for a baby.  This post does not include information about receiving financial support, such as government benefits or child support, for a baby.

If Kiran decides to carry her fetus to term, there are a number of decisions to consider.  She will have to think about whether she wants to raise a baby or put the baby up for adoption, what kind of parenting the baby will have, and how the baby will be supported.  While Kiran is pregnant, Rick has no legal rights to be involved with her pregnancy.  After the baby is born, both parents have legal rights regarding the baby.

Adoption: Legal Issues

If Kiran and Rick both do not want to raise the baby, they have the option of putting the baby up for adoption.  In an adoption, another person or people will raise the baby, and take on the legal responsibilities relating to the baby.  In Ontario, both parents must give their consent in order for an adoption to occur – this means that Kiran and Rick must both agree that an adoption is the right decision for them and for the baby.  The baby must be at least one week old before they can make this decision, and since both parents are under 18, a government lawyer (called the Children’s Lawyer) must confirm that each one understands the decision he or she is making and genuinely wants to give consent.

After Rick and Kiran have given their consent for an adoption, they may still change their minds and withdraw consent for up to 21 days following the initial decision.  Sometimes this time can be extended, but only if the baby has not yet been placed for adoption.

When the baby is put up for adoption, the Children’s Aid Society or a licensed private agency will take responsibility for placing the baby and ensuring that its new home and parents will be able to care well for it.  Kiran and Rick will still have input into what kind of home they would like the baby to be placed in, but it is the family that will best meet the needs of the baby that will be chosen as the adoptive parent(s).  The only exception to this is if a relative, like Kiran’s parents, choose to adopt the baby. 

After an adoption, biological parents like Kiran and Rick are normally not involved in the baby’s life and they will not have access to the baby.  Sometimes, adoptive parents will agree to an “openness agreement.” This agreement would allow Kiran and/or Rick to communicate with the adoptive parents, or to share pictures or letters as the child grows up.  However, the details of this agreement would have to be negotiated, and the adoptive parents are the ones who have full legal rights to the child.  Kiran and Rick can also make decisions about whether and how their biological child can contact them in the future as an adult.

Click here for information about adoption in Ontario (government website)

Click here for information about access to adoption records in Ontario (government website)
Adoption law in Ontario is found in the Child and Family Services Act

Custody and Access: Legal Issues

If Kiran decides to raise the baby, she will have to work with Rick to make decisions about “custody” and “access.”  Having custody of a child means having the right to make important decisions about raising the child – things like school, religion, and health care.  One or both parents can have custody, but if a parent does not have custody, he or she may still have access to the child.  This means that both parents get to see the baby and have a relationship with it.  A parent who does not have custody also has the right to access custody-related information about the child, even if he or she doesn’t have the right to make those decisions.

Kiran will have to work with Rick, preferably with the help of a lawyer, to make decisions about custody and access.  There are many possibilities for arranging custody and access, but the most important thing to consider is the best interest of the baby.  For example, this could mean that the baby will live at Kiran’s house and spend the most time with Kiran if she is breast-feeding.  Rick would come to Kiran’s to visit the baby.  This arrangement could change as the baby grew older.  It is very rare that the court will refuse to allow one parent access to his or her child, although it is possible to put conditions on parental access.  As always, the most important thing is the child’s best interest.

When Kiran and Rick have agreed about access and custody, they will sign agreements that contain their decisions.  It is possible for Kiran and Rick to raise the baby without written custody and access agreements, but having these agreements will make sure that everyone knows who is responsible for what and who has what rights, so that arguments will be less likely.  When there is a written agreement, it can be enforced by a court.  In order to change custody and access decisions, the written agreement must also be changed.

If Rick and Kiran cannot agree about custody and access, they may work with a mediator.  A mediator is someone who helps work through disagreements in order to achieve a result that both parents are happy with.  If they are still unable to agree, they may go to court, where a judge will make an order about custody and access.  Both Rick and Kiran will have to follow the judge’s order.  If they want to change the order, they will have to go back to court.

Click here for a pamphlet on custody and access (external link – Your Legal Rights)
Law about custody and access in Ontario is found in the Children's Law Reform Act

Caring for a baby: When would CAS get involved?

Raising a baby can be scary for young parents, since they have a lot of new responsibilities.  While young people can be great parents and take good care of their new baby, sometimes there is concern about whether the baby is getting all the care and support that it needs.  In this situation, a Children’s Aid Society (CAS) or another child welfare organization will become involved with the family.  Since Kiran and Rick are teen parents, CAS may become involved with them and their baby right from the birth.  If Kiran or Rick was ever involved with CAS before, this is more likely to happen.

If CAS is concerned about Kiran and Rick’s baby, they will investigate.  There are certain rules that they must follow in this investigation in order to make a decision about what should happen next.  They may decide that they do not need to be involved with the family, or that the family needs extra support.  They may also decide that the baby is in need of protection, in which case they can remove the baby from Kiran or Rick’s care.  As in the case of custody and access, the most important consideration will be the best interests of the child.

If the baby is removed from its parents, there will be a child protection hearing in court soon after.  At this hearing, the court will make a decision about next steps.  The court will only keep the baby from Kiran and Rick if the court believes the baby is likely to suffer harm and can’t be protected through other means, like putting conditions on the parents'care.

If CAS becomes involved with Kiran and Rick, it is very important for them to have legal support.  Sometimes CAS involvement can lead to a parent's right of custody and access being terminated completely.  Kiran and Rick should each contact a lawyer to help them understand and protect heir parental rights throughout CAS’s involvement.

Click here for a pamphlet on child protection (external link – Your Legal Rights)
Child protection law in Ontario is found in the Child and Family Services Act

Having a baby is an important and life-changing decision, and there are lots of legal issues involved with raising a child as a young person or a person who is not living with the child’s other parent.  If you have specific questions or a personal situation, you should contact a lawyer for legal advice.  If you are a young person in Ontario and you need a lawyer to represent you, you can call Legal Aid Ontario: (416)598-0200, 1-800-668-8258 (outside GTA), or Justice for Children and Youth (416) 920-1633, 1-866-999-5329 (outside GTA)

New Video: Age of Consent

Check out JFCY’s new video on age of consent.  For those of you who want the details in brief, there's a quick summary of the law below:

Consent to sex is always your decision – The Canadian law requires that all people participating in sexual activity must give their own consent: you decide whether you want to be involved in any kind of sexual activity, from kissing and touching to intercourse.  


However, the law sets some limits on that, so that it is illegal if you are below a certain age to be sexually involved with certain other people. This means that if you are too young to consent to sex with a particular person, that older person could be charged with a criminal offence. 

When are you old enough to legally consent to sexual activity?

If you are…

• 12 or 13, you can consent to sex, but only with someone less than two years older than you.
• 14 or 15, you can consent to sex, but only with someone who is less than 5 years older than you. But, you CAN'T consent to sex with someone who is more than two years younger than you (or you could be charged).
• 16 and older, you can consent to sex with anyone older than you. 
• In all of these cases, however, if you are under 18, you cannot legally consent to sex with someone who is in a position of trust or authority over you (like your teacher, swim coach, Pastor). That person could be charged with a criminal offence.

Read the law: Criminal Code of Canada, s.150.1-153.


Thanks to PLE Team Volunteers Terence Chen (actor and video-editor), Lucas Treleaven (actor and script-writer), Arif Hussain (director), Tracy Chen (filming), Cydney  Kim (brainstorming),  Christine Doucette (law student advisor) and Andrea (script, JFCY lawyer supervisor) for their work on this video!

Teen Pregnancy - Part One: Medical Decisions

What does the law say about a youth's right to make health-related decisions?

Kiran and her boyfriend Rick are fifteen years old and in grade ten.  They have been dating for several months and spend most of their time together.  They care about each other and trust each other very much.  A few months into their relationship, Kiran and Rick felt ready to begin having a sexually intimate relationship. 

Kiran has a lot of questions about sex and the emotions that she is feeling but she has only discussed her relationship with her peers at school.  She has not told her parents or her doctor about her sexual relationship.  She is afraid that if she tells her parents she will get in trouble.  She also believes that she cannot see a doctor without her parents’ permission and if she does see a doctor, she is afraid they will tell her parents what they have discussed.

Since Kiran has not spoken with a doctor, she is not using any methods of birth control, (such as the birth control pill) other than condoms.  Both Rick and Kiran are shy and embarrassed to buy condoms in the store, so they only use condoms when Rick asks his older brother. 

This month Kiran missed her period and thinks she might be pregnant.  She and her friend go to the pharmacy and purchase a pregnancy test.  When she takes the test she sees a positive result, indicating that she is pregnant.  Kiran is overwhelmed, scared and doesn’t know what to do next.  What are her options?  What are her rights?

There are two parts to Kiran’s decision-making about the pregnancy: medical decisions, and non-medical decisions (like adoption, involving Rick in the pregnancy, and supporting a baby).  This week’s post covers Kiran’s medical rights and decisions – part two will talk about her non-medical decisions.

Medical decisions

In Ontario, your age does not determine your ability to make decisions about medical treatment. Instead, you can make your own decisions about your health care as long as you are considered capable by your doctor or health-care provider.  Being capable means that you can understand the information that you are given about treatment as well as the consequences of your decision (such as the risks and results of the treatment).  

Your doctor might consider you capable with respect to some treatments and decisions, but incapable with respect to others, depending on how complicated or risky those treatments are.  For example, the different treatments Kiran can expect to hear about at the doctor’s office might range from a second pregnancy test to an ultrasound (a test to look at the fetus and see if it is developing healthily) to an abortion (a procedure to end the pregnancy).  All of these are treatments with different risks, so the doctor might decide that Kiran is capable of making some of those decisions and not others.  In Ontario, you are presumed to be capable of making medical decisions unless the doctor has a reason to believe that you are not capable.  Age can play a role in this decision, since the older you are, the more able you generally are to make independent decisions and understand the consequences of those decisions.  It’s always a good idea to ask the doctor before you discuss something with them, in order to make sure that the doctor will respect your rights and not tell your parents what you have said.

Since Kiran is fifteen, the doctor will probably decide that Kiran is capable of making most or all of her medical decisions.  Any decisions that Kiran makes cannot be disclosed to Kiran’s parents, unless Kiran gives her express consent.  This means that the doctor must ask Kiran before telling Kiran’s parents about her health care information, decisions, and treatment, and Kiran must tell the doctor that it is okay to tell.  Kiran would sign a “consent” form that states exactly what information the doctor may share, and who the doctor can share it with.

If the doctor decides that Kiran is incapable with respect to a certain treatment or medical decision, then the doctor will be able to disclose Kiran’s medical information to someone called a “substitute decision-maker.”  Since Kiran is under 16 and lives with her parents, this person would be one of her parents.  In this case, Kiran will be able to discuss her situation with her parents, but they will be responsible for making her health-care decisions for issues where the doctor has decided Kiran is incapable.

For more information about teen pregnancy, support, and health care options if you think you might be pregnant:

The June Callwood Centre is a multi-service centre for pregnant and parenting teens in Toronto.  Their website contains links to other resources (if you are planning to have a baby or make a decision about a pregnancy), as well as information about the resources they provide.

Rosalie Hall provides services for young women who are going to have a baby or who are new parents, including education, counseling and outreach, child care, among other programs.

Planned Parenthood Toronto provides health care and health services to youth, including on sexual and reproductive health issues, and they will provide information and pregnancy-related medical treatment, including pregnancy tests, counselling on pregnancy options, and referrals to services to help pregnant women make an informed decision regarding pregnancy.

The Ontario laws that determine who can make medical decisions and how medical information can be released are the Health Care Consent Act and the Personal Health Information Protection Act.

Scenario by JFCY Volunteer Marsha Rampersaud.  Legal information by JFCY.

JFCY wants to hear from you!

Happy New Year!

The JFCY Public Legal Education Team (the crew that produces this blog) is interested in hearing from youth about what sorts of legal issues they would like to read about.  


If you are a young person under age 18 (or an older person who is interested in youth issues) then let us know what you want to see this year on the JFCY blog (and on our YouTube and Facebook accounts).


You can post a comment here, or you can send a separate email to jfcyontario@gmail.com. 

Some members of the PLE Team making plans for the JFCY blog.

Remember, the JFCY blog can only give general legal information.  If you need legal advice for your specific situation then you can call a lawyer at JFCY (416.920.1633).