NCJ Number
76747
Date Published
1979
Length
15 pages
Annotation
The use of social scientists-paralegals in the youth section of the Community Legal Centre of Montreal, Canada is described.
Abstract
Lawyers in the youth section of the center solicit the contribution of the bureau's two social scientists, who act as their professional ethics and abilities dictate within the context of a shared case. The final direction of the case is in the hands of the lawyer. The use of social scientists does not create a psychosocial consultation service within legal aid. Their primary purpose is to clarify the client's total situation and legitimate expectations within the framework of legal consulation or representation. This frequently helps the client to feel more secure as he/she confronts the sociolegal machinery involved in the case. Because the lawyer can rely on the social scientist to work with the client in dealing with emotional responses to the legal proceedings, he/she can focus on the purely legal aspects of the case. Although the lawyer is ultimately responsible for the legal aid case, he/she has no authority over the nature of the social scientist's contribution. In the case of major disagreement, the social scientist is expected to withdraw from the case. Requests for legal aid have occasionally been sent directly to the social sciences expert. Such requests are then directed to one of the lawyers, who immediately enlists the help of his/her colleague. Since February 1975, this method of integrating the social sciences expert into the legal aid service yelded positive results. On the whole, the lawyers have turned to the social scientists with great frequency and for a variety of reasons. One footnote is provided.