Free legal ‘advice-a-thon’ with volunteer lawyers in Surrey this week
Published 7:00 am Monday, September 7, 2026
Lawyers will volunteer their time to hear legal concerns during a Free Legal Advice-A-Thon coming to Surrey this Friday, Sept. 11, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Thirty-minute sessions at Surrey Civic Plaza are for people of low or modest income in urgent need of free legal advice.
Pro Bono Going Public also hosts telephone clinics Sept. 8 to 25, according to advice-a-thon.ca, plus two more in-person clinics at Vancouver Art Gallery plaza (Sept. 17) and the Legislature lawn in Victoria (Sept. 23).
Phone appointments are scheduled with “ample time for conflict checks,” and in-person clinics will allow for pre-scheduled and drop-in appointments.
The 19th annual “service event” aims to demonstrate how much B.C. lawyers care about access to justice, says the website, an Access Pro Bono project.
“As the cost of living rises in communities throughout our province, more British Columbians than ever are contending with acute forms of financial strain, housing insecurity, relationship breakdown and other poverty-rooted hardship. Demand for our legal services has never been higher.
“Pro Bono Going Public is more critical than ever for ensuring that we can continue to provide access to legal services to thousands of British Columbians in need.”
For advice-a-thon clinics, volunteer lawyers select one or more hour-long phone or in-person shifts and also solicit charitable donations in support of their pro bono contributions.
Last year’s event saw 255 volunteer lawyers provide free legal advice to 350 British Columbians in need while raising over $136,000 in support of access to justice in B.C.
Over 18 years, more than 2,200 lawyers have volunteered to serve 4,050-plus clients and raise $1.27 million.
Launched in 2024, the Access Pro Bono Cup is presented annually to the law firm that makes the greatest overall contribution to Pro Bono Going Public, based on a combined total of funds raised and volunteer lawyer hours donated. Norton Rose Fulbright won the cup two years in a row.