Areas of expertise & Fields of activity:
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Economic and Social:
Children
Family
Human Rights
Minority Rights
Women
Women/gender Equality
Gender Issues and Advancement of Women:
Advocacy and outreach
Capacity building
Education and training of women
Human rights of women
Indigenous women
Information and communication technologies
Institutional mechanisms for the advancement of women
Policy advice
Research
Service provision
Trafficking in women and girls
Violence against women
Women and poverty
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| Geographic scope: |
International
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| Country of activity: |
Canada
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| Millennium Development Goals: |
Promote gender equality and empower women
Reduce child mortality
Improve maternal health
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| Mission statement: |
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| Year established: |
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| Year of registration: |
1985 |
| Organizational structure: |
The Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic is the only Clinic of its kind in Canada. It directly assists over 3500 women a year. It has been providing legal representation, counseling, and interpretation in over 100 languages to women who have experienced all forms of violence since 1985. The Schlifer Clinic was established in the memory of Barbra Schlifer, an idealistic young lawyer whose life was cut short by violence on the night of her call to the bar of Ontario on April 11, 1980. The Schlifer clinic does not substitute for the state mandated legal aid services in Ontario, Canada; rather, it supplements the lack legal aid services for survivors of violence. We assist about 4,000 women every year. We also engage in various educational initiatives, including public legal education, professional development for legal and non-legal professionals, and clinical education for law students. We work on law reform activities both within Canada and internationally, and consult broadly with all levels of government on policy or legislative initiatives that impact on women survivors of violence. The Clinic serves women from ethno-racially and socio-economically diverse backgrounds, frequently from highly marginalized communities. Our clients often experience multiple social inequalities, including poverty, homelessness, racism, and discrimination on the basis of religion, country of origin, newcomer status, mental health, and disability. We have been part of numerous legal test cases, are represented at public policy tables and in law reform efforts related to immigration in context of violence against women. The Clinic is a feminist, anti-oppression organization and as such is committed to responsible use of power and authority, open communication and accountability. To support these commitments, the Clinic uses a participatory hierarchy structural model. To support this structure, roles and responsibilities of Board members, staff and volunteers shall be clearly defined; input from staff, volunteers and clients shall be sought out and used and clear and transparent systems of communication and accountability shall be established and maintained. The Board of Directors shall operate as a policy Board and shall have responsibility for: • Approval of all policies • Consideration of legal issues • Strategic planning • Financial management The operational management of, and responsibility for, these matters shall rest with the Executive Director who is, at all times, accountable to the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors is selected from the community and is elected at the Clinic’s Annual General Meeting. The Board is accountable to the community and is legally accountable to all funders. The Executive Director is responsible for the operational management of the Clinic. |
| Number and type of members: |
Access Alliance Multicultural Community Health Centre Access Employment Services Alliance Against Modern Day Slavery Alliance for South Asian AIDS Prevention Art Gallery of Ontario Youth Council Assaulted Women’s Helpline Association of Visual Language Interpreters of Canada Beekeepers Collective Bob Rumball Centre for the Deaf Canadian Bar Association Canadian Council for Refugees Canadian Hearing Society Centennial College Children’s Aid Society Toronto Child Development Institute (CDI) Community and Legal Aid Services Programme (CLASP) Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO) Community Social Planning Council Toronto Conflict Textiles, Ulster University, Northern Ireland Council of Agencies Serving South Asians De Gernikak Bakearen Museoa Domestic Violence Court – College Park Advisory Committee Domestic Violence Court – Old City Hall Advisory Committee Downtown Legal Services (DLS) E-Quality Communication Centre of Excellence (ECCOE) Elizabeth Fry Toronto Ethnoracial Disabilities Coalition of Ontario Family Services Toronto FCJ Refugee Centre Gardiner Museum Health Interpreters Network (HIN) Human Trafficking Network Integrated Domestic Violence Court Community Advisory Committee Learning Enrichment Foundation Legal Aid Ontario Luke’s Place New Mennonite Centre Mount Sinai Hospital Oasis Centre des Femmes Ontario Association of the Deaf (OAD) Ontario Coalition of Agencies Serving Immigrants (OCASI) Ontario Council on Community Interpreting Ontario Network of Language Interpreter Services (ONLIS) members: Across Languages Translation and Interpretation Services Immigrant Women Services Ontario Incommunities Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Centre Multilingual Community Interpreter Services Multicultural Council of Windsor and Essex County Thunder Bay Multicultural Association Osgoode Hall Law School Parkdale Community Legal Services Pomegranate Tree Group Pro Bono Students Canada Redwood Shelter Refugee Law Office (LAO) Refugee Lawyers Association Ryerson University Ryerson Student Union Sandgate Women’s Shelter Sick Kids Hospital Silent Voice Sistering Social Enterprise Toronto South Asian Legal Clinic of Ontario SpeakSudan Springtide Resources TAPE Educational Services Tahirih Justice Centre Thorncliffe Neighbourhood Office Toronto District School Board Toronto Rape and Crisis Centre Toronto Refugee Affairs Council Toronto Western Hospital Transitional and Housing Support Network Truth & Dare Project University of Ottawa Law School University of Toronto Law School University of Toronto, Scarborough Campus Victim Witness Assistance Program (OCH, CPL, PK, NY, ETOB) Woman Abuse Council of Toronto (Woman ACT) Women’s College Hospital Women’s Mental Health and Addictions Network Working for Change YWCA Toronto |
| Funding structure: |
Membership fees or dues
Fees for education and training services
Fees for providing consulting or research services
Grants from Governments
Fundraising campaigns
Donations and grants from domestic sources
Funds from other Non-Governmental Organizations
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