Seeking an emmigration lawyer

Hi Simon,

Welcome to Expat.com!

I have moved your topic on the Canada forum for better visibility.

Please do not hesitate to ask specific questions.

Thank you,
Best of luck,
Christine

Hi Simon,

You can find a lawyer in Edmonton who specializes in immigrations through the Alberta Law Society link below. Click on "For the Public" then "Lawyer Referral".

http://www.lawsociety.ab.ca/

You are allowed a free 30 minute consultation with up to 3 different lawyers on any given matter, provided you mention that you got their name from Lawyer Referral Service. You can then decide if you want to retain any one of them, which will be billed at their usual rates. Of course the lawyer will also have to agree to act in the matter.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

(By the way, I'm a Canadian living in Brazil)

You really don't need to waste money on a lawyer. If you go to www.cic.gc.ca you can find all the information and forms you need to apply for immigration.

Hi loriangel14,

That's correct, he doesn't need to waste money on a lawyer, if however he doesn't want or doesn't feel up to the extra bureaucracy involved because of the other factors and wants someone to guide him through the process that's fine too.

If you or a friend have downloaded the forms from the Government of Canada website and gone through the process without outside help that's great. Many can, however for numerous reasons others can't or don't want to.

By going through the Law Society Lawyer Referral Service and using three free 30 minute consultations chances are he'll gather enough information and advice about his particular case to go it alone, without having spent one penny.

The Law Society of most all of the provinces has this lawyer referral service. Anyone interested in finding out should just Google "Law Society of + (name of the province)" to find their website in any province.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

You are not aware then of the current public ad campaign by the Canadian government advising people to steer clear of immigration lawyers.


I was just pointing out that a lawyer is not a necessity.It is possible to do it on your own.Many people seem to be under the impression that they have to use a lawyer.

I am not suggesting that anyone needs to retain a lawyer, in most cases you are correct it can be a waste of money. However when the Law Societies of the provinces offer a free consultation of thirty minutes with three different lawyers, that's one and a half hours. More than sufficient time to clear up doubts and decide whether a lawyer is needed or you really can do the application on your own. All it costs is your time.

On the other hand, if one just assumes it's so simple and goes it alone and does something wrong, submits wrong documents, fills out forms incorrectly, the additional delay and cost can be much more, believe me. If it's FREE better to use it and make certain.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

Sorry. I wasn't my intention to put down lawyers. I was only stating that a lawyer is not something you HAVE to have in order to immigrate.

I refer to these statements on the cic.gc.ca website:

Canada's immigration system is based on fairness. Every application receives equal consideration. No one has special connections, and no one can promise your application will be given special treatment or guarantee that it will be approved.

   You are not obliged to hire an immigration representative, including a consultant, lawyer, Quebec notary or paralegal regulated by a law society, to apply for a visa or for Canadian citizenship, but if you do, choose carefully.
Immigration representatives do not have special connections with Canadian government officials and cannot guarantee you a visa. Nobody can guarantee you a visa.