The purpose of this project was to develop, implement and evaluate a model to identify and train people to help older adults access legal information and services. A scan revealed the following valuable legal resources already existing:
Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO)
o https://stepstojustice.ca/
o https://cleoconnect.ca/
Pro Bono Law Ontario (PBLO)
o https://www.probonoontario.org/hotline/
o https://www.lhsc.on.ca/legal-help-at-children-s-hospital
Unifor
o https://uniforlsp.com/
o https://www.unifor.org/retired-workers

A survey of residents in an Ontario retirement revealed that:
• Residents may benefit from including support with fraud prevention and consumer protection (fraud, scams and identity theft) in a trusted help model as they expressed concern but it was not clear whether they already had solutions in place.
• Residents were concerned about how personal care decisions are made for them if they become incapable and intend to communicate care wishes and/or review their Power of Attorney for care and existing care wishes in the near future.
• There was discrepancy between residents’ expressed needs/preferences and perceived needs/preferences of residents by trusted helpers.
• Various people in retirement homes are willing to support residents, though legal professionals and resident’s own family members are residents’ most preferred support people for legal issues/solutions.
• Many residents report that their legal needs have been met.

A first step in creating a legal support model will be to convene existing legal resource organizations (CLEO, PBLO, Unifor) and develop the following:
• A single information pamphlet listing each of their resources
• Trusted helper training video for circulation to potential trusted helpers
• Educational video(s) for residents
• Ideas for how to prompt conversations about legal information needs (e.g., what legal information would be helpful to a resident at the time they move into a retirement community)
• Advanced Planning: a check-list/flow chart of what-if scenarios that may require legal information (e.g., what do I need to have in place now if in the future I am no longer able to manage bank account)
The project team for this project is well positioned to connect residents, family members, and legal professionals that have expressed interest during Phase 2 in being involved in the development/implementation of the trusted help model. It is recommended that this connection between the project team and the interested parties be utilized in any future intervention development.

While financially supported by The Law Foundation of Ontario, the RIA is solely responsible for all content.

The purpose of this project is to develop, implement and evaluate a model to identify and train trusted intermediaries to help older adults access legal information and services. Trusted intermediaries might be chaplains, physicians, social workers, administrators, friends, family or service providers who can help identify a need, provide information (not legal advice), help navigate the system, and assist with things such as filling out forms.

While financially supported by The Law Foundation of Ontario, the RIA is solely responsible for all content.