Pivot Legal Society

This kit is intended for YIMBYs: people who understand the value of addressing homelessness, addictions, and mental illness in a proactive and positive way through safe and supportive housing, and who want to say “Yes in my backyard!” to projects that help people get off the streets. We hope you will find this guide useful in helping you respond to fears and prejudices about the people who live in supportive housing.

Click here to download the toolkit

Pivot turned ten this year. It seems fitting that our tenth year would be a year of change and renewal. 2010 was an exciting year, but it was not easy. The recession finally caught up with us – we saw some core funding erode and our social enterprise – Pivot Legal LLP closed its doors.

Click here to download the Annual Report (PDF)

B.C.’s child protection workers are leaving their jobs at an alarming rate. For the children and families most impacted by the system, these front line workers are the face of the Ministry of Children and Family Development (“MCFD”).  Their jobs involve the critical tasks of assessing immediate child safety concerns, connecting families with support services, and deciding when a child needs to be removed from a home. For children and families involved with the child protection system, turnover means building new relationships, unpredictability and delays.

Click here to download the full publication (PDF).

Tenant privacy is very important. Vulnerable people need housing that makes them feel safe, secure and respected. This brochure is designed to give SRO landlords an overview of the laws related to tenant privacy in B.C. Topics include: working with police officers; when and how police may enter buildings; providing tenant Information to the police and bylaws & police authority. The Pdf prints double-sideded onto a letter-sized page and folds into small 4-page brochure. Published September 2009.

Click here to download the full publication (PDF).

Uniformed private security guards are an increasingly visible presence on Vancouver streets. Private security companies operate with nominal formal oversight and guards are often sent out on patrol after less than two weeks of training. People living and working in neighbourhoods patrolled by private guards are generally unclear about who security personnel report to or how to make a complaint against a guard. In spite of these issues, there has been little public debate about the growing role played by private security companies in policing public space.

Click here to download the full publication (PDF).

This book is a general guide to make you familiar with how the Small Claims Court system works in B.C. for claims against the police. You can get in touch with a lawyer to discuss your situation by calling one of the phone numbers at the end of this book.

Click here to download the full publication (PDF).

IMPORTANT WARNING: This book is not legal advice and does not replace legal advice from a qualified lawyer. The law is complicated, and only a lawyer can provide you with advice that is entirely accurate for your situation.

In October of 2006, pivot legal society challenged postsecondary students in planning, geography and political science departments of universities across Canada to write an essay on how to solve the homelessness crisis in Vancouver. The parameters were simple: don’t displace the existing community; provide high-quality accommodation; look to models from other jurisdictions; think outside the box.

Click here to download the full publication (PDF).

Volunteer survey teams from MOSAIC, a multilingual non-profit organizationdedicated to addressing issues that affect immigrants and refugees, and PivotLegal Society, an anti-poverty legal advocacy group, canvassed the residents offour buildings in the neighbourhood identified as North Mount Pleasant by theCity of Vancouver.

Click here to download the full publication (PDF).

British Columbia is in the midst of a child welfare crisis. One out of every five children in the province lives below the poverty line. Over 9,271 children are living in foster care, more than half of whom are Aboriginal.2 For generations the system has consistently failed children and their families in spite of legislative reform, internal reorganization and changing governments.

Click here to download the full publication (PDF).

The Charter of Rights and Freedoms still allows homeless people to sleep on the streets, beg for money, and carry all their belongings around with them. Even the law will not stop public defecation when there are no accessible toilets, a daily dilemma for many people. The solution to the housing crisis in Vancouver must address not only the symptoms, but also the underlying causes of homelessness.

Click here to read the full publication (PDF).