Your Rights with Lawyers and Immigration Consultants:
 
You have the right to competent counsel who manages your case properly and knows how to handle that type of case
(Rules of Professional Conduct Lawyers Rule 2.01 (1) and (2); Rules of Professional Conduct Consultants Rule 3)
You have the right to be kept abreast of any important developments on your case
(Rules of Professional Conduct Lawyers Rule 2 .02; Rules of Professional Conduct Consultants Rule 4)
You have the right to know what is going on with your file, and to have what is going on explained to you in a way that you understand. (Rules of Professional Conduct Lawyers Rule 2 .02; Rules of Professional Conduct Consultants Rule 4)
You have the right to be advised of any errors or conflicts of interest on your case
(Rules of Professional Conduct Lawyers Rule 2.02 and 2.04; Rules of Professional Conduct Consultants Rule 3)
You have a right to confidentiality
((Rules of Professional Conduct Lawyers Rule 2.03; Rules of Professional Conduct Consultants Rule 5 )
You have the right to be charged reasonable fees, and to an invoice detailing those fees
(Rules of Professional Conduct Lawyers Rule 2.08; Rules of Professional Conduct Consultants Rule 9)
You have the right to your file when you switch counsel, unless you owe fees to the previous counsel and holding your file will not endanger your case
(Rules of Professional Conduct Lawyers Rule 2.09; Rules of Professional Conduct Consultants Rule 9)
 
How to get help:
 
To find a good consultant and/or lawyer:
 
Talk to your local legal clinic, or a community organization and ask for a referral. Also ask friends about your consultant or lawyer. 
Ask the lawyer or consultant about their qualifications and experience, and their community involvement.
 
If your bill is too high:
 
Contact their professional body (the Law Society of Upper Canada, or the Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants, see below) and ask about having the invoice assessed. Do it as soon as possible after you receive the bill, or the counsel asks you for money
 
 
 
 
 
If they screw up:
 
Contact their professional body and make a complaint. They may be disciplined. You may have to attend an interview or hearing or provide more documents. Also, if the error is serious, ask about making a claim against their insurance.
 
Think also, if it is serious, about taking them to small claims court, or regular court. Talk to another counsel or to a legal aid clinic about doing such a claim. 
 
Other ideas:
 
Involve your community and friends in your case. If the lawyer or consultant is not returning your calls or keeping you up to date, get a community organization to write her or him on your behalf. 
 
Check the status of your file yourself with immigration, on line at http://www.cic.gc.ca/ [1] or by calling 888 242 2100. You'll need your client id number (on the top right of any letters from immigration), and your date of birth.
 
Inform yourself about immigration law, read the laws, contact us or other community organizations. Find out what your counsel should be doing, and make sure he or she does it!
 
LAW SOCIETY OF UPPER CANADA
General Inquiries 
Toll-free: 1-800-668-7380 
General line: 416-947-3300 
Facsimile: 416-947-5263
E-mail: lawsociety@lsuc.on.ca [2] 

Write to Us 
The Law Society of Upper Canada 
Osgoode Hall, 130 Queen Street West 
Toronto, Ontario M5H 2N6 
 
Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants
390 Bay Street, Suite 1600
Munich Re Center
Toronto, Ontario Canada M5H 2Y2
Telephone: 416-572-2800
Telephone: 1-866-308-CSIC (2742)
Fax: 416-572-4114
Email: information@csic-scci.ca [3]

RCMP
 
519-640-7267 or http://www.rcmp.ca/ [4]
 
EXERCISE:
 
One of us pretends to be a fraudulent or incompetent Lawyer or Consultant, while a volunteer from the audience deals with us. The audience is then asked to suggest ideas of what worked and what did not, and what else might work.
 
Volunteer is a non-status person applying for an H & C
 
First meeting: Lawyer should meet very briefly with client, tell them she or he is going to charge them $3000 and then $3000 before filing. No Retainer will be signed. Lawyer then refers client to consultant - makes it unclear whether consultant is a lawyer or consultant or assistant
Consultant does not state she or he is a consultant, nor a lawyer. Takes client's original passport, papers, asks her or him to sign blank forms, explains nothing of the process, says it will take a number of years (somewhere from 2 to 6 years).
 
Second - client calls consultant a year later. Consultant refuses to take the call
 
Third - client needs passport, calls consultant, consultant is vague, asks for more money
 
Fourth client is written by CIC, told that their application is refused as they did not send documents when CIC asked representative for them.
 
Fifth client calls consultant, goes into consultant demands explanation, consultant is vague, says it is too bad, says client owes the consultant money, and will not return passport until it is paid
 
Then do a go around about what client did that was good, what could be better, and what his or her actual rights were in the situation.