OUR WORK
For Lawyers
Lawyers make a vital contribution to improving access to justice in BC simply through the operation of pooled trust accounts.
How Lawyers Make a Difference
Law foundations like ours exist in every province and territory in Canada, and in every US state, funding critical access to justice work that benefits millions of people at no cost to the government. For more than half a century, the Law Foundation of BC has operated independently from government. That independence is not incidental. It is what allows us to fund the full breadth of legal aid, education, research, and reform that communities across BC need, guided by our mandate.
An Independent Model That Works
Across British Columbia, lawyers make a vital contribution to improving access to justice through the operation of pooled trust accounts. When lawyers hold client funds, they are required to deposit them into trust accounts. The interest earned on pooled trust accounts is remitted to the Law Foundation of BC, and we distribute those funds across our mandate areas: legal aid, legal education, law reform, legal research, and law libraries.
In 2025, over $120 million was remitted to the Law Foundation from lawyers’ pooled trust accounts and over $109 million in grants were approved.
Upholding the Rule of Law
Access to justice is not separate from the rule of law. It is foundational to it. By making legal processes more accessible for individuals and families across BC, the legal profession – through pooled trust accounts – plays a direct role in upholding the principles that make a just society possible. We are committed to that work, guided by our mandate and our vision of a future where systems of law and justice support all people to live and thrive in dignity.
Make Your Trust Account Work Harder
If you hold your pooled trust account with one of our Preferred Financial Institutions, you are already maximizing the impact of your contribution. These banks and credit unions have committed to paying competitive interest rates on lawyers’ pooled trust accounts, which means more funds remitted to the Law Foundation and more grants approved for programs across BC. If you have questions about increasing the impact from your trust account, please reach out to our Finance and Accounting team at [email protected].
