General grants

• Nalini Vaddapalli
• General grants, Updates and Announcements
• September 25, 2026

The Law Society of Nunavut receives General Grants

The Law Society of Nunavut receives General Grants to support the advancement of Access to Justice for Nunavummiut

Wills and Estates Community Pilot Initiative 

Objective
Through a collaborative initiative between the Law Society of Nunavut and Nunavut Legal Aid with financial support provided by the Nunavut Law Foundation and the Canadian Bar Association (Nunavut Branch), the pilot seeks to develop and deliver a workshop this summer with tools aiming to improve access to legal education on a topic of importance which can result in challenging circumstances after the passing of a family member or a loved one. The pilot will provide direct legal advice and support at no cost to community members. The pilot’s objective is to increase knowledge and understanding on Wills and Estates through a plain language public legal education workshop offered with interpretation and resources made available in both English and Inuktitut.

The community of Clyde River was chosen based on financial consideration and a list of suggested communities shared by Nunavut Legal Aid through knowledge-sharing from their Inuit Court Workers and staff lawyers.

Context 
Through the Law Society’s Access to Justice Program launched in 2014 and its current lawyer referral system, the Law Society has gained first-hand knowledge of the challenges members of the public face to find a lawyer available to assist them, in particular those that live outside of Iqaluit.

Resources

The Law Society will post the resources developed as part of the pilot initiative by mid-October.

Meeting the legal needs of Nunavummiut through an improved lawyer referral system and increased access to supports.

The Law Society of Nunavut received a General Grant in May to support further research and provide recommendations for the development of an outcome-driven Nunavut Lawyer Referral System.

Objective

To better respond to the needs of Nunavummiut, there is a need to develop a Nunavut Lawyer Referral System that is evidence-based, adheres to best practices, is responsive to local needs and contributes to Access to Justice across the Territory.

Context

The Law Society initially conducted a membership survey followed by a jurisdictional scan. The latter found that Lawyer Referral Systems across Canadian jurisdictions (provinces only) vary significantly in practice. Jurisdictional variations include differences in how clients access services (online intake, telephone intake, or hybrid), the types of services clients can access (referrals only, legal advice), the length and cost of initial consultations (free, paid), and the extent of lawyer participation (self-service directory, lawyer consultation). These variations show that Lawyer Referral Systems are not standardized across provinces and underscore the importance of developing a Lawyer Referral System model responsive to Nunavut’s legal, geographic, and cultural context.

Report and Next Steps

A Report with recommendations will be submitted to the Board of the Nunavut Law Foundation in October. A copy of the Report will be posted online.

In collaboration with the Law Society of Nunavut, next steps will be posted online and may include a call to the Law Society membership for letters of intention. Further details will be posted by early November.

• Nalini Vaddapalli
• General grants, Updates and Announcements
• September 1, 2026

General Grants to support community outreach and legal education

Pacific Legal Education and Outreach Society (PLEO)

Provide Nunavut-specific legal information to non-profits throughout the territory through an AI-enabled digital platform 

In collaboration with the Nunavut Association for Non-Profit Organizations (NANPO), the goal of this project is to demystify the law for non-profit leaders, directors and communities. By demystifying the most common legal issues and making legal resources available, the overall capacity of the non-profit will be strengthened, enabling them to put more time and energy to their programs.

LawForNonProfits: Nunavut will bring LawForNonProfits (LFNP), a free, low-barrier, AI-enabled digital platform, to Nunavut and provide Nunavut-specific legal information to non-profits throughout the territory.

Using a guided pathway format, LFNP’s Legal Help Guides (LHG) will make it easy for Nunavut non-profits to diagnose legal issues and create clear and shareable action plans to maintain compliance and avoid legal crises.

LawForNonProfits is driven by a commitment to providing free and accessible legal tools to reduce the risk of legal crises arising in the day-to-day operation of non-profits.

PLEO received the initial Grant to develop the digital platform in collaboration with NANPO.

You can can learn more about PLEO here.

Redfish Arts Society

Youth Arts and Justice Education Initiative

This initiative proposes an arts-based legal education program for Inuit youth aged 8–14 in Cambridge Bay. Rooted in community partnership, the project will bring together the Redfish Arts Studio, the Law Society of Nunavut, the Ontario Justice Education Network, and local institutions including CHARS and Nunavut Arctic College. The program will develop and deliver interactive workshops where art becomes a bridge to understanding law, rights, and community responsibility. Through visual storytelling and traditional symbols, the project will connect youth with both Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit and Canadian civic concepts, fostering awareness of justice, reconciliation, and community wellbeing.

The Redfish Arts Studio received the initial Grant to support a Phase I consultation in Cambridge Bay with the objective of co‑developing a culturally grounded, arts‑based legal and civic education curriculum for Inuit youth aged 8–14 in Cambridge Bay.

You can learn more about the Redfish Arts Studio here

• Nalini Vaddapalli
• General grants, Updates and Announcements
• February 22, 2026

General Grant New Recipients – February 2026 Announcement

The Board of Directors is pleased to announce that the following organizations are recent recipients of a general grant.

Canadian Legal Information Institute

• Project Phase II : Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Summarize Nunavut Primary Legal Information

  • Read the Phase II project summary here .

  • Phase I project summary is available here.

  • You can learn more about CanLII  here.

Nunavummi Disability Makinnasuaqtiit Society (NU)

• • Grant towards the hiring of a lawyer (member of the Law Society of Nunavut) to provide legal advice and support for case management and advocacy.

    • Call for Expression of Interest is now open (must be licensed to practice in Nunavut).
  • You can learn more about NDMS  here.

Tulugaq Law Firm (NU)

• • Grant to support Inuit summer law students (summer 2025, Iqaluit).

Perrie Law (MN)

• • Grant to support clients across Nunavut who require Inuktut interpretation for wills and estate planning services.
  • Contact info@perrie-law.com for more information.   

• Nalini Vaddapalli
• General grants, Updates and Announcements
• January 31, 2025

General Grant New Recipients – January 2025 Announcement

The Board of Directors is pleased to announce that the following organizations and individual are recent recipients of a general grant.

November 2024 – Canadian Legal Information Institute

• Project: Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Summarize Nunavut Primary Legal Information ( further details to be posted).

  • Read the project description here.

  • You can learn more about CanLII  here.

January 2025 – S.H.E.D. Society of Bella Coola (BC)

Bella Coola Legal Advocacy Program

• Booklet: Legal Information for Indigenous People National Edition.

  • Read the one-pager about the booklet: English, French, Inuktitut and Inuinnaqtun .

  • You can learn more about the Bella Coola Advocacy Program here.

January 2025 – Victoria Perrie, Perrie Law (MN)

• The Report Northern Lights, Southern Justice: Charting a Course for Inuit-Focused Legal Services is available here .

  • The Report arises from the Inuit Legal Clinic Summit, May 1 – 2, 2024, Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Summit was held in partnership with the University of Manitoba. Learn more about the Inuit Legal Clinic Summit at Robson Hall here. 

  • You can learn more about Victoria here.

• Nalini Vaddapalli
• General grants, Updates and Announcements
• March 30, 2022

2022 General Grant – Bridging the Gap Initiative for Indian Day School Claims

The Nunavut Law Foundation is pleased to support

the Bridging the Gap Initiative

Background

In March 2019, the Government of Canada announced a nationwide class action settlement agreement to compensate an estimated 140,000 people who attended federally run Indian Day Schools (IDS) from the late 1800s to the year 2000, where many experienced physical, sexual, and psychological abuse. In some cases, the abuse was severe. These abuses were in addition to the mocking, denigration and humiliation of students by reason of their culture and language. Through McLean v Canada, the Plaintiffs have sought the recognition of and justice for the harms inflicted on former students of Day Schools and their family members.

The Court has appointed Roger Augustine and Claudette Commanda as Representative Plaintiffs for the Survivor Class and Mariette Buckshot as Representative Plaintiff for the Family Class. Former students have until July 2022 to apply for compensation, and they must fill out a complex 15-page claim form with a detailed description of the harms they experienced. After community feedback expressed the need for greater support and access to the process, the Court appointed Argyle to providing claimants with culturally appropriate, trauma-informed assistance.

Claims Assistance in Nunavut

The Tukisigiarvik Society is supporting Argyle for this process in Nunavut. However, since Argyle’s mandate does not include support for the Family Class Members who need help with Wills & Estates or Power of Attorney, the Law Society of Nunavut has taken steps to bridge the gap. Many victims of the IDS passed away and their family also suffer the consequences of the abuses. Providing direct support to the families who need assistance to navigate the complex legal world regarding wills and estates is facilitating access to justice for the Family Class Member’s claims.

MARCH 31, 2022 PRESS RELEASE English Inuktitut