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Community Legal Services (CLS), the legal clinic operated by the Faculty of Law at Western University, is moving downtown to a space within Fanshawe College’s Dundas Street campus. The new location will bolster the clinic’s role in providing free legal help to low-income and marginalized people across London, Ont. and Middlesex County.
Western President Alan Shepard and Fanshawe President Peter Devlin signed the lease on Aug. 24 at the clinic’s future home – the fifth floor of Fanshawe’s Howard W. Rundle Building at 137 Dundas St. in London, Ont. The location near the courthouse will reduce barriers to justice by placing legal assistance within easier reach of more potential clients.
“This move marks a major milestone in strengthening community-based legal services to ensure people in London and region can access critical support that may otherwise be out of reach,” Shepard said. “It also brings together two strong institutions in the downtown core, helping to realize our shared vision of a vibrant city. We’re deeply grateful for our partnership with Fanshawe College and for this new shared space.”
While renovations are completed, CLS will continue to operate from the Josephine Spencer Niblett Law Building on Western’s campus, with no interruption to services for existing clients. The clinic’s new location is expected to open by the end of December, in the downtown building named after Fanshawe’s long-serving president, Howard Rundle.
It opened in 2014 to support Fanshawe’s media and digital arts programs. Today, 264 students study at this downtown London, Ont. building.
“We’re pleased to have Western’s Community Legal Services clinic join us, strengthening the goals we’ve always had for our downtown campus – creating exceptional learning opportunities for students while contributing to the continued growth and vibrancy of the city’s core,” Devlin said.
London Mayor Josh Morgan welcomed CLS to its new space, thanking Fanshawe and Western for their commitment to London’s downtown.
“This partnership between Western University and Fanshawe College is a powerful example of making better use of existing spaces while bringing students, faculty, learning, services and new energy into the core,” Morgan said.
“Our downtown is at its best when it is a place where people come to live, learn, work, create and connect. Initiatives like Western’s Community Legal Services help make that vision a reality by offering essential, barrier-free access to justice for vulnerable residents who might otherwise go without support. This partnership is a significant win for our downtown, and for the entire city of London.”
Law students gain hands-on experience serving the community
CLS combines community service with education, offering Western law students experiential learning where they can apply their knowledge and develop skills through real-world experience. As student caseworkers, they provide legal assistance under the supervision of a review counsel, a practicing lawyer who advises them on legal documents and strategy for trials or settlements. Students work in the clinic as part of their law program and others volunteer as mentors. Interns work in paid positions from May to August.
In 2025-26, students took on more than 600 cases and consultations. They assist their clients, including Western students, with a wide range of legal matters including criminal, provincial and municipal offences, small claims lawsuits up to $50,000 and housing disputes. Three days a week, they work from the London Courthouse, helping self-represented litigants navigate legal forms and meet deadlines critical for their case. Students also represent clients in family matters through the Court Assistance Program, funded through a two-year grant from the Law Foundation of Ontario.
After two years as a caseworker, Ryan McCarthy, BA’22, LLB’26, is now an articling student with CLS. He got his start at the clinic as an administrative assistant, before he had even applied to law school.
“A year in that support role showed me just how critical it is to ensure access to justice in London and the surrounding area, where many people can’t afford a lawyer,” he said.
Who qualifies for legal help at Community Legal Services?
Who is eligible? Low-income residents of London and Middlesex County who meet financial eligibility requirements set by Legal Aid Ontario, and current Western University students.
Are services entirely free? Yes, representation and advice is provided by law students, under the supervision of experienced staff lawyers, at no cost. Clients may be responsible for expenses such as court filing fees or medical reports.
What types of cases are supported? Criminal law, small claims up to $50,000, tenant and housing disputes, provincial offences and family law.
How do you apply? Complete an intake form online or call 519-661-3352 to check eligibility and schedule an appointment.
Where is Community Legal Services located? In Western’s space on the fifth floor of the Fanshawe College downtown campus at 137 Dundas St. in London, Ont. Western students seeking legal services can also arrange to meet with student caseworkers on campus.
McCarthy encourages law students to volunteer time in the clinic, saying the experiential learning helps cultivate deeper empathy, reinforced by trauma-informed training from Western’s Student Experience team. He says working at CLS has heightened his own awareness of what clients are experiencing during their interactions with him.
“I want to accommodate people however I can, give them proper time and truly digest what they’re saying, even paying attention to the physical space to ensure they’re situated where they feel comfortable,” he said.
Some cases have honed McCarthy’s skill for managing the most distraught clients as they face potentially life-altering circumstances – imprisonment, crippling financial penalties or loss of access to their children or home.
“I’ve seen how even a simple housing issue can snowball and affect people for the rest of their lives,” he said. “Our work helps clients and, in some cases, their children recover from the lasting effects of those experiences. With support from CLS, they can move on with their lives.”
The legacy of Community Legal Services at Western University
Community Legal Services has shaped the legal profession for more than five decades. The clinic came to life through the efforts of the late John Eberhard, BA’66, LLB’69. As a third-year Western Law student in 1968, he founded Western’s Student Defender Program, modelled on a student-run legal aid service at the University of British Columbia. By 1970, it evolved into the Student Legal Aid Services Society.
Funding from Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) allowed the clinic to hire its first full-time review counsel in 1977, when it became Community Legal Services with a broader mandate to serve low-income residents. Continued LAO funding ensures the clinic can operate, supported by additional funds from the Law Foundation of Ontario, and Western’s University Students Council and Faculty of Law.
Over the last four decades, generations of Western law students have gained the opportunity to experience law in practice. They also learn from the deeply personal circumstances of the clients they serve, says the dean of Western’s Faculty of Law, Mohamed Khimji.
“The enduring legacy of Community Legal Services can be seen in the network of socially minded lawyers it has trained and inspired, and in the expanded access to legal services for some of the community’s most vulnerable residents,” Khimji said.
For McCarthy, the experience at CLS has shaped his future ambitions. He aspires to help more Indigenous people and become an ally of Indigenous-led organizations.
“The clinic helped me realize I want to keep supporting equity-deserving groups, because access to justice can make a meaningful difference in our communities.”
Learn more about how Western is navigating new realities.
