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No. Even if your landlord hasn’t carried out repairs, you must still pay your rent, or you could get evicted. If the repair is not for damages done by you (or your guests or pets), the landlord is generally responsible for it. If you write to your landlord and they don’t make the necessary repairs, you have the right to take legal action through...

In general, the law treats common-law relationships very similarly to marriage relationships. However, there are some key differences, especially when it comes to limitation periods, which are the deadlines for making certain legal claims. Although being in a common-law relationship means that you and your partner qualify as spouses under many laws...

Legal research can be intimidating, but there are many good tools to help people without legal training find legal information. What’s a self-represented litigant? If you don’t have a lawyer and are representing yourself, then you’re a self-represented litigant. This means you must prepare your case, do your own legal research, learn about the...

The resources below will give newcomers to Canada a good idea of what it’s like to live in Canada. They include information about newcomers’ rights and responsibilities, the legal issues they may face as they settle, and how to access and apply for community and government services, as well as links to further resources and information. Helpful...

Anyone who wants psychiatric help can ask to be admitted to hospital for treatment. In some situations, the BC Mental Health Act also allows authorities (such as a doctor or the court) to send people to the hospital even if they don’t want to go (involuntarily). Helpful resources Hospitalizing a Mentally Ill Person (People’s Law School): This page...

If you’ve been fired — or dismissed from your job — you may be wondering about your rights. Can your employer fire you? Were you entitled to notice that you were going to be dismissed? Can you get severance pay? Employers have the right to fire employees for “just cause,” meaning there was a good reason to fire you. But if you were fired without...

If someone has insufficient or an unreliable credit history, a lender may require that a loan have a co-signer or that someone else “guarantee” a loan. Co-signing and guaranteeing a loan are different, and if you’re considering doing either, you should consider the implications carefully. What does it mean to co-sign a loan? Co-signing a loan means...

If you’re dealing with the estate of someone who has passed away and you need to find out whether they had a life insurance policy, there are a few things you can try. Sometimes simply going through their paperwork or computer may provide you with the information you need, but if not, you may need to conduct a more thorough search. Where can I...