Paralegals not trained to practice immigration law

The Immigration Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association, in a letter to Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Sean Fraser, asks that paralegals be removed from the categories of persons authorized to practice immigration law.

The change should be made by amending s. 91 of the Immigration and Refugee Protect Act, or IRPA, which outlines the categories of authorized persons allowed to represent applicants in immigration proceedings.

Stricter regulation of immigration consultants

Since December 2020, when the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants Act came into force, consultants are operating under a stricter regulatory regime which includes mandatory education and training, a compulsory code of professional conduct, minimum competency standards, among other requirements. The Section appreciates efforts by the government to require higher standards for immigration consultants, although “immigration consultant programs, delivered mostly online in less than two years, are not comparable to a law degree,” the letter reads. Paralegals are not required to complete the program applicable to consultants, “further deepening the substantive educational gap between the training for lawyers, consultants and paralegals.” Paralegal training in particular is not sufficient to protect vulnerable immigration applicants adequately.

By comparison, law students are required to study administrative, constitutional and criminal law. They are trained in statutory interpretation, issue-identification, legal research and advocacy. “This extensive training equips lawyers to conduct proceedings at the Immigration and Refugee Board, where representatives need to examine witnesses, cross-examine the opposing party, evaluate evidence for its probative value and prejudicial effect, and present legal arguments,” the Section says.