Please reach us at info@adanalaw.ca if you cannot find an answer to your question.
Our area of expertise includes: Criminal Defence, Refugee, and Notary Public services. We are starting to take on Civil Litigation matters on a case-by-case basis. However each matter is different and there are facets to these main specialties that can apply to you, so be sure to ask Adana if she can assist you on your matter!
As mentioned above our area of expertise includes: Criminal Defence, Refugee, and Notary Public services. However, just like doctors, lawyers study to specialize in specific areas of law. No matter how good your podiatrist is... you wouldn't want them to perform heart surgery on you!
The same logic applies to lawyers. Only a skilled lawyer with the training and experience in the area of practice you require can help you have the best outcome!
As we continue to grow, we expect to be able to add new areas of practice, so come back often to stay up to date with us!
We do offer free 15 minute consultations for Criminal Defence and Refugee clients as their matters are urgent and require us to determine how to retain Adana quickly.
These consultations are done through our intake team, and are focused on gathering the scope of the challenges the client faces, and determining costs vs providing any legal advice.
When you receive a Trust Request, it's basically a statement of the total legal fee's you and Adana discussed for you matter.
Think of it like buying a car with a bank loan. The loan will be for a certain amount of money, and you'll make payments until that balance is $0....same with a Trust Request.
As you make payments, these will be placed in a Trust Account, and we will send you an updated Trust Request statement informing you of the remaining balance left to pay.
Once Adana has been retained, we request disclosure from the crown.
Once we have that disclosure in our possession, we will schedule a Disclosure Review meeting to discuss the case. In order to protect the client, Adana will NOT meet with a client before then.
The reason is that if a client meets with Adana before she receives disclosure, and confesses to a crime that is NOT included in the charges and disclosure package, they could incriminate themselves.
We will call our client as soon as disclosure comes in so that the wait is reduced to the smallest time possible.
Being charged with an offence is scary, and it may seem like there's so many steps to get to the resolution!
But the steps are fairly clear and we'll break them down here:
Disclosure is broadly defined as the package of evidence the Crown has against you. It can be composed of documents, photos, videos, and audio recordings and other media.
Disclosure primarily comes in two forms:
That said, Disclosure is the property of the Crown. It cannot be taken home, copied, or shared outside of the office. We often have clients ask for copies of "their" disclosure, but disclosure is never the property of the accused. It can only be provided by the Crown temporarily to allow the defence to provide the accused legal representation.
Disclosure always remains the property of the Crown and must be returned to the Crown by the lawyer if the accused chooses to go with different counsel. One lawyer cannot give another lawyer a clients disclosure package. Each counsel MUST request it from the crown directly. This preserves the Chain of Custody, keeps the disclosure whole, and limits tampering and alteration by any party.
After the matter has resolved, Adana Law will either destroy their copies of Disclosure or return it to the Crown.
The Legal and Refugee systems are designed to be deliberate and precise. There are a lot of people vetting all aspects of the evidence and details.
For Criminal Defence clients, waiting for disclosure can feel like an eternity. The police must put together the evidence gathered, and then the crown must assemble this evidence into a package that is verified and redacted if needed. This process takes both time and manpower to complete. The newer the matter, the longer the wait for disclosure can be.
Refugee claims can take 12-18 months to complete, with sometimes weeks (or months) between each stage.
Rest assured, while the wait can be frustrating, the results are worth it. For criminal defence clients, we WILL call you as soon as disclosure arrives and set up a disclosure review meeting (see above). For Immigration and Refugee clients, as each stage proceeds, we WILL keep you in the loop.
That said, we will not be calling to tell you nothing has happened, but you're welcome to reach out in the Client Portal to follow up. (more below)
Sometimes, when a client is arrested, they will not be released after booking due to the severity of the charges.
In those cases, a Surety may be required to permit their release.
A Surety is simply a person who is approved by the Court to keep a close eye on the accused and make sure the accused does not re-offend or commit any crimes while awaiting the resolution of their matter. There is a financial penalty that the surety must pay if the person in their care violates the release order.
Because of that, the person acting as Surety can withdraw the surety application if they feel the client isn't following the release order. The police will then rearrest the client and they'll be returned to jail as the matter is being heard.
Having someone come forward as surety also doesn't guarantee a release. The Court must review the application and approve them. If no Surety can be found, or the Court rejects the application, the client will have few other options aside from remaining in custody.
Acting as Surety is a very big responsibility and must be carefully considered by all who may step forward to be one.
As you can imagine, Adana is a very busy lawyer and is booked generally back to back attending to clients matters the full day (this is a good thing).
But more importantly, a scheduled appointment gives both you and her the time to truly focus on your matters status while giving her time to gather as many updates and next steps as possible to make the best use of both of your time.
If the need to reach Adana is truly urgent ie. new and important information to be provided, or an unexpected development on your matter, we can arrange a short call. But only if it's time sensitive and urgent.
In-Person meetings at the office are By Appointment only.
The Adana Law team travels throughout Windsor/Essex, Chatham-Kent, and Sarnia-Lambton daily and are not always in the office through the day. We also do the vast majority of our work via email and over the phone, keeping it simple for you.
But if you truly must have an in-person meeting, call the office line and we will happily book an in-person meeting with you. Just know that this could take longer to arrange vs a phone call or Zoom meeting.
As mentioned, Adana is very busy, and the courts frown on her answering the phone, or making calls during trials. However, she CAN email or message clients in our Client Portal. New clients are set up with Clio for Clients that they can access from their phones, tablets, or computers. This will be a direct line to Adana to ask questions or submit documents. She will not likely be able to answer right away, but she will see it and reply when she's able.
This is the BEST way to keep in touch with Adana regarding your matter!
A Non-Contact order is exactly what it sounds like. You cannot interact or communicate with the named individual in ANY WAY.
They may call you to say "Sorry" or that they "Miss you". They may come to your home. They may live or work where you do. You may be tempted to meet with them. This could be a TRAP. We have had clients put in jail because they met with or contacted the person they were prohibited from contacting. Some genuinely want to talk, others may be trying to cause a breach to get you in more trouble.
Regardless, it's your responsibility to not reply or meet with them.
Even telling them to "Go away" or that "I can't speak to you" is communication. Block them from every platform they may contact you. (Phone, Social Media, Messaging apps). If they go to your home or place of work.... Do not engage them. Call the police and let them know.
If the person you cannot contact lives with you or works with you, unfortunately this can and will be a difficult imposition. Unless a Bail Variation can be arranged with the Crown to change the Non-Contact order, you'll need to make arrangements to live elsewhere or make arrangements with your work in the interim.
We understand Non-Contact orders are a challenge, especially for people who live or work together. But the best option until Adana can get a resolution is to follow the directions above and keep out of contact with the prohibited person.
This is a challenge for many of our clients, as these proceedings come with a lot of emotion. There's honestly not much one can do to stop people from making false statements in public, aside from potentially engaging in civil proceedings of libel or slander.
The best thing to do is note what's being said, and work with Adana to be able to respond to these allegations if they come up in court. These public statements rarely hurt client in the courtroom, but can have an impact on their reputation in the community. Unfortunately, the "Court of Public Opinion" is one we have little control over.
For some matters, a Publication Ban can be requested, but these are generally limited to protecting the victim.
As Adana works on your file, she will be invoicing (or billing) your Trust Account. This is NOT another request for money.
The Law Society of Ontario requires Adana to let clients know when she is drawing from the Trust Account as she works on your file. You can disregard these notices, but they do serve to keep you aware of the work Adana has done on your matter.
No, your payments are detailed in your Retainer Agreement as well in your Trust Request.
Most people just have a timeline to pay, but some are on payment schedules. It's advised that the client marks these payment dates in their calendars so they can stay on track.
The office will send you a calendar event that will let you know when your Trust Request is Due.
We will reach out however if payments are not made in a timely manner.
Yes, we are committed to giving back to our community, and we offer pro bono legal services on a specific case-by-case basis. This is limited to only those who cannot pay the legal fees themselves, have no access to family to assist in paying fees, do not qualify for Legal Aid, and Duty Counsel cannot assist them with their matter.
To qualify, they must be facing a serious risk of incarceration here in Canada or serious danger in their home country, and have no other option to secure their freedom. As you can imagine, we have many requests for pro bono assistance, and must keep our pro bono work dedicated to those who truly have no option.
The #1 most important thing to do is STAY IN CONTACT with Adana. We cannot stress that enough. We will work out something that will allow Adana to continue to work on your matter, while not causing you financial distress. That said, Adana cannot perform work for you if there are no funds in the trust account to draw from.
Clients who fail to reply or are unable to be contacted will receive a registered letter in the mail advising them they have 14 days to get in touch and catch up on payments. Failure to respond to that letter WILL result in Adana getting off record and stopping work on your case. This could result in serious consequences as the client will no longer have representation.
Duty counsel may be able to assist, but a skilled advocate is always your best option to protect your rights and freedom.
Your court appearance is a VERY serious matter. It's not a shift at work, or a class in school. There are serious consequences for missing a mandatory court appearance.
Unless you are hospitalized or physically unable to attend, your attendance at court is required.
Missing a court appearance may result in you having a warrant issued against you.