Legal services for artists now available

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Most artists live well below the poverty line. They create art in a market economy that does not compensate them fairly for the work they produce.

According to a Statistics Canada special report from the late 1990s (the last time the arts sector was surveyed), the median annual income for writers was $7,500, and for painters and sculptors just $4,000.

Despite the hardships, artists find ways to survive. But that survival is sometimes compromised. Infringement of copyright, dubious contracts, and being stiffed on the bill for work they provide are among the many problems.

This unfortunate reality is the reason behind the creation of Lawyers for Aboriginal Arts, a new program that provides free legal services to qualifying artists and arts organizations in the areas of intellectual property rights, copyright, contract review, payment for creative works or performance, and incorporation.

The program was created by Pro Bono Law Ontario, a non-profit organization that works to increase access to justice across the province, especially in locations where there are no publicly-funded legal clinics offering free legal services.

Case intake is conducted by Aboriginal Legal Services Toronto (ALST), and the work is performed by the private law firm, Gowling LaFleur Henderson.

"Lawyers for Aboriginal Arts is a partnership between a publicly funded legal clinic and the private bar," said Clem Nabigon, a project co-ordinator for Lawyers for Aboriginal Arts and the intake lawyer for the program at ALST. "Gowlings is a large law firm with a specialized area of practice [that] we don't have the mandate to handle. We get a certain amount of [funding] dollars, and we have certain things we cover. This partnership allows us to take on these types of cases using a mixture of public and private legal service to increase the services we provide."

Lawyers for Aboriginal Arts had its first client in November 2003. Since the start of this year, the program has dealt with 12 cases. According to Nabigon, the majority of artists referred to the program have received service.

"We've had a variety of cases," Nabigon said. "We've had DJs come to us seeking to solidify ownership to their original works. We had a folk singer who performed at a festival and who didn't get paid. Other artists have come to us needing help with corporate stuff like letters of agreement and incorporating a business.

"Private lawyers would charge $2,000 to $3,000 for these types of services, and artists can't afford that. This program allows us to provide justice to Native artists who otherwise wouldn't get it," Nabigon said.

Although ALST and Gowlings are located in Toronto, artists can access the program from anywhere in Ontario.

"We've had clients from Manitoulin Island and Sault Ste. Marie," Nabigon said. "Distance has not been a barrier to service."

"A lot can be done by phone, e-mail and fax," agreed Yonit Fuhrmann, the project development co-ordinator for Pro Bono Law Ontario.

Despite the reaches of technology, the program is limited to Ontario at the moment.

"The program might not be relevant to people outside of Ontario right now, because the laws are different across Canada for such things as incorporation," Fuhrmann said.

"But we have broad inclinations for the program."

For more information on Lawyers for Aboriginal Arts, contact Aboriginal Legal Services Toronto at (416) 408-4041.