I went to law school expecting to learn how to defend what is fair and advocate for what is just. I quickly learned, however, that acting according to the law does not always make sense and being lawful doesn’t always mean you’re acting fairly or smart.
Working in Poverty Law and on Bay Street further taught me that members of the middle class cannot afford legal representation. The middle class is caught in a “legal representation purgatory” because they make too much to qualify for legal aid, but don’t make enough to enlist the services of a lawyer.
Without any other options, middle class people are forced to deal with their legal issues by “self-diagnosing” and “self-medicating”. Add in an emotionally charged situation – a divorce – and this self-help approach almost inevitably causes huge personal and financial losses and, ultimately, injustice. The truth: all of this headache and heartache could have been avoided if some professional direction had been available and if people wanted to look outside of the law to solve problems
It was this very issue that compelled me to find a solution. And that solution is Toronto Speaks: Legal Advice (TSLA). TSLA is a live talk and call-in television talk show on Rogers TV, cable (channel 10, Toronto and channel 63, Scarborough). On each show I am joined by a panel of one or more legal experts who take your calls while also providing the general public with valuable legal information.
I’m thrilled to be working with the Common Sense Divorce team on April 7 at 9:00 pm. Darren Gingras, Divorce Consultant and Co-Founder of the Common Sense Divorce, and Seema Jain, lawyer and accredited mediator, will be answering your calls, tweets and emails – for free! I’m excited to work with Darren and Seema because they are supporting a much overdue revolution in family law: to settle difficult separations through compassion, the use of a variety of professionals (not just lawyers!) and with less “law” and more fairness. The Common Sense Divorce team is doing what I hoped to achieve through the show: to make sense of an emotionally difficult time, while protecting your rights, your pocketbook and your sanity.
Remember: on Toronto Speaks: Legal Advice no question is too small or too big. Get your burning legal questions answered, share your opinions and get your voice heard! Tweet your questions to www.twitter.com/TorontoSpeaks or post them on www.facebook.com/TorontoSpeaks or call 416-446-7090 to join the conversation. I look forward to hearing from you and helping to increase access to justice!
Natalka Falcomer, a Toronto native, is a first generation Canadian born into a multi-cultural home. She graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School in 2010 and received numerous awards for her legal scholarship. She spent a year with Hicks Morley LLP and was called to the bar in 2011.
Over the past year she’s also: appeared on Breakfast TV, Global’s The Morning Show and co-hosted on Daytime TV as a culinary expert; wrote articles for Canadian lifestyle and real estate magazines; kicked her way towards a black belt in karate; studied Italian at the Istituto Italiano di Cultura; and acted as an arbitrator at Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot, dubbed the “Olympics” of international trade law competitions.
In the fall of 2012, Natalka merged her belief in social justice with her television experience to help Torontonians navigate the murky waters of the legal realm on her show Toronto Speaks: Legal Advice. The show is now in its second season as is one of the most watched shows on Rogers TV (Toronto).
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