ELC for Clients
Who We Serve
The ELC provides free legal support tailored to the needs of entrepreneurs and ventures who would otherwise be unable to afford paid legal support. We assist businesses of all types, including sole proprietorships, partnerships, and corporations, as well as charities and non-profit organizations (NGOs), including incorporated and unincorporated NGOs.
Becoming a Client
You can apply to the Entrepreneurial Law Clinic at any time. However, most applications are reviewed in January, May, and September each year. Select applicants will be invited to an intake interview. Following the intake interview, applicants will be informed whether they have been selected to be a client of the Clinic. Applicants become clients once they sign an engagement letter.
The Clinic is currently accepting applications for client intake. Note that an application to the Clinic may be waitlisted depending on Clinic availability.
We look forward to supporting your venture and helping you navigate the legal landscape with confidence.
If you are interested in becoming a client, fill out the online application form:
Please review our services below before submitting an application.
Our Services
Since the Clinic is run by law students and part of an academic program, clients should expect longer timelines for deliverables compared to traditional law firms. The ELC may assist clients with the following.
General legal questions
Answering general legal questions and providing legal information regarding various subject matters including:
- General legal issues relating to business and non-profit operations
- Differences between various business structures including sole proprietorships, partnerships, and corporations
- Differences between non-profits and registered charities
- Social entrepreneurship
- Intellectual property
- Privacy law
- Business licences
- Employment
Existing contracts
Reviewing existing contracts relating to businesses and non-profits organizations
New documents
Drafting and reviewing various legal documents relating to businesses and non-profit organizations, including:
- Articles of incorporation and other incorporation documents for business corporations and non-profit corporations/societies
- Constitution, by-laws, and other governing documents for non-profit organizations
- Corporate resolutions for business corporations and non-profit corporations
- Partnership Agreements
- Shareholders and Founders Agreements
- Memorandum of Understanding
- Commercial Contracts
- Employment and Independent Contractor Agreements
- Terms and Conditions for websites and other digital platforms
- Privacy Policies
- Licensing Agreements
- Confidentiality and Non-Disclosure Agreements
- Other documents as determined by clinic supervisors
Other support
- Other transactional legal support as determined by the clinic supervisors.
- The Clinic also refers and connects clients to other free or paid support systems for entrepreneurs within Alberta that may be relevant to their needs, where applicable
Services the Clinic does NOT offer
As a student-run group, the Entrepreneurial Law Clinic is not suitable for urgent or time-sensitive matters, nor for issues that extend over long periods. Therefore, the clinic cannot assist clients with:
- Litigation and court-related documentation
- Representations in contractual negotiations
- Immigration matters
- Tax, financial services, bankruptcy, securities commission, or stock exchange matters
- The registration of copyrights, trademarks, patents, or industrial designs
- Matters requiring a trust account (e.g., purchase or sale of business, property, or real estate)
- Matters outside the legal jurisdiction of Alberta
- Debt collection and recovery
- Any contentious matter
- Any other matter that the clinic supervisors determine that a law student cannot properly assist with