Maybe I'll start, and then Doug and Suzanne can add.
I guess I'd say a few things. It's important to understand that we're speaking from the perspective of the student legal aid clinics in Ontario, a province that has quite a robust provincial legal aid system. In fact, they are our primary funders. The way in which we map out where clients go for representation is that if it looks like imprisonment is a likely possibility, that client will likely be eligible for a certificate from legal aid.
In terms of our programs, we're representing clients who would not otherwise be eligible for legal assistance. I'd start by saying that. Then I guess I'd say that the reason we chose to put the language that you see in our brief as our first suggestion is that we're not proposing that any agent should be allowed to do this work if the changes go through. We're proposing that articling students or students in programs like ours, where they are part of a robust and highly supervised environment, could and should provide assistance to clients who have nowhere else to turn. What's the alternative? We are only representing people who don't have any other option for legal assistance.
I'm delighted to hear that you're a DLS alumni and that you have fond memories of your time there. I'm not sure when you went to law school.