Our Work

To view the 2022-2023 annual report, click here.

We urge the government to reject Bill S-224 and adopt a human rights-based approach to human trafficking that centers labour rights, migrant rights, and sex workers’ rights and addresses the numerous structural barriers including poverty, precarious immigration status, and lack of access to affordable housing, health and social services that contribute to the risks of … Read more

Joint Submission to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 52/24 entitled “Contribution of the Human Rights Council with regard to the human rights implications of drug policy”

Sex workers in Canada face an alarming web of punitive laws and policies from all levels of government that attempt, among other things, to crush the measures and networks that keep them. These include laws criminalizing sex work, including those passed via the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act which prohibit working in public … Read more

Effectively addressing HIV, HCV, and STBBIs among Indigenous people requires the adoption of a human rights approach, focusing on evidence-based and culturally sensitive interventions that embrace Indigenous ways of knowing and doing. In addition to the legal and policy recommendations described below, it is imperative moving forward that access to emerging health care technologies and … Read more

Today — International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD) — is not just a day of reflection but a call to action. It is a plea to governments, organizations, and individuals to come together and prioritize life, health, and dignity above prejudice and stigma as we push toward a world where people who use substances are met with … Read more

Introduction In January 2023, the Court of Appeal for Ontario released its decision in the case of R. v. J.A., concerning the appeal of a man who had been convicted of two counts of first-degree murder, ten counts of aggravated sexual assault, and one count of attempted aggravated sexual assault in relation to HIV non-disclosure. … Read more

To mark international “Support. Don’t Punish” day, 87 organizations sign open letter to Government of Canada OTTAWA, CANADA | In the context of the ongoing toxic drug crisis and heightened politicized rhetoric around drug policy in Canada, a group of concerned civil society organizations have sent an open letter to federal politicians today, advocating for … Read more

This statement can be attributed to HALCO, the HIV Legal Network, and COCQ-SIDA. June 21, 2023 – The HIV & AIDS Legal Clinic Ontario (HALCO), HIV Legal Network, and La Coalition des organismes communautaires québécois de lutte contre le sida (COCQ-SIDA), are deeply concerned about the continued application of the “Automatic Partner Notification Policy” (“the … Read more

This statement can be attributed to HALCO, the HIV Legal Network, and COCQ-SIDA. June 21, 2023 – The HIV & AIDS Legal Clinic Ontario (HALCO), HIV Legal Network, and La Coalition des organismes communautaires québécois de lutte contre le sida (COCQ-SIDA), are deeply concerned about the continued application of the “Automatic Partner Notification Policy” (“the … Read more

For more than eight years, Maurice Tomlinson and the HIV Legal Network have been in court fighting for rights that are denied to LGBTQ+ people living in Jamaica due to colonial-era laws that criminalize same-sex intimacy. Through this slow process, Maurice’s case has nonetheless been gaining momentum, and in recent years we have seen similar … Read more

In August 2022, the Court of Appeal for Ontario overturned a woman’s conviction for one count of aggravated sexual assault in relation to HIV non-disclosure in the case of R. v. J.M. The initial 2013 conviction stemmed from a single act of condomless vaginal sex that occurred in 2011, at a time when the appellant … Read more

Toronto, ON (April 25, 2023) — This year, the HIV Legal Network celebrates its 30th anniversary. Founded in December 1992 as the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, the organization has spent the past three decades advocating to protect the human rights of all people living with or affected by HIV and AIDS, as well as those … Read more

With no time for half-measures, Canada needs full decriminalization nation-wide, led by lived experience and evidence Monday, January 30, 2023 — This week, we are watching with great interest as the possession of some drugs in small amounts will finally be decriminalized in the Province of British Columbia. While in theory a positive step forward … Read more

November 30, 2022 — Today, the HIV Legal Network marks World AIDS Day by joining with the United Nations (UN) in a call to governments around the world to reform laws, policies, and practices that create and exacerbate the stigma faced by people living with HIV. With this year’s theme being “Equalize,” we are focused … Read more