Michele M. Leering, C.M.
Kingston, Ontario
Michele Leering has dedicated her career to helping people who are vulnerable and marginalized. As executive director and lawyer with Belleville’s Community Advocacy & Legal Centre, she has promoted legal literacy, action research, and innovative health justice and community partnerships to increase access to justice. Her work has influenced poverty law service innovation throughout Ontario. A national and international proponent of community-based justice, legal empowerment and holistic approaches, she also advocates for including reflective practice as a core professional competency for lawyers and an access to justice consciousness.