Laïla Demirdache has worked as a lawyer with Community Legal Services of Ottawa for over 20 years, providing legal advice and services in the area of immigration and refugee law. She has also been involved in various initiatives to defend the rights of immigrants and refugees, including as part of a team of lawyers before the Supreme Court of Canada, the Federal Court of Appeal, the Federal Court, and the Ontario Court of Appeal for Amnesty International, the Canadian Centre for Victims of Torture, the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic, and the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers (CARL). She also represented the Canadian Council for Refugees (CCR) in a coroner's inquest into the death of a person detained under immigration laws. She has served on several committees, including for the CCR and the CCR.
Laïla is often appointed by the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) to act as a designated representative for individuals who, due to their mental health or age, are unable to understand the nature of proceedings before one of the four divisions of the IRB.
