The Legal Freelance Centre has been connecting legal professionals with BC law firms since 1978. What started as one woman’s vision for a better way to match legal talent has grown into Vancouver’s most trusted specialist legal staffing agency.
How It All Started
The Legal Freelance Centre was founded by Betty Garbutt, who began as Vancouver’s first legal freelancer after a successful career as a legal assistant and paralegal. She saw that law firms needed reliable, skilled temporary coverage — and that talented legal professionals deserved an agency that truly understood their work.
Our first office was in the Sun Tower. In 1981, we moved to the Hotel Vancouver, which became our long-time home. Over the years, Betty introduced many colleagues to the exciting career option of full-time freelance work, and our group of freelancers grew entirely through word-of-mouth about our knowledgeable, friendly approach to legal recruitment.
Where We Are Today
In 2016, we moved to our current office at Suite 522, 625 Howe Street — a space that blends the old with the new, just like our approach to staffing. We’ve personally met with and assisted over 7,000 legal staff members with their careers, whether that’s engaging them in freelance work or placing them in permanent positions.
Our clientele has grown to include law firms of all sizes, legal departments of corporations, and government offices throughout the Lower Mainland. We’ve built our reputation one placement at a time and we still operate with the same personal, hands-on approach Betty established from day one.
Founded
Betty Garbutt establishes The Legal Freelance Centre, becoming Vancouver’s first legal freelancer and pioneering a new model for legal staffing.
Job Shopping Introduced
We launch our flat-fee temp-to-perm “Job Shopping Program,” giving firms a low-risk way to evaluate candidates before making permanent hires.
New Office
We move to Suite 522, 625 Howe Street — a modern space that blends our heritage with a fresh approach.
Raising the bar
We add to our structured screening framework and in-depth candidate evaluations that bring consistency and rigour to every placement we make.
We Know Legal Work
We’re not a generalist agency that also does legal. Every placement, every screening question, every skills test is built on decades of experience inside Vancouver’s legal community.
We Meet Every Candidate
We personally interview and assess every professional we place. No algorithmic matching, no resume-forwarding. We know the people we recommend because we’ve sat across from them.
We Grow Through Reputation
Our business has grown entirely through word-of-mouth. When law firms and legal professionals recommend us to their colleagues, that’s the only endorsement that matters.
Meet the team behind the placements
A small, dedicated team with deep roots in Vancouver’s legal community.