Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada has just released a draft report for public comment, “The Right to Legal Aid: How BC’s Legal Aid System Fails to Comply with International Law.” The authors argue that reductions in funding leave “even the most basic legal aid needs of British Columbians” unmet, with a disproportionate impact on women and marginalized groups, which ultimately undermines the “entire justice system.” The authors note that the inadequate funding of legal aid has social impacts that extend far beyond the justice system to affect the “social fabric of British Columbians and their economy.”

Read the LRWC’s statement on the new report. Download the report in Word format or as a PDF.

Read Ian Mulgrew’s article on the new report from the Vancouver Sun.