Month September 2017

Toolkit on Co-Parenting after Divorce or Separation now Available from CBA

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The Canadian Bar Association (CBA) Family Law Section in conjunction with the Canadian Research Institute for Law and the Family (CRILF) have announced that the Successfully Parenting Apart: A Toolkit is now available.

About the new Successfully Parenting Apart toolkit, the CBA explains that it:

  • organizes and consolidates online and print resources offering guidance, information, referrals and resources for resolving parenting challenges post-separation in ways most effective for children.
  • is intended to increase family lawyers’ awareness of the best available information to better assist parents in transforming their relationship from being a couple to being successful co-parents.

To learn more about the toolkit or to download a copy of the Successfully Parenting Apart toolkit, visit the CBA website here.

BC Provincial Court Creates Support Persons Guidelines Poster and Flyer

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The Provincial Court of British Columbia has created several resources aimed at informing self-represented litigants about the possibility to be accompanied by a support person for family and small claims trials.

Information about these newly available flyers and posters as well as downloadable copies can be accessed on the Provincial Court of BC website here. The Provincial Court encourages you to share the Support Person Guidelines poster and other resources.

Upcoming A2J-Related Events

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SELF-REPRESENTED LITIGANTS (SRL) AWARENESS DAY: (October 4th 2017) at Windsor Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, the University of Ottawa Law School, Queens Law School, and Western Law

  • SRL Awareness Day aims to increase awareness among law students of the self-represented litigant experience. Windsor Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, the University of Ottawa Law School, Queens Law School, and Western Law will host invited SRL guests in classes and during a midday panel.

For more information about SRL Awareness Day, visit the National Self-Represented Litigants Project (NSRLP) website here. Join the conversation taking place on social media for Self-Represented Litigants Awareness Day with #SRLawareness and #SRLawarenessday.

LEGAL INNOVATION ZONE: YOUTH ACCESS TO JUSTICE INITIATIVE at Ryerson University

  • Session 2A (youth only): October 4 at Ryerson University
    This event will focus on access to justice within the community and how to address access to justice issues.
  • Session 2B: October 25 at Ryerson University
    This event is open to all ages. Discussions will center on community access to justice issues and how those in the community can get help for their issues.
  • Session 3: October 30 at Ryerson University
    This session will explore where justice system users go for legal help and how existing resources can be made to work better.
  • Session 4 (Design Thinking): November 4 at Ryerson University
    Using themes explored in earlier sessions, this session will lead participants through the Design Thinking process to create prototypes for youth justice initiatives.

For more information on the Legal Innovation Zone Youth Access to Justice Initiative, visit their website here.

SASKATCHEWAN ACCESS TO JUSTICE WEEK (October 16 to 21) at the University of Saskatchewan, College of Law

  • This is the 2nd annual Saskatchewan Access to Justice week. This event seeks to engage individuals and stakeholders in access to justice discussions and to bring to the forefront various initiatives that are contributing to improvements in A2J for Saskatchewan residents.

For more information on Saskatchewan Access to Justice Week, visit their website here. Follow the week’s events and conversations on social media using #SKA2J.

ONTARIO ACCESS TO JUSTICE WEEK (October 23 to 27)

This is Ontario’s second annual Access to Justice Week. This year’s Access to Justice Week will include the following events:

  • Access to Justice Innovation (October 23) at the Law Society of Upper Canada
    This event will highlight innovative, community driven work taking place in the justice sector. The keynote presentation will be delivered by Justice Thomas A. Cromwell.
  • Improving Health, Improving Service (October 23) at the Law Society of Upper Canada
    This event will focus on mental health and other health risks that lawyers face.
  • The Millennial Influence (October 24) at the University of Ottawa
    This event will include discussions on the ways that millenials are influencing thinking on A2J and legal technology.
  • Paralegals and Access to Justice (October 25) at the Law Society of Upper Canada
    This session will centre on the contributions that paralegals are making to improving A2J.
  • Include. Inform. Inspire. (October 26) at the Law Society of Upper Canada
    This will be a public legal education and information forum.

For more information on Ontario’s Access to Justice Week, visit The Action Group on Access to Justice website here. Follow the week’s events and conversations on social media using #A2J2017.

2017 IT.CAN 21st  ANNUAL CONFERENCE (October 23 to 24) at 150 King Street West, Toronto

  • This 2-day conference will offer legal professionals and others an opportunity to network and learn about developments in technology law in Canada and abroad.

For more information about the IT.CAN Conference, visit the program page here.

ABA 2017 NATIONAL AGING AND LAW CONFERENCE (October 26 to 27) Silver Spring, Maryland

  • This 2-day conference will include an array of workshops on legal and policy issues, legal service delivery and recent developments related to elder rights, aging and law.

For additional information on the American Bar Association’s (ABA) 2017 National Aging and Law conference visit their website here.

2017 FAMILY DISPUTE RESOLUTION INSTITUTE OF ONTARIO (FDRIO) AND FAMILY MEDIATION CANADA (FMC) CONFERENCE (November 20 to 21) in Toronto, Ontario

The 2-day 2017 FDRIO-FMC Conference will include panels and workshops on a range of topics including:

  • How to Fix the Family Court Crisis
  • Getting Past Impasse
  • Distance Mediation and Technology
  • Effective Advocacy in Mediation
  • Elder Mediation
  • Parenting Coordination Challenges
  • Grandparent Access Mediation
  • Domestic Violence and Power Imbalance
  • Income Determination for Support Purposes
  • Ethical Issues in Mediation/Arbitration

For more information or to register for the FDRIO-FMC conference, visit the Family Dispute Resolution Institute of Ontario website here.  Follow the conversation on social media with #FDRevolution.

SELF-REPRESENTED LITIGATION NETWORK (SRLN) 2018 CONFERENCE (February 22 to 23, 2018), San Francisco, California

  • The 2nd annual Self-Represented Litigation Network Conference will bring together a diverse group of players and users in the justice system to explore and create new tools for providing access to justice. Proposals for this conference will be accepted up to September 29.

For more information about Designing & Engaging the 100% Access to Civil Justice Ecosystem, the 2-day SRLN conference, visit their website here.

Final Report of the Bach Commission now Available

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The Bach Commission on Access to Justice was created in 2015 to develop “realistic but radical proposals…for re-establishing the right to justice as a fundamental public entitlement” in England and Wales. Recent changes in funding and eligibility requirements for legal aid have placed even more strain to a justice system that is said to be in crisis. In response to what the Commission argues are “widespread” and “varied” problems in the legal system, their final report proposes a legally enforceable Right to Justice Act that will ultimately serve to “create a new legal framework that will…transform access to justice”.

The Right to Justice, the final report of the Bach Commission is available online here.

The Crisis in the Justice System in England and Wales, the Commission’s interim report published in November, 2016 is available online here.

“Consumers 150: Consumer Engagement and Outreach” Workshop to take place on 18 September

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Studies show that a significant percentage of Canadian civil legal problems are consumer problems. “Mapping the Front End: Legal Information Seeking Practices” is a two-year project funded by the Law Foundation of Ontario Responsive Grants Program that studies consumers’ everyday information seeking practices.  In so doing the project aims to connect consumers seeking and using information with available and pertinent resourses by increasing consumer information literacy, awareness and empowerment. It is the first comprehensive study of its kind in Canada. As part of this project (and #Consumers150), there will be a “Consumer Engagement and Outreach” workshop held at the University of Ottawa on 18 September 2017. Information about this workshop can be found here.

 

 

 

New “Everyday Legal Problems and the Cost of Justice in Canada” Reports

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The Canadian Forum on Civil Justice (CFCJ) has published five new reports based on data from their Everyday Legal Problems and the Cost of Justice in Canada study. As part of this national study, over 3,000 people in Canada were surveyed about their attitudes towards and experiences with the justice system in Canada. Specifically, they were asked about their views on the Canadian justice system, the kinds of civil and family justice problems they experience, their methods of dealing with these problems, and the associated costs they incur to resolve them. The five new reports present survey data broken down according to the following respondent characteristics: “Age,” “Gender,” “Canadian Region,” “Education” and “Born in Canada”. The reports are published on the CFCJ’s “Cost of Justice” page and can be accessed by clicking on the hyperlinked titles below:

Age

Gender

Canadian Region

Education

Born in Canada