Category Legal Services

Alberta Law Foundation Publishes Report on Newcomers’ Legal Needs

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A recently published report from the Alberta Law Foundation examines gaps in access to justice for newcomers and immigrants in Alberta. The report explores the practicability of a newcomer legal services fund aimed at supporting the legal needs of newcomers in the province.

The report highlights several important findings:

  • Newcomers and immigrants in Alberta face various access to justice barriers related to language and cultural misunderstandings, inconsistent service provision, complex legal systems and limited multilingual services.
  • Newcomers and immigrants in Alberta face various legal challenges, most commonly in the areas of immigration, family, housing, and employment law. Many people face additional challenges rooted in discrimination, human rights issues, and a lack of understanding of their legal rights and obligations.
  • Service providers face several obstacles to meeting the legal needs of newcomers and immigrants, including limited funding, overworked staff, and insufficient training in trauma-informed care and cultural competency.

The Legal Needs of Newcomers in Alberta: Final Report is written by Kristen Seipp. The report is available in English here: https://albertalawfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Legal-Needs-of-Newcomers-_Final-Report_Alberta-Law-Foundation.pdf.

Canadian Journal of Law and Society Publishes Special Issue on People-Centred Justice

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A new open access special issue on people-centred justice has been published by the Canadian Journal of Law and Society. The issue covers almost a dozen topics including:

  • People-Centred Justice: Reimagining Law, Institutions and Process by Andrew Pilliar and Michelle Lawrence
  • People-Centered Justice in International Assistance: Rule-of-Law Path Dependencies or New Paths to Justice for All? by Adrian Di Giovanni and Maaike De Langen
  • Person-Centred Justice and Dispute Resolution: The Potential of Lay Courts by Jérémy Boulanger-Bonnelly
  • Towards People-Centered Justice: The Conflict Resolution Routes of People Facing Legal Problems by Megan Capp and Yvon Dandurand
  • Using Social Media as a Tool to Inform Person-Centred Justice by Matthew Dylag
  • Court Form Accessibility: Adopting, Designing and Evaluating Online Guided Pathways by Amy Salyzyn, Jacquelyn Burkell, Esti Azizi and David Westcott
  • Welfarism and People-Centred Justice by Noel Semple

The special issue is available online here: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/canadian-journal-of-law-and-society-la-revue-canadienne-droit-et-societe/issue/1A0FBAF126BB8296AC0466ACA65CB67C.

Justice Canada Publishes Black Justice Strategy Implementation Plan

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Canada’s Department of Justice has announced the release of Canada’s Black Justice Strategy Implementation Plan. The Plan, entitled Toward Transformative Change: an Implementation Plan for Canada’s Black Justice Strategy, creates a 10-year timeline to address the over-representation of Black people in Canada’s justice system caused by systemic inequalities. Proposed funding investments to support Canada’s first ever Black Justice Strategy would be spread across nine departments and agencies. Proposed investments of $23.6 million over two years would support the following Department of Justice Canada activities, beginning in the 2025-26 fiscal year:

  • Develop Black-specific court worker/navigation services
  • Expand the use of Impact of Race and Culture Assessment reports at decision points in the criminal justice system other than sentencing
  • Develop supports for Black victims and survivors of crime
  • Extend the External Steering Group to provide expert advice on implementing the Black Justice Strategy
  • Develop Black-specific diversion, conferencing, and bail supervision projects for youth

Toward Transformative Change: an Implementation Plan for Canada’s Black Justice Strategy, released by the Department of Justice Canada is available online in English here: https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/cj-jp/cbjs-scjn/ttc-ect/index.html.

Étapes pour un changement transformateur : Plan de mise en œuvre de la Stratégie canadienne en matière de justice pour les personnes noires est disponible en français ici : https://www.justice.gc.ca/fra/jp-cj/scjn-cbjs/ect-ttc/index.html.

Information for this post was gleaned from the Department of Justice Canada’s news release on Canada’s Black Justice Strategy’s Implementation Plan, available in full here:  https://www.canada.ca/en/department-justice/news/2025/02/release-of-canadas-black-justice-strategys-implementation-plan-an-important-step-toward-transformational-change-in-the-criminal-justice-system-in-c.html.

Yukon Law Society Report Examines Access to Lawyers throughout the Yukon

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A new report by the Law Society of Yukon’s Access to Justice Committee explores access to lawyers who reside and practice in the Yukon, in people-centred practice areas. Members of the Access to Justice Committee visited 13 communities throughout the Yukon and spoke with representatives about the challenges experienced when trying to access the justice system. The Committee also reviewed national data, and local data from legal information organizations and the Yukon law courts. Information in the Access to Justice Committee’s report is further informed by three surveys administered by the Committee.

Findings from these sources suggest that people in the Yukon do not have adequate access to lawyers. In particular, there are few lawyers and legal resources available outside of Whitehorse. According to the report, “the lack of legal resources suggests inequities in accessing lawyers across communities.” The report also identifies specific challenges related to: knowing when and how to contact a lawyer, a lack of civil law lawyers, case volume and delays in circuit court, not enough legal aid coverage, and a lack of cultural awareness or integration in the community.Access to Justice in the Yukon: Access to Lawyers, a report by the Law Society of Yukon’s Access to Justice Committee is available in English here: https://lawsocietyyukon.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/A2J-Report-Access-to-Lawyers-July-5-2024.pdf.

Justice Canada Publishes Report Examining Out-of-Court Dispute Resolution in Family Law

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In 2023, the Department of Justice Canada launched a study aimed at examining government-funded out-of-court dispute resolution services for families experiencing a separation or divorce in Canada. The study focuses on better understanding the following questions:

  • What are the mediation or conciliation services or programs offered by provinces and territories to resolve family law issues?
  • How are outcomes measured? What does a successful or partially successful outcome look like? Partially successful outcome?
  • Which factors are consistent across jurisdictions?

The final report includes a summary of program features, details on COVID-19 pandemic response and other changes to programs, service metrics and discusses the potential for further research.

The recently published report on “Out-of-court dispute resolution for families experiencing separation or divorce in Canada” is available in English here: https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/jr/dispute-differends/docs/rsd_rr2023_out-of-court-dr-eng.pdf.

New UK-Based Report Examines Economic Value of Free Legal Advice

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A report commissioned by the UK-based Access to Justice Foundation and the Bar Council of England and Wales presents new insights on the economic value of the free advice sector in the United Kingdom. The new report recognizes impacts of inflation, rising energy and food prices, and the cost-of-living crisis on the need for legal advice.

The main objectives of this research include:

  • Provide current estimates of the direct economic benefits of the free legal advice sector to government finances.
  • Examine the possible impacts of free legal advice on reducing costs and backlogs in the court and tribunal service.
  • Weigh the possible need for free legal advice in the longer term.

Key findings include:

  • The provision of free specialist legal advice saves the Treasury approximately £9,100 per case.
  • For every £1 spent on free specialist legal advice and its outcomes in 2023, there was a saving to government of £2.71.
  • Advice provision helps to ease pressure on courts and tribunals through improved efficiency and fewer litigants in person.
  • Despite the positive impact on government finances and positive knock-on impacts, advice providers say the free legal advice sector is at a ‘breaking point’, with funding failing to meet current demand or expected future demand.

The Value of Justice for All: Evaluating the Case for Funding the Free Specialist Legal Advice Sector report was prepared by Pragmatix Advisory. The August 2024 Value of Justice for All report is available online here: https://atjf.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/The-value-of-justice-for-all-a-report-for-the-Access-to-Justice-Foundation-and-the-Bar-Council-from-Pragmatix-Advisory.pdf.

U.S. Survey Highlights Misconceptions about Access to Civil Justice

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Recently published findings from an online survey in the U.S. reveal that more than half of adults mistakenly believe they are entitled to legal representation for civil legal matters if they cannot afford representation. Among adults ages 18-34, the figure is higher with approximately two thirds of adults in this age range believing they are entitled to legal representation for civil legal matters. The survey also indicates that approximately 59% of people who experienced a civil legal matter within the past three years did not seek help from a lawyer.

The online survey was carried out from July 11 to July 15 with 2,096 adult (18+) respondents in the U.S. The survey was commissioned by the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) and conducted by The Harris Poll. To learn more about the survey, visit: https://www.lsc.gov/press-release/more-half-americans-mistakenly-think-they-have-right-attorney-all-civil-cases.

New American Bar Association Report Highlights Gaps in Access to Legal Assistance in Rural Areas

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The American Bar Association (ABA) recently published is fifth annual Profile of the Legal Profession report. The 2023 report marks the first time that the ABA report examines access to civil legal aid in the U.S.

Key findings in the 2023 Profile of the Legal Profession Report include the following:

  • There are more than 10,000 paid civil legal aid lawyers across the country, but significant differences exist among states and even within states.
  • Even accounting for differences in population and poverty rates, some states have many legal aid lawyers per 10,000 residents in poverty (for example, New York, Minnesota and Maine) and some have few (for example, Mississippi, Arizona and Georgia).
  • New York City alone has more than 1,000 paid legal aid lawyers — roughly one-tenth of the nation’s total, even though it has less than 3% of the nation’s population.
  • Rural towns and counties have roughly half the number of legal aid lawyers per capita than urbanized cities.

The report also provides insights on pro bono services, legal education, wages, demographics in the legal profession, judges, well-being, technology and women in the legal profession.

The 2023 American Bar Association Profile of the Legal Profession report is available online here: https://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/news/2023/potlp-2023.pdf.

Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society Announces Launch of Innovation Sandbox Pilot Project

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Following approval at a November 2022 Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society Council meeting, the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society officially launched the Innovation Sandbox Pilot Project on October 24, 2023. The goal of the Innovation Sandbox Pilot Project is to foster “creative and novel solutions to access to justice issues across Nova Scotia”.

By removing regulatory barriers that would otherwise delimit participant law firms from engaging in certain projects, the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society seeks to provide a space for the development of new kinds of legal service delivery that will improve access to justice in the province. Initiatives undertaken through the Innovation Sandbox Pilot Project can focus on embracing new technologies, business models, or funding structures beyond the parameters of industry norms.

At present, the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society is working with three participants as a pilot, with a view to putting in place a structure to monitor and accept applications from more firms.

To learn more about the Innovation Sandbox Pilot Project and how it could help improve access to justice in Nova Scotia, please visit: https://nsbs.org/society-news/a2j-week-innovation-sandbox-aims-to-improve-access-to-justice/.

Information for this post was gleaned from: https://nsbs.org/society-news/a2j-week-innovation-sandbox-aims-to-improve-access-to-justice/.

Landmark Report Warns of Threats to Rule of Law in the UK

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A groundbreaking new report is sounding the alarm over growing threats to the rule of law in the UK within the past decade. The State We’re In: Addressing Threats & Challenges to the Rule of Law uses the Venice Commission’s Rule of Law Toolkit to examine changes to democracy in the UK based on five rule-of-law benchmarks:

  • Legality: transparency, accountability, inclusivity and democracy in law-making and legal institutions
  • Human rights: safeguarding the dignity of all human beings
  • Legal certainty and the prevention of the misuse of power: clarity and predictability in the law
  • Access to justice: “independent and impartial judiciary, a  robust legal profession, and practical and effective access to the courts”
  • Equality and non-discrimination: equal treatment before the law

On the “access to justice” benchmark, the report cites the corrosive impacts of cuts to legal aid, which have had serious consequences for broad-based access to justice, with delays of months to years for some trials. The report identifies (i) the ongoing courts backlog crisis, which saw more than 300,000 cases outstanding in the Magistrates’ courts as of March 2023; (ii) decreases in annual public spending on legal aid by a quarter from 2009 to 2022; and, (iii) “legal aid deserts” which now leave some with no access to legal advice at all, as evidence of the extent to which access to justice has been, and continues to be eroded.

The report offers 20 recommendations to address, and potentially reverse damage to the rule of law foundation.

The State We’re In: Addressing Threats & Challenges to the Rule of Law (September 2023) was produced by JUSTICE.org. JUSTICE is a law reform and human rights organisation, founded in 1957, that aims to strengthen the UK’s justice system. 

The State We’re In: Addressing Threats & Challenges to the Rule of Law is available on justice.org.uk here: https://justice.org.uk/the-uks-longstanding-commitment-to-the-rule-of-law-is-under-grave-threat-according-to-landmark-report-from-justice/.