Written by Calvin Ediger Recently the Canadian Bar Association released a report on the impact of COVID-19 on the legal profession in Canada. In general, the report found that the effect of the pandemic was to accelerate the adoption of technology in the legal field, while not necessarily considering the risks and drawbacks that came […]
News: Canadian Bar Association Report on the Impact of COVID-19 Read More »
Written by Calvin Ediger On March 25th the Manitoba government announced that it will be providing $2 million in funding for a youth healing lodge in Thompson. The lodge will be operated by the Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak (MKO) Inc. The MKO is a non-profit organization that advocates on behalf of the citizens of 26 First Nations
News: Province Announces Funding for New Youth Healing Lodge in Thompson Read More »
Written by Calvin Ediger Recently the Department of Justice released a study on serious legal problems faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, and other sexual-minority people living in Western Canada. The study focused on the types of serious problems the participants faced in the last three years and the actions they had taken to address these
Written by Calvin Ediger On January 18th, 2022 Statistics Canada released an article in its Juristat publication entitled Experiences of Serious Problems or Disputes in the Canadian Provinces. The article briefly summarizes the findings of the 2021 Canadian Legal Problems Survey which asked respondents if they had experienced a serious legal problem over the preceding three years. The survey’s purpose
Statistics Canada Releases Results of Legal issues Survey Read More »
By Calvin Ediger Legal clinics provide an important avenue for access to justice initiatives across Canada. Recently the Department of Justice released a report studying the impacts of Covid-19 upon legal clinics across the country. The study focused mainly on clinics that provided services tied to federal jurisdiction, “criminal law, marriage and divorce, immigration and
By Calvin Ediger On December 3rd, 2020, royal assent was given to The Remote Witnessing and Commissioning Act which amended several acts, including The Manitoba Evidence Act, to allow the electronic witnessing of documents including affidavits. Previously affiants (those making the affidavit) were required to be physically present with the individual authorized to administer the oath and witness
Written by Calvin Ediger The Supreme Court has recently clarified the law with regards to public interest standing in British Columbia (Attorney General) v. Council of Canadians with Disabilities. Public interest standing allows organizations or individuals to bring a matter to court even though they are not directly impacted or had their rights infringed. This improves access
Written by Calvin Ediger In July 2021 the Department of Justice’s Evaluation Branch released a report entitled Evaluation of the Legal Aid Program. Presented within was an evaluation of the effectiveness in federal funding for legal aid programs covering the fiscal years 2016-2017 to 2019-2020.[1] More information was released by the Department of Justice’s Research and Statistics
News: Department of Justice Releases Dual Reports on Legal Aid in Canada Read More »
Written by Calvin Ediger The Manitoba Legislature has recently passed the Court of Appeal and Provincial Court Amendment Act. The act serves to advance the cause of access to justice in Manitoba. Specifically, the act allows for the Chief Justice of Manitoba to appoint a judge to meet with the parties to attempt to settle issues
News: Manitoba Revises Court of Appeal and Provincial Court Rules Read More »
Written by Calvin Ediger In its recent report No Turning Back: CBA Task Force Report on Justice Issues Arising from Covid-19, the Canadian Bar Association remarked on the rapid adoption of new technology by Canadian legal actors. Many of these newly adopted technologies promise to save time, costs, and improve access for individuals seeking to access
Opinion: Open Courts and Access to Justice in the Digital Age Read More »
