NCJ Number
72482
Date Published
1979
Length
41 pages
Annotation
Significant developments in legal aid and legal services in Canada during the 1970's are discussed, with detailed examples drawn from the Provinces of Ontario, Quebec, and Saskatchewan and the experimental projects developed within each of these jurisdictions.
Abstract
An overview touches on the rapid growth of legal aid in Canada during the seventies, the outgrowth of legal services from the 1967 Ontario Legal Aid Plan, and the adaptations of the Canadian model from the British judicare model and the American community law office. The directions in which each of the Provinces have gone with respect to legal aid are summarized, and the Federal Government's moves to increase its involvement in legal aid services are recounted. Specific legal aid schemes are then discussed for Quebec, Saskatchewan, and Ontario. Quebec's implementation of a mixed judicare-staff scheme is examined. Descriptions of Saskatchewan's system point out its primary use of staff lawyers in community law offices. Remarks on Ontario reveal this Province's retention of the judicare system which delivers legal services through the private bar. Concluding remarks look to future priorities, such as assessing the cost effectivenss of services offered and the effectiveness or impact of the services for or on the client. Also provided are 144 footnotes.