In praise of advocacy, and a challenge to the legal profession

This blog post is based on the Advocates’ Society Keynote delivered February 20, 2020. Full text of the speech is available here. “At the end of the day, we need and will continue to need people who can listen carefully, respond thoughtfully, and disagree civilly; who can identify the real issues, martial the relevant facts,…

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“It’s the economy, stupid”

[This blog post was previously published on The Access Revolution, a collaborative blog hosted by Dr. Julie Macfarlane and the National Self-Represented Litigants Project.] Sorry for the pejorative. It’s me quoting Professor Gillian Hadfield quoting James Carville, who famously advised Bill Clinton to focus on the economy during his 1992 presidential campaign. Gillian Hadfield is…

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Is the justice system ready to innovate?

On November 20, 2018, A2JBC’s Leadership Group convened at the Telus Innovation Centre for a stimulating day of conversation about opportunities for innovation in the justice system. To start, we heard how artificial intelligence can assist BC doctors and patients with triage and support, improving both groups’ experience of the system. Next, we heard from…

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Face the strange*

One of A2JBC’s messages has been that improving access to the justice system will require taking some risks. A2JBC has also said that effective change will require collaboration and experimentation. We will need to explore ideas that may seem threatening or even, to some, antithetical to justice. Putting the user at the centre of the…

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Innovation in action

Canadian Lawyer magazine recently published two stories about the Aspire Legal Access Initiative (“Aspire”), an initiative which I think represents the type of innovation A2JBC encourages. Aspire seeks to empower self-represented clients dealing with family law matters to navigate the system themselves with the support of affordable, limited scope services. Aspire’s model relies primarily on…

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Engaging the legal profession: the BC Paralegal Association

I recently had the pleasure of speaking to the BC Paralegal Association Annual Fall Dinner on the access to justice challenges we face in our province. I was impressed to learn about the significant growth in membership of the BCPA, and to see so many paralegals coming together to celebrate their success and demonstrate their…

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The Law Society’s role regarding public access to legal services

A recurring access to justice discussion has concerned the role of law societies in meeting the legal needs of the public. The Winter 2016 CBA National Magazine contains an article (“Should lawyers have a monopoly over the provision of legal services?”) arguing that lawyers are not meeting the public’s need for legal services, and that…

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