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BUD SMITH: The system has

more people that want to. use

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a system. that uses

’ Committee’?

In its. final form, the Access to
Justice committee report makes -

182 recommendations covering a
broad range of topics. It evisions
“plain
language”’ that can be easily

understood; meets the justice re-

quirements of: specific groups

such as the Natives, contains an
affordable system of fees and

costs and .also suggests some
changes to legal statutes and re-

defines court procedures and
‘jurisdictions.
’ Attorney General. Bud Smith.

will be attending a Chamber of
Commerce-sponsored informa-

tional dinner meeting in Terrace -

on Tuesday, Jan. 10 to explain
the the recommendations con-
tained in the report. With this in
mind the following report sum-

marizes the majority of the.
‘recommendations, For more in-

formation on next Tuesday's
meeting, phone the Chamber of
Commerce at 635-2063 as soon

_ as possible.

Plain language
First and foremost is Plain

Language. In 1958, the. Mon-

treal. Star described the dif-
ference between plain English
and that used by the legal com-
munity in this way: “When a
man gives you an orange, he

‘simply says, ‘Have an orange’,

But when that same transaction
is entrusted to a lawyer, he
adopts this form: ‘I hereby give
and convey to you, all- and
singular, my estate and interest,

right, title, claim and advantages

of in said orange, together with
all its rind, juice, pulp and pips
and all rights: and advantages
therein with full power to bite,
suck and otherwise to eat the
same or give the same away with
or without the rind, skin, juice,
pulp and pips, anything herein-
before or hereinafter or in any

- other means of whatever nature

or kind whatsoever to the con-
trary in any . wise notwith-

. standing’.”’

For most people, “have an
orange’? already implies that the

_ person receiving that asset has

ail rights to its properties — the
lawyer has added nothing but
confusion. Recognizing this, the
committee has recommended
that the Attorney Genera!
establish a ‘Plain Language

to develop a

. - sttategy for the implementation * ,
: of plain language in the justice

_ system, plain. language that is
. concise yet understandable.
. “British Columbians are entitled.

toa justice: system that they can .

understand, ” states. the report.

“Access

AS far as Access to Legal In-
formation and Advice is con-
: cerned, the report is equally self-. |
critical: of. our existing. system. .
‘A toll-free ‘network to allow. §

province-wide access to legal in-
formation and referrals should

be established,” suggests the
text of the report, This would

mean public access to legal in-
formation, written materials,
community resources, and free
telephone - interviews with a
lawyer.

7 ‘Education

The report also” suggests that
Education plays an important

‘part in accessing the system.
“Further initiatives should be |
- taken as needed to ensure that. j

teachers have the information,
textbooks and other resources
they require to enable them to

educate children about our legal ae

institutions and justice system,’

says the report. And further rec-
ommendations recognize our
ethnic diversity and add some
teeth to this statement: “The
provision of information to
teachers, students and the public
in general should be a priority,”
states the report. ‘‘The govern-

- ment and other agencies should

continue to support the
‘volunteer. sector in order to in-
crease their understanding of the
justice system.”’

Alcohol and drugs"
Next, the report recognizes
the impact of, and suggests some
solutions to,Alcohol and Drug
Abuse, This was seen by the
committee as: a major con-
tributing factor to many

criminal acts which affect both

individuals and families, Per- :
sonal injury, impaired driving,
drug trafficking, assault,
homicide, property damage,
theft, marital discord and
juvenile delinquency are, ac-
cording to the report, all related |
to substance abuse.

The report recommends a sys-
tem for the collection of infor-
mation on the role of drugs and

alcohol in criminal, civil and

family disputes and the im-
plementation of a program

‘ similar to Alberta’s IMPACT

program for repeat offenders.
The IMPACT program was im-
plemented in Alberta in the early
1980’s to complement their. com-

pulsory Impaired Drivers’

Course.

Courts

Recommendations involving
the Supreme and County Courts
don’t affect the majority of B.C.
citizens, but are nevertheless im-
portant to the legal community.
These recommendations call for
supreme court judges in
Kamloops, Kelowna, the Koot-
enays, Prince George, Prince
Rupert and Vancouver Island
and would bring justice to of-
fenders in a more familiar en-
vironment.

The committee also suggests
monetary changes by extending

the jurisdiction of the County

‘Court from $50,000 to $100,000
and in land title disputes from
$100,000 to $200,000. In addi-
tion, all motor vehicle accident
cases would be heard in County
Court, and in the event that the
amount involved clearly - ex-

ceeded - $100,000, a Supreme

Court judge could have the case
elevated to the Supreme Court
where necessary.;.. - .

The recommendations also
suggest changirig the name of
the Supreme Court of B.C. to
something less ‘‘confusing’’ to
the public, and states that all
procedural changes should be in
place by Jan, 1, .1990. ‘And,
three years after their implemen-
tation, a committee should be
formed to determine the overall
efficiency Of the system prior to
a merger of the supreme and
county court systems,

Family law

In regard to cases involving
Family Law, which are presently
heard. in both the Supreme and
Provincial: ‘courts, the report
suggests. that all family matters
should fall under the jurisdiction
of ‘one court. According’ to the
committee, ‘‘The Supreme
Court of B.C. should have ex-
clusive jurisdiction over all fami-
ly law matters under the Family

Relations Act and under the .

Divorce Act,’’ and Provincial
Court judges should be ap-
pointed ‘‘masters’’ of the
Supreme Court and in that
capacity continue to hear the
types of family law cases they
now hear, It adds that the Chief
Justice should consider an ‘‘in-
formal family law division’’ in
the Supreme Court where ap-
propriate, and legal counsel
should be provided to those in
financial need.

With regard to child ap-
prehension, the report asks for a
“notice to parents’’ and that the
Family and Child Service Act
should be amended to require
full disclosure of the child’s file
to the parents while protecting
the identity of informants, Fur-
ther, the report states that gov-
ernment should be reimbursed

by family members ‘‘to the ex-
tent that {they can afford to
pay’.

The committee has also ad-
dressed the need for legislative
change in the identification and
distribution of family property
in the event of separation or
divorce. “The revision should
make a clear statement of the

: principles on which family.prop-

erty is to be shared by spouses or
former spouses,’’ states the
report, It suggests that restrain-
ing orders should be flexible but .
at the same time able to compel
a spouse to produce documents .
for inspection by an- auditor.

- This includes corporate docu-

ments where a spouse owns
more than 50 percent of the
issued shares.

Child support awards are ad--
dresséd by suggesting that
statistical information on the ac-

‘tual cost of supporting a child

should be established and an
educational system should be

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: implemented which will impress

on the bench, bar and public,
the importance of complying

with maintenance orders. It adds |

that mediation should be’ en-

couraged but the dependent

spouse should receive, at an ear-

ly stage, the estimated costs of
litigation, Also, arrears of main-) _ -

tenance orders should’ be ‘“‘re-

duced or cancelled only. in the . |

most .extraordinary circum-
stances’’.

Criminat faw. .

There. are

mendations with regard .

Criminal law and Procedure,

The most basic of these states
that Crown Counsel should

receive an appropriate level of. .

funding for staffing and equip-

ment, and that prosecution work

should be contracted out to the
“‘private bar’? where necessary
but the authority to lay charges
should remain with the-crown.
In addition, the officer in charge
of a police detachment, when
dissatisfied with a crown deci-

sion not to lay charges, should |

have the right to have that deci-

sion reviewed by the regional ©
crown counsel or the deputy at- :

torney general.
Further, the report supports

the principle of an ‘‘enhanced’’ —
preliminary enquiry and the |

defence attorney should receive
comptete disclosure of all
evidence which the crown in-

tends to present. Also, the Legal
Aid tariff should be amended.to —
compensate lawyers for motions

made prior to-the trial date: .
The report addresses the needs
of witnesses’ and victims by

stating that the crown should be .
allowed the necessary time to:

meet the reasonable needs and
concerns of witnesses. In addi-
tion, the Ministry of the At-
torney General should produce a
_video: to familiarize witnesses
“ with the justice system and trial
process. Also, consideration

should be given to increasing
coverage under the Criminal In-
juries Compensation Act and a
“strong message must be sent to
the public that wife assault is as

i continued on page 23

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