Access to Justice

LSO Calls for Comment on New Access to Justice Initiative

• November 28, 2018
• Laura Lepine
• Comments Off on LSO Calls for Comment on New Access to Justice Initiative

The Law Society of Ontario (“LSO”) is soliciting comments on a draft regulatory framework that would allow lawyers and paralegals to provide legal services to the clients of registered civil society organization – at no cost to the clients of those organizations. » Read the rest

Another Blow to Access to Justice in Canada

• October 25, 2018
• Laura Lepine
• Comments Off on Another Blow to Access to Justice in Canada

The Conversation has recently published an article by Doug Ferguson and Jason H. Voss entitled “How a proposed law could cut off legal aid for low-income people”.

The article discusses Bill C-75, a federal bill currently before the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights. » Read the rest

The Ontario Human Rights Commission is hosting a FREE training on its new policy on Accessible Education for Students with Disabilities

• October 12, 2018
• Laura Lepine
• Comments Off on The Ontario Human Rights Commission is hosting a FREE training on its new policy on Accessible Education for Students with Disabilities

The policy addresses continued barriers to education that students face at all levels of the education system, including:

• inaccessible build environments
• inadequate resources and supports in the classroom
• long waiting lists for professional assessments
• inappropriate requests by educational institutions for medical information
• denial of disability-related accommodations
• persistent negative attitudes and stereotypes towards people with disabilities
• ineffective dispute resolution processes

Under the Ontario Human Rights Code, students with disabilities have the right to meaningful access to education comparable with their peers, and with accommodations commensurate with their needs. » Read the rest

Update: Charities can sponsor Test Case litigation

• August 21, 2018
• Laura Lepine
• Comments Off on Update: Charities can sponsor Test Case litigation

Bakerlaw recently posted about the Ontario Superior Court of Justice’s decision in Canada Without Poverty v AG Canada, 2018 ONSC 4147, in which the Court struck down a prohibition in the Income Tax Act preventing registered charities from devoting more than 10% of their resources to “political activities”. » Read the rest

Charities can sponsor Test Case litigation

• July 31, 2018
• Laura Lepine
• Comments Off on Charities can sponsor Test Case litigation

On July 16th, 2018, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice struck down a prohibition in the Income Tax Act preventing registered charities from devoting more than 10% of their resources to “political activities”. This welcome decision paves the way for registered charities to sponsor advocacy that may previously have been limited as “political”, including “test case” litigation. » Read the rest

Liberals to scrap policy that rejects sick, disabled immigrants

• November 27, 2017
• BakerLaw
• Comments Off on Liberals to scrap policy that rejects sick, disabled immigrants

“Canada is committed to ditching a policy that rejects immigrants because they’re sick or disabled and could be a drag on the health system, Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen says.

Calling it an “important and sensitive” issue, Hussen said the government will look at all options to revamp the 40-year-old policy, which bars entry to applicants when they could be costly to public health or social service systems. » Read the rest

David Baker’s Words of Caution for Applicant Counsel

• November 12, 2017
• David Baker
• Comments Off on David Baker’s Words of Caution for Applicant Counsel

On November 13, 2017, David Baker will be presenting his paper, “Words of Caution for Applicant Counsel” at the Ontario Bar Association’s program, Your First Application Before the Human Rights Tribunal. Among the critical pieces of advice discussed, is the following:

Applicant counsel owes a duty to their clients to advise them that the HRTO is increasingly denying Applicants accessible justice, particularly in large or systemic cases. » Read the rest

Further Reflections on the Court Challenges Program

• March 21, 2017
• BakerLaw
• Comments Off on Further Reflections on the Court Challenges Program

The Ontario Bar Association has recently published an article by Kiran Kang entitled: Funding Charter Litigation: Lawyers reflect on the revival of a cancelled program.

The article contains comments from lawyers, including bakerlaw’s David Baker, who were able to bring important equality cases thanks to the funding from the former Court Challenges Program . » Read the rest

David Baker’s Letter to the Editor

• March 16, 2017
• David Baker
• Comments Off on David Baker’s Letter to the Editor

Toronto Star recently published bakerlaw’s David Baker’s letter to the editor regarding improvements to our legal system. You can read his letter here (link).

Report on Legal Capacity, Decision-Making and Guardianship

• March 8, 2017
• BakerLaw
• Comments Off on Report on Legal Capacity, Decision-Making and Guardianship

The Law Commission of Ontario has announced today that it has released its Final Report on Legal Capacity, Decision-making and guardianship. You can view the announcement here (link).

The report examines Ontario’s current policies and laws pertaining to these topics as well as suggested revisions. » Read the rest