Access to Justice

From Kamloops Daily News (December 18, 2009)

The head of B.C.’s Legal Services Society will be in Kamloops today to meet with rebellious lawyers who say they will strike against legal-aid work to protest the closure of the local office.

Mark Benton said Thursday he wants a face-to-face meeting with the Kamloops group to discuss their concerns.

Lawyers said earlier this month they will withdraw their services for family and criminal duty counsel work in Kamloops starting Jan. 11.

The lawyers object to the LSS’s decision to close the local legal-aid office and replace its six workers with a contracted agent. The office will close March 31.

The protest means many people who appear in criminal court for first appearance and bail hearings as well as guilty pleas and sentencings in minor cases will have to represent themselves. As well, people embroiled in family law disputes will be require to appear in court without the benefit of advice.

The influx of unrepresented people could cause delays and backlog as judges work to help people through complex legal processes.

Benton said the LSS views duty counsel positions as an important service it delivers to people who need help in court.

He noted the society announced this week it will use some its non-government income — about $5 million — to provide enhanced duty counsel services in B.C. and restore some services previously cut.

The society cut legal-aid funding to people who face such things as breaches of court orders earlier this year, for example. Benton said the LSS wants to fund a new duty-counsel position in regional courthouses like Kamloops to help those individuals with their court appearances.

The society also wants to increase the number of family law duty counsel positions, allowing lawyers to meet with people in locations other than the courthouse.

Benton said the LSS wants to see more duty counsel in courthouses like Kamloops, not less. It makes Friday’s meeting all the more important, as the enhanced duty counsel work requires co-operative lawyers.

“If (Kamloops lawyers) have concerns, we have concerns,” Benton said. “We’re concerned about the prospect of disruption of service. We see (duty counsel) as an important service.”

If Kamloops lawyers remain firm in their protest and refuse to take on duty counsel work, Benton said the society might be required to look for willing lawyers in other communities.

As well, the enhanced services just announced by the LSS may not be made available in Kamloops, Benton said.

“We don’t have enough money to do everything everywhere,” he said, suggesting the limited funds could be spent elsewhere in B.C.

David Dundee, the local spokesman for the legal-aid protestors, said local lawyers are happy to meet with Benton and hear about the society’s new proposals.

“We’ll listen to anything that helps legal-aid,” he said. “Any good news is welcome.”

But Dundee said the proposed spending does not reverse the decision to close the Kamloops LSS office — the group’s main concern.

The meeting is expected to take place at the Kamloops courthouse starting at 12:30 p.m.