On 13 March 2015, the Action Committee on Access to Justice in Civil and Family Matters—which was assembled in 2008 at the invitation of the Chief Justice of Canada as a catalyst for meaningful action to justice reform—convened a meeting for provincial and territorial access to justice groups in Toronto, Ontario. The groups met to discuss the future of access to justice in Canada following the release of the Committee’s final report, Access to Civil and Family Justice: A Roadmap for Change, and last year’s Action Committee Colloquium.
Over the past few years, the Action Committee has worked to encourage system-wide improvements to ensure access to justice for all Canadians. The Committee has approached this by pursuing a strategic approach to reforms and coordinating the efforts of all participants concerned with civil justice.
The March meeting provided local access to justice groups across Canada with a forum to share access to justice initiatives in their jurisdictions, successes and failures, and plans to move forward. The meeting provided the groups an opportunity to discuss potential collaborations across jurisdictions and ways to increase communication through institutional support.
The meeting highlighted key issues of relationship-building between local and national access to justice committees, public education, engagement and innovation. These discussions included examining existing and potential committee structures and membership design, as well as approaches to system-wide collaboration amongst the groups and with the public.
The Action Committee, which is made up of leaders across Canada in the access to justice landscape, comes together to foster engagement and coordinate the efforts of individuals and organizations concerned with civil and family justice. The Canadian Forum on Civil Justice is pleased to play a support role in the execution of research and dissemination activities for the Committee.
For more information on the Action Committee, visit: www.cfcj-fcjc.org/action-committee.