Report of the Legal Aid Review 2008

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Executive Summary

Section I - Introduction

Section II - Summary of the Major Findings of the 1997 McCamus Report

  1. Development of the Legal Aid System in Ontario
    1. Historical Framework
    2. Signing of the Memorandum of Understanding
    3. Implementation of the MOU
  2. The Establishment of the 1997 Legal Aid Review
  3. The 1997 Legal Aid Review's Findings
    1. The Legal Needs of Low-Income Ontarians
  4. A Framework for Setting Priorities for Legal Aid Services
    1. The State's Obligation to Provide Legal Aid
    2. Priority Setting: the Recent Experience
    3. Towards a New Model for Priority-Setting
    4. The Legal Aid System in Context
    5. The Choice of Delivery Models for Legal Aid
  5. A Blueprint for Legal Aid Services in Ontario
    1. Renewing the Commitment to Legal Aid
    2. Governance

Section III - The Statutory Framework for Legal Aid in Ontario

  1. Governance
  2. Legal Aid Services
    1. Duty Counsel
    2. Certificate Program
    3. Staff Offices
    4. Clinics
  3. Funding
  4. Accountability
    1. Reporting Requirements
  5. Government Role
    1. Regulations
      1. Financial eligibility
      2. Tariff
      3. Scope of legal aid
    2. Temporary Administrator

Section IV - Notable Achievements by LAO

  1. Managing the Transition
  2. Service Delivery
    1. Staff Offices
      1. Refugee Law Office
      2. Family Law Offices
      3. Criminal Law Offices
    2. Duty Counsel
    3. Clinics
    4. Pilot Projects for Aboriginal People
  3. System Improvements for Clients
  4. System Improvements for Service Providers
  5. Quality Assurance
    1. Quality Service Office
    2. Client Service Measures
    3. Minimum Panel Standards
      1. Mentoring Program
      2. Best Practices
    4. Complaints Process
  6. Appendix - LAO Expenditures (000's) in 2007 $

Section V - Summary of Submissions and Consultation

  1. Funding Issues
    1. Certificate System
      1. Hourly rate
      2. Tariff review mechanism
      3. Hour allocations
      4. Big budget cases
    2. Clinic Funding Issues
      1. Community clinics
      2. Specialty clinics
    3. Duty Counsel
    4. General Issues
  2. Coverage Issues
    1. Financial Eligibility
    2. Specific Issues
  3. Governance and Administrative Issues
    1. Board of Directors
    2. Equity Issues
    3. Administrative Issues Surrounding Clinics

Section VI - A Framework for Evaluation

  1. The Rationales for the Ideal of Access to Justice
    1. Access to Justice and the Rule of Law
    2. Access to Justice and Equal Freedom and Dignity of Individuals
    3. Access to Justice and Principles of Equitable Distribution
    4. Access to Justice, the Rule of Law and Economic Prosperity
  2. Assessing the State of the Commitment to Access to Justice in Ontario

Section VII - Innovations in Service Delivery

  1. Building on Current Initiatives
    1. Duty Counsel
    2. Paralegals
    3. Staff Offices
  2. Enhancing Access to Justice
    1. Advice Centres
    2. Technology and Legal Services
      1. Online and telephone legal information
      2. Legal advice hotlines
    3. Legal Insurance Schemes
    4. Competitive Block Tendering
  3. Service Integration
  4. Family Justice Services
  5. Conclusion

Section VIII - The Future of the Certificate System

  1. Introduction
  2. Who Should Determine the Tariff?
  3. How Should the Tariff be Managed?
  4. Achieving an Initial Equilibrium
  5. Appendix A - History of the Tariff Setting Process in Ontario
  6. Appendix B - The Comparative Experience

Section IX - Governance of the Legal Aid System

  1. Introduction
  2. Internal Governance
    1. Administrative Efficiency
    2. Innovation in Service Delivery Modalities
    3. Innovation in Tariff Structures
    4. Quality Assurance
    5. Big Case Management
    6. An Access to Justice Research Function
    7. The Role of the Board at LAO
    8. Transparency and Accountability

  3. External Governance

    1. The Community Legal Clinic System
    2. Student Legal Aid Services Societies (SLASS)
    3. Pro Bono Law Ontario
    4. The Law Foundation of Ontario
    5. The Law Society of Upper Canada
    6. Ministry of the Attorney General
    7. The Federal Government

Section X - Conclusion

Appendix - List of Meetings and Submissions