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REGIONAL WRAP-UP T he recently opened com- munity court in down- town Vancouver, the fi rst of its kind in Canada, is the latest legal innovation aiming to solve chronic problems in B.C.'s legal system. Th e new court stems from the B.C. Jus- tice Review Task Force's street crime working group, which published its report in 2005. "Beyond the revolving door: A new response to chronic of- fenders" and the B.C. govern- ment endorsed the creation of the Downtown Community Court. Community courts are ac- probation offi cers, forensic li- aison workers, a forensic psy- chiatrist, a nurse, health justice liaison workers, employment assistance workers, a victim services worker, a B.C. Hous- ing support worker, and a na- tive court worker. Judge Th omas Gove, the new Premier Gordon Campbell, right, along with Attorney General Wally Oppal and Provincial Court of B.C. Chief Judge Hugh Stansfield, officially open Vancouver's Downtown Community Court on Sept. 6. tive in the U.S., England, Aus- tralia, New Zealand, Ireland, Scotland, and South Africa with many supported in their development by the Centre for Court Innovation (www.courtinnovation.org). Vancouver's is based on Brooklyn's successful Red Hook Community Justice Centre and other models in Portland and Seattle. Th e court, at 211 Gore Ave., has two hearing rooms that will process an estimated 1,500 off enders each year, provid- ing speedy redress to cases that involve social, mental health, and substance abuse problems. Th e new facility will house a provincial court judge, a co-ordinator, a Crown counsel, a de- fence lawyer, a Vancouver police offi cer, sheriff s, court clerks, presiding judge, was instrumen- tal in the design and establish- ment of the court. Judge David Pendleton will also sit in the community court. Simon Fraser University's criminology depart- ment will monitor the impact the facility is making. (More information at www.criminal justicereform.gov.bc.ca). Th e community court follows a pilot project introduced spring 2008 — also as a justice reform project — aimed at halt- ing repeat off enders. According to the ministry's statistics, 50 per cent of reported crimes are committed by 10 per cent of off enders. Prolifi c off enders also have lengthy records, with 20 or more property crimes. Research has shown that changing behaviour patterns through policing and counselling can result in a reduced activity in crime. Prolifi c management programs have been established in Kamloops, Nanaimo, Prince George, Surrey, Victoria, and Williams Lake. — JS lawyer in the town of 850, located about 90 minutes southwest of Winnipeg and 16 kilometres north of the U.S. border. Manitou is small enough that Selby can walk to work and go L home for lunch every day. "You can't get that if you work in a big city. If you work at the corner of Portage and Main [in Winnipeg], you're fi ghting traffi c once or twice a day. I live right next door to the golf course, you can golf any time you want," he says. Manitou has a couple of grocery stores but for clothes, resi- dents head to Morden or Winker, half-an-hour drive away, or a little bit further to Winnipeg. Th e town has an arena, a new swimming pool with water slides, and a curling rink as well as restaurants, a hotel and bakery — but no movie theatre. Nearby is the Pembina Valley, a paradise for outdoor enthusiasts and not far away is the three-chairliſt Holiday Mountain ski hill. Playing a role at your children's schools is much easier in a small community than in the big city, says Selby. Th e local high 8 NO VEMBER / DECEMBER 2008 www. mag.com TEST YOUR CHOPS AT A RURAL FIRM school has less than arry Selby credits his unique recruitment pitch for helping double the number of lawyers in his fi rm. Th e owner of Selby Law Offi ce in Manitou, Man., recently hired his third 200 students while the elementary school has about 250 students. "[In Manitou], you can know the teach- ers, the principal, your board reps, and the superintendent. You can have a personal relationship with all of those people very easily and be very involved," he says. Selby says working for a rural fi rm really tests lawyers' chops because they have to do everything. "Th e bread and butter here is real estate and commercial work, estate work and wills. We do a fair amount of corporate work, family work as well as some litigation and some criminal work," he says. "It's never ever been boring. I came out here for a year and I've been here 33-and-a- half years now. I still enjoy going to work every morning." — GEOFF KIRBYSON gmkirbyson@shaw.ca PHOTO COURTESY OF MINISTRY OF ATTORNEY GENERAL