The most widely read magazine for Canadian lawyers
Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/50839
REGIONAL WRAP-UP let for fixing legal aid, but recommended a number of ways to improve the system. On top of increas- ing the use of staff lawyers as duty counsel and ex- panding the use of paralegals, he pointed to private insurance markets as a viable option for coverage of legal expenses, especially in family law and civil matters. "Prepaid legal plans are not a new concept in Ontario," said Trebilcock. "They were considered and endorsed by the Law Society of Upper Canada in 1993, but have yet to make their way into the mainstream in Ontario. The Law Society of Upper Canada and LAO should accord a high priority to promoting the role of legal insurance in Ontario." Trebilcock also recommended there be a "fundamental review" of legal aid every three years. Ontario Bar Association president Greg Goulin Attorney General Chris Bentley said Bentley "is doing a lot to try to figure out what's wrong. But sooner or later you've got to stop looking at it and start doing something. You've got to start throwing money at it. I'm not talking about throwing money at it like you throw fertilizer at vegetables," he said. "The point is that the gov- ernment has to start investing in justice. If people don't have access to justice, they don't have respect for the rule of law. And then they start taking the law into their own hands." The full report is avail- able at: www.attorneygeneral.jus.gov.on.ca/english/ about/pubs/trebilcock/. — ROBERT TODD rtodd@clbmedia.ca NO MONEY FOR LAW SCHOOLS the summer, the Ministry of Training, Colleges, and Universities said the ratio of law school applicants versus registrants has not substantially changed since 1997, which implies that the prov- O Mundell_CL_Sept_08.qxd 8/6/08 3:49 PM Page 1 The CHRIS BENTLEY Attorney General of Ontario DAVID W.MUNDELL Medal The David W. Mundell Medal is awarded annually to the Ontario writer on legal and professional matters who has, by publication in the preceding year or over a period of years, made a distin- guished contribution to law and letters. The Honourable Warren K.Winkler, Chief Justice of Ontario, has graciously agreed to serve as chairman of the selection committee for this award. The Honourable Warren K. Winkler Chair Selection Committee for the David W. Mundell Medal Osgoode Hall 130 Queen Street West Toronto, Ontario M5H 2N5 CHRIS BENTLEY Attorney General of Ontario Nominations of candidates for this award are invited. Please note that the broad terms of reference for the award encompass all classes of writers - legal practitioners, academics, and others. Candidates nominated for previous competitions may be renominated. A nomination should include a list of the nominee's published writings and one representative sample only from that list, and be sent to the Selection Committee by October 31, 2008. 12 SEPTEMBER 2008 www. C ANADIAN Law ye rmag.com ntario's Liberal government says it's not going to fund any more law schools in the province during its current man- date. In a memo to all Ontario university presidents over ince's six existing law schools are adequate. It also pointed to a Law Society of Upper Canada report earlier this year indicating a shortage of articling placements. "Our priorities lie elsewhere right now in terms of post-secondary education, where we're going to be directing resources," Minister of Training, Colleges, and Universities John Milloy tells Canadian Lawyer. But Thunder Bay, Ont.'s Lakehead University is pushing ahead with its plan for a northern law school focused on ab- original law. "We think the rationale that we provided, and have been providing all along, is still valid, still strong," says university president Fred Gilbert. "We should and will con- tinue to make the case." Lakehead began its campaign ahead of proposals for new faculties from Waterloo, Ont.'s Wilfrid Laurier University and Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ont. There has also been talk of a proposal from the University of Waterloo and Research in Motion co-founder Jim Balsillie. "We're very well advanced, and the interesting thing is that there are a lot of prospective students who have been gearing themselves for potential entry into the law school in 2010," says Gilbert. While acknowledging the general public's view that the province has enough lawyers, Gilbert says Lakehead's pro- posal is designed to address "some very real needs that are not being met." He notes the proposal began when members of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation, a local aboriginal group, ap- proached the university. The proposal also was intended to assist the mining and forestry industries. "The rationale, the logic, and the broad support base that we have for this all recognize that this was intended to be a very different law school," says Gilbert. Gilbert says Lakehead will consider other options to ad- vance its proposal, and hopes the ministry will change its mind sometime in the future. "You don't abandon something that is of value," he says. "We think that what we're proposing is sound. We think the case ultimately can be made." —RT