RECOMMENDATION 1

The Committee recommends that the federal government remove the legal aid funds currently included in the Canada Social Transfer in favour of a specific, earmarked civil legal aid fund for provinces administered under the Department of Justice Canada Legal Aid Program.

RECOMMENDATION 2

To increase transparency and accountability, the Committee recommends that the legal aid agreements signed with the provinces and territories include a clause requiring them to report to the Department of Justice Canada on an annual basis on the performance of their legal aid plans, including information about how federal funding has been spent and any resulting improvements and changes to the plans. This report should be made public.

RECOMMENDATION 3

The Committee recommends that the federal government further increase its funding contribution to the provinces and territories for the delivery of legal aid services.

RECOMMENDATION 4

The Committee recommends that the Department of Justice Canada work with the provinces and territories to enhance the number of individuals eligible for legal aid by examining how to better use client contributions on a sliding scale based on income to maximize access to justice.

RECOMMENDATION 5

The Committee recommends that the Department of Justice Canada facilitate greater information sharing between provinces and territories regarding best practices for the administration and delivery of legal aid services, with particular attention to expanding the role of law school and specialized clinics to increase access to justice.

RECOMMENDATION 6

The Committee recommends that the Department of Justice Canada work with the provinces and territories to support the use of technology to improve access to legal aid services and maximize the impact of available funding.

RECOMMENDATION 7

The Committee recommends that the Department of Justice Canada work with the provinces and territories to ensure that official language minority communities have access to legal aid services in their language, including representation and public legal information; and that tools and precedents are available in both languages.

RECOMMENDATION 8

The Committee recommends that the Department of Justice Canada work with the provinces and territories, in collaboration with the Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics, to improve national data collection on the administration and delivery of legal aid in Canada, and to recommend amendments to the Legal Aid Survey.

RECOMMENDATION 9

The Committee recommends that the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada strongly encourage the Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics to improve the Legal Aid Survey and to ensure that it include all variables necessary to conduct gender-based analysis plus (GBA+) of legal aid services.

RECOMMENDATION 10

The Committee recommends that the Department of Justice Canada conduct gender-based analysis plus (GBA+) of the administration and the delivery of legal aid services in Canada on a regular basis to assess differential impacts of policy and funding choices on various client groups including women, individuals with mental illness, minority language community members, Indigenous persons and members of racialized communities. The results of the analysis should be made public.