SOCI 327: Lecture 17

--Legal Representation and Legal Aid

--Case Duration

© 2007 by Nelson, a division of Thomson Canada Limited

 Legal Aid
…is a government supported system that
allows individuals who are earning below a
certain income to receive free legal services

The initiation of legal aid services from the late

1960s and early 1970s to low-income
defendants greatly increased the fairness of
the Canadian CJS.
© 2007 by Nelson, a division of Thomson Canada Limited
 https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/cp-
pm/eval/rep-rap/2016/lap-paj/p5.html
© 2007 by Nelson, a division of Thomson Canada Limited
 https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/cp-
© 2007 by Nelson, a division of Thomson Canada Limited
pm/eval/rep-rap/2016/lap-paj/p5.html
 >That is, legal aid is and
remains a:
“directionless program that is hampered by
federal funding cuts, patchwork of services from
province to province and no national standards to
ensure poor people have access to justice”
(Tibbetts, 2002, cited in Goff, 2020: 240)

And it should be kept in mind that legal aid is, as

Tibbetts (2002) adds: “only given to Canada’s
poorest of the poor—and only if they face jail
terms if convicted”
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 “People accused of crimes are not eligible
for legal aid services if they earn more than
$14,453 per year in Ontario, which makes
someone working half-time at a minimum
wage job ineligible for legal aid” (Ruby &
Enenajor, 2017, para. 10, cited in Ruddell,
2020: 144).

© 2007 by Nelson, a division of Thomson Canada Limited

 “…we have a wonderful justice
system. But the problem is that it’s
often inaccessible for one reason or
another to ordinary…Canadians”
Former Supreme Court Chief Justice of Canada
Beverly McLachlin (Ruddell, 2020: 168)

n So how much does legal counsel actually

cost ordinary Canadians?

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 Costs for Hiring a Criminal Defence
Lawyer at a Firm with 1-4 Lawyers
(Bruineman, 2018: 22, as cited in Ruddell, 2020: 168)

Type of representation National Averages

Summary criminal offence $5,501-$6,000
(one-day trial, e.g. impaired driving)

Criminal offence (one-day trail) $5,501-$6,000

Trial longer than seven days $20,001-$26,000

© 2007 by Nelson, a division of Thomson Canada Limited

 So what does legal aid look like in Denmark
(ranked first in the World Justice Project Rule of Law
Index )?
>“Who can get advice in the Legal Aid? Copenhagen Legal Aid
offers free legal advice to all citizens, whether a Danish
national or not, provided you meet certain income requirements…
Everybody is welcome to seek legal advice … The only condition for
receiving our services for free is that you and your household meet
certain income requirements... If you earn more than the below
income requirements, we will still advise you, but our assistance will be limited
to a high level verbal advice, which may help you decide whether to pursue
your case or not…
The income limits below apply for 2020: Are you single? Ìn that case the
income limit is DKK 336,000 per year. The amount is measured
against your personal income before tax.”

Reference: https://www.copenhagenlegalaid.com/who-do-we-help
© 2007 by Nelson, a division of Thomson Canada Limited
 n>So to qualify for legal aid in Ontario,
annual income must be under
CAD$14,453* per year.
n But in Denmark to qualify for legal aid,
annual income must be under DKK
336,000 per year (CAD$70,187.44)!

*in Alberta an annual income

greater than CAD$20,021
seems to be the cut-off
(although I’m not totally
confident about this)…
© 2007 by Nelson, a division of Thomson Canada Limited
https://www.legalaid.ab.ca/resources/
 Self-Represented Defendants:
n>“Lacking the funds to hire a lawyer, a growing number
of defendants are representing themselves” (Ruddell,
2020: 144).
n At least in the Provincial Courts of British Columbia, about
1/5 defendants are self-represented (Ruddell, 2020: 168)
n “In order to support self-represented defendants, the
provincial courts now provides individuals with on-line
resources to educate them about court procedures”
(Ruddell, 2020: 169)
n The problem with self-representation: self-represented
defendants “are incredibly disadvantaged when their
opponent is a skilled Crown prosecutor” (Ruddell, 2020: 144)
n As the saying goes: “a man who is his own lawyer has a fool
for a client” (Ruddell, 2020: 144)
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 Duration of Trial

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 Right to Speedy Trial

n R. v. Askov 1990
n It took about 2½ years from being
charged to the start of the trial
n Askov and his codefendants won a stay of
proceeding at the Superior Court, who
argued this was indeed an unreasonable
delay”

© 2007 by Nelson, a division of Thomson Canada Limited

 Supreme Court identified four factors for a
judge to consider when deciding if a
person’s rights to a speedy trial had been
violated:

1). The length of the delay

2). The explanation for the delay

3). Waiver

4). Prejudice
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The impact of R. v. Askov has
been enormous…
n Eleven months after the Askov decision,
50,000 charges were permanently stayed
in Ontario
n Within two years, however, the Supreme
Court reconsidered the issue deciding that
it’s in the interest of society to let serous
cases come to trial (e.g. R. v. Morin, 1992)

© 2007 by Nelson, a division of Thomson Canada Limited

 R. v. Jordan (2016)
n Mr Jordan’s case for trafficking took 49½ months from the pressing
of charges to him being found guilty
n The Supreme Court agreed this was excessive:

“…the parties were operating within the culture of complacency

towards delay that has pervaded the criminal justice system in
recent years. Broader structural and procedural changes. . .are
required to maintain the public’s confidence by delivering
justice in a timely manner.”

New presumptive ceilings for maximum trial length were introduced:

18 months for provincial court trials
30 months for superior court trials
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 Influence of these new ceilings:
n Four months after the Supreme Court
ruling, two first degree murder cases were
granted stays
n Seven months later, more than 800
criminal cases had been stayed (including
more than a dozen attempted murder or
homicide charges)!
n What do you think the Federal
Government did?
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 >Summary
--Legal Representation, Legal Aid and self-
representation
--Case Duration

© 2007 by Nelson, a division of Thomson Canada Limited