The Long Wait for Family Paralegals In Ontario

Jumping Off the Ivory Tower with Prof JulieMac

Lisa Trabucco is an Assistant Professor at Windsor Law, with a special interest in access to justice and paralegals. In this week’s episode, Julie talks to Lisa about her just-completed doctoral dissertation, “The Regulation of Paralegals in Ontario: Increased Access to Justice?” Lisa’s study explored the work of paralegal representatives at the Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal, and while the data is not yet clear on whether more people have access to justice as a result of the additional choice of a paralegal, Lisa’s empirical research shows that paralegal outcomes at the tribunal compare very favourably with those achieved by lawyer representatives. As we wait for the outcome from the Law Society of Ontario’s consultation on expanding the scope of paralegal practice to some family matters (second time around after the Bonkalo Report in 2016), we ask: if the regulator says no again, will there be a revolution among family litigants who cannot afford the (most costly) services of a lawyer? In Other News - Guest Other News Correspondent Randi Druzin shares the following stories: Ontario Superior Court in Windsor recently denied a man interim custody of his kids because of his views on COVID-19 – some legal experts view this ruling as significant because it articulates new standards and language specific to COVID-19; a recent Lawyer’s Daily advice column advocates legal coaching for lawyers looking to scale back their practices while still helping people with legal problems; in June the UK’s Access to Justice Foundation will hold walks in various locations to raise money for frontline legal advice services, a fundraiser especially necessary in light of the strain placed on the system by the pandemic. For related links and more on this episode visit our website: https://representingyourselfcanada.com/the-long-wait-for-paralegals-in-ontario/ Jumping Off the Ivory Tower is produced and hosted by Julie Macfarlane and Dayna Cornwall; production and editing by Brauntë Petric; Other News produced and hosted by Randi Druzin; promotion by Moya McAlister and the NSRLP team.