Author Archives: John-Paul Boyd

About John-Paul Boyd

John-Paul Boyd is the executive director of the Canadian Research Institute for Law and the Family, a non-profit organization associated with the University of Calgary. The main work of the Institute involves undertaking research related to law and the family, public legal education, promoting evidence-based law and policy reform, and improving access to justice. John-Paul practiced family law in Vancouver, British Columbia for thirteen years before joining the Institute. He took his training as a mediator in 2005, his training as a parenting coordinator in 2007 and 2008, his training as an arbitrator in 2011 and his training as a collaborative practitioner in 2012. John-Paul has particular interests in law and process reform, children's rights and involvement in the justice system, the conflicts of laws and jurisdictional issues in general, heuristics and decision-making processes, and the psychology of separation and divorce.

We Versus Me: Normative Legislation, Individual Exceptionalism and Access to Family Justice

By: John-Paul Boyd PDF Version: We Versus Me: Normative Legislation, Individual Exceptionalism and Access to Family Justice In many of Canada’s family law courts, especially our provincial courts, the majority of litigants now appear without counsel. This state of affairs … Continue reading

Posted in Family | Comments Off on We Versus Me: Normative Legislation, Individual Exceptionalism and Access to Family Justice

A Methodology for Beginning Fundamental Justice Reform

By: John-Paul Boyd PDF Version: A Methodology for Beginning Fundamental Justice Reform Discussion on the reform of civil justice in Canada reached a new crescendo last year with the publication of the various reports of the national Action Committee on … Continue reading

Posted in Access to Justice, Family | Comments Off on A Methodology for Beginning Fundamental Justice Reform

Unified Family Courts: An Established Mechanism for Improving Access to Justice

By: John-Paul Boyd PDF Version: Unified Family Courts: An Established Mechanism for Improving Access to Justice Lawyers practicing in jurisdictions with multiple trial courts and no unified family court will be aware of the challenges facing litigants without counsel. First there’s choosing … Continue reading

Posted in Access to Justice, Family | 2 Comments

How Lawyers Resolve Family Law Disputes

By: John-Paul Boyd PDF Version: How lawyers resolve family law disputes This past July I was able to sample the views of 167 lawyers and judges attending the Federation of Law Societies of Canada‘s National Family Law Program in Whistler, British … Continue reading

Posted in Access to Justice, Family | Comments Off on How Lawyers Resolve Family Law Disputes

Learnings from the Demographic Data on Litigants Without Counsel

By: John-Paul Boyd PDF Version: Learnings from the Demographic Data on Litigants Without Counsel The demographic information on litigants without counsel available to date reveals a number of interesting patterns: most litigants appear to be 40 years old and older, … Continue reading

Posted in Access to Justice | 1 Comment