Category Archives: Access to Justice

Domestic Violence and Legal Responses to COVID-19 in Alberta

PDF Version: Domestic Violence and Legal Responses to COVID-19 in Alberta

Matters Commented On: Ministerial Order No 2020-011 (Community and Social Services); Court of Queen’s Bench Of Alberta, Amended Master Order #2 Relating to Court’s Response to the COVID-19 Virus; Court of Queen’s Bench Of Alberta, Pandemic Operations/ FAQ; The Provincial Court of Alberta, COVID-19 Pandemic Planning for the Scheduling of Matters

Many commentators have remarked on how COVID-19 and government orders to self-isolate will lead to increased rates of domestic violence and adversely impact victims of domestic violence seeking protection. Last weekend, for example, UN Secretary General António Guterres remarked that there has already been a “horrifying global surge in domestic violence” and urged “all governments to make the prevention and redress of violence against women a key part of their national response plans for COVID-19.” The law clearly has a significant role to play in this context. As noted in a previous post, domestic violence matters engage many legal issues: civil protection order law, criminal law, family and child protection law, residential tenancies law, social assistance and housing law, and employment law, to name a few. This post reviews some of the efforts of lawmakers and courts in Alberta to respond to domestic violence issues in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and identifies some areas where further measures are needed. My focus is on domestic violence – in other words, violence in the context of intimate partner relationships – rather than child or elder abuse. Child and elder abuse cases also present challenging issues in the current pandemic, but they are beyond the scope of my analysis here. Continue reading →

Costs Denied in Elder Advocates of Alberta Society Case

By: Jennifer Koshan and Jonnette Watson Hamilton

PDF Version: Costs Denied in Elder Advocates of Alberta Society Case

Case Commented On: Elder Advocates of Alberta Society v Alberta, 2020 ABQB 54 (CanLII)

In February 2018 and October 2019, we posted comments on the class action litigation in Elder Advocates of Alberta Society v Alberta, where a class of long-term care residents unsuccessfully challenged the Alberta government’s ability to charge accommodation fees in long-term care facilities. The case involved claims of unjust enrichment, negligence and contract – addressed by our colleague Lorian Hardcastle here – and discrimination based on age and mental / physical disability, which we dealt with in our posts. None of the claims were ultimately successful. The plaintiffs’ most persuasive argument was that the imposition of accommodation fees was discriminatory, which was accepted by the Alberta Court of Appeal. However, the Court found the discrimination to be justified (see Elder Advocates of Alberta Society v Alberta, 2019 ABCA 342 (Can LII) and our post on that decision here).

In spite of the lack of success of this class action, Justice June Ross, the trial judge in the case, recently denied the Province of Alberta and Alberta Health Services costs against the plaintiffs and their lawyers (see Elder Advocates of Alberta Society v Alberta, 2020 ABQB 54 (CanLII)). Continue reading →

The 2018/2019 Year in Access to Justice Issues on ABlawg

By: Drew Yewchuk

PDF Version: The 2018/2019 Year in Access to Justice Issues on ABlawg

The Canadian Bar Association’s Access to Justice Week in Alberta runs from September 28-October 5, 2019. This annual event is meant to highlight the ongoing inequality in access to legal services and legal dispute resolution mechanisms in Canada. Many Canadians are unable to protect their rights and interests in our legal system. This means those on the lower economic rungs are subject to the law but rarely protected by it – a black mark on the rule of law in Canada. The full list of events can be accessed at the website here.

This is a summary of ABlawg posts dealing with access to justice issues from September 2018 to September 2019. These posts covered important issues on access to justice issues, and I start by following up on the four indicator issues discussed in my post from last year. Continue reading →

A Stressful Legal System Creates Vexatious Self-Reps

By: Drew Yewchuk & Christine Laing

PDF Version: A Stressful Legal System Creates Vexatious Self-Reps

Case Commented On: Davis v Alberta (Human Rights Commission), 2019 ABQB 6 (CanLII)

Davis v Alberta (Human Rights Commission) is a judicial review of a decision by the Acting Chief of the Alberta Human Rights Commission (AHRC) to dismiss three complaints filed by Ms. Davis with the AHRC. There are no significant developments in human rights law in this decision, but it offers a good opportunity to consider the impact of administrative delays in dispute resolution mechanisms on individuals, especially self-represented ones. Davis also offers an example where the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench was invited to find a self-represented litigant vexatious for the purposes of a costs decision.

Continue reading →

Rowbotham Order, Publication Ban, Sealing Order and In Camera Proceeding

By: Myrna El Fakhry Tuttle

PDF Version: Rowbotham Order, Publication Ban, Sealing Order and In Camera Proceeding

Case Commented On: R v Vader, 2018 ABCA 389

The Appellant, Her Majesty the Queen, appealed a Rowbotham order granted by Justice DRG Thomas on March 11, 2016, which directed the Alberta government to pay Mr. Vader’s (the Respondent’s) legal fees for work previously completed. The order also allowed a publication ban, a sealing order and an in camera hearing of the Rowbotham application.

Continue reading →