Canada’s Access to Justice Week Spotlight: The Impact of COVID-19 on the Legal Justice System

October 19, 2021

The second annual National Access to Justice Week and Saskatchewan’s Access to Justice Week is taking place from October 25 to 29, 2021. One of this year’s themes is the impact of COVID-19.

Reflections on the Impact of COVID-19 on Online Adjudication

On Tuesday, October 26, the University of Saskatchewan College of Law McKercher LLP Lecture Series presents: Reflections on the Impact of COVID-19 on Online Adjudication. This event qualifies for 1 CPD Hour.

This session will involve a conversation reflecting on the past 18 months with respect to online adjudication and dispute resolution in a variety of settings. Panelists will address questions such as, what went well with advancements with online adjudication, and what could have gone better? What issues with online adjudication might have been prevented, with more time to prepare to turn to online adjudication, if we had known COVID-19 was going to happen? What would have been done differently? Given the advancements and potential shortcomings of online adjudication, what benefits does it provide from an access to justice perspective and how can issues be mitigated or addressed? What adjustments and tools are around to stay?

Moderator, Dr. Beth Bilson, Q.C., with panelists:

Chief Judge Shannon Metivier, Provincial Court of Saskatchewan

Shannon Salter, Chair of the Civil Resolution Tribunal

Daniel Shapiro, Q.C., Chartered Arbitrator, Adjudicator, & Mediator

Rural Access to Justice by the Atlantic Canada Justice Panel

On Wednesday, October 27, the Atlantic Provinces will host a Rural Access to Justice panel. In this session we will discuss access to justice challenges specific to communities in rural Atlantic Canada with a focus on family justice. Panelists will share and compare challenges in their respective regions and discuss possible solutions. The panelists are:

Renée L.F. Appleby- President of the Law Society of Newfoundland and Labrador, partner at Appleby Picco Law in Marystown, NL.

Jillian Barrington – Chair of NSBS Rural Practice Working Group and practitioner in Sydney, Nova Scotia at Sheldon Nathanson Law.

Emma Chilton – Publications Manager at Community Legal Information, based in Prince Edward Island.

Anastacia L. Merrigan – practitioner in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia at Hicks Lemoine Law.