The Canadian Bar Association recently released its COVID-19 Task Force Report on justice issues which have risen due to COVID-19. This report assesses the immediate and evolving issues for the delivery of legal services resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, outlining how all Canadian jurisdictions adapted their justice systems to address the pandemic and provides insight on how to implement new measures to avoid risks or unintended side effects in our justice system.
The COVID-19 Task Force has provided two important recommendations. First, the modernization of the justice system will continue forward. Second, it is essential that the new measures and technology which have been implemented due to the pandemic actually enhance access to justice and not inhibit it. As a result, the Task Force appropriately calls upon all government levels to commit to providing the necessary funding to invest in suitable technology needed to ensure that we have an inclusive and user-friendly justice system.
The recommendations from this report should provide a sigh of relief to many family law litigants as it shows the Canadian Bar Association is being proactive in looking at the use of technology in the present justice system and how it can continue to develop to ensure that justice can be accessed by all.