Earlier Solutions, Faster Justice:
What's in the Future for Administrative Justice in British Columbia?
AJO article, BC council of Administrative Tribunals newsletter, Fall 2007
The Ministry of Attorney General, along with other justice, health and social service ministries, has embarked on a three-year plan to ensure the justice system meets the needs of individuals, families, businesses and communities in a more cost-effective, timely and meaningful way. The three-year plan is built around the concept of early solutions and faster justice. The proposed changes aim to help people find new ways of resolving disputes and doing so earlier in the process.
While much has already been done to reform B.C.’s administrative justice system, the ministry, through the Administrative Justice Office (AJO), will be continuing to look for further opportunities to work with tribunals, other ministries and community partners within the administrative justice system to provide earlier resolution of issues.
The Civil Justice Reform Working Group, created in 2004 to make recommendations for fundamental change necessary for an effective civil justice system, sets the framework for civil court reforms in its November 2006 report: Effective and Affordable Civil Justice (available on the BC Justice Review Task Force website). That report envisions a civil justice system that provides quick, affordable and just solutions to legal problems for everyone, regardless of their means. The report’s key recommendations are for:
- centres (or hubs) to provide, at one location, easy access to the information and services people need to solve legal problems on their own — the newly established Nanaimo Family Justice Services Centre pilot project is suggested as a model;
- case planning conferences as a mandatory requirement before parties can take the next steps in the court system, after initiating and responding to a claim; and
- A rewrite of the Supreme Court Rules, with the explicit overriding objective that all proceedings are to be dealt with justly and pursuant to the principles of proportionality.
A concept draft of new civil rules is already available at the BC Justice Review Task Force website and B.C. Council of Administrative Tribunal members are invited to contribute to the development of the new rules through the online forum at the BC Justice Review Forum by Oct. 31, 2007.
The report’s recommendations provide a strong indication of expectations for the administrative justice system, in order for it to remain an effective alternative to the courts. Administrative tribunals will be looked to, to provide effective opportunities to resolve issues earlier in the process, without adjudication where possible, and where that is not possible, to provide streamlined, proportionate and timely adjudicative processes that are simpler, faster and less costly than the new court processes.
The Ministry of Attorney General has set five key strategies for justice transformation that will also be applied to the administrative justice sector, in consultation with administrative justice system stakeholders and community partners. Those strategies, and how they will be applied in the context of administrative justice system, are:
- Prevention: to minimize, avoid and resolve issues before they become disputes to be considered by a tribunal or another oversight body. For example, the AJO and the Dispute Resolution Office (DRO) are working together to support greater use of dispute resolution, earlier in government’s processes and before matters are brought to tribunals.
- Integration: to make the administrative justice system more efficient and effective through enhanced co-ordination and sharing of resources, where possible. For example, the AJO is supporting and exploring additional opportunities to build on existing tribunal co-location of registries, cross-appointments and better co-ordination of ministerial support to tribunals with a number of such initiatives currently in process.
- Information: to provide citizens with better and more accessible information, advice and guidance on how the administrative justice system works. The AJO website will continue to be updated to provide easily accessible information on various administrative justice issues (for example, you may want to check out our website’s Self Help page). Consideration is also being given to the extent to which information about tribunals can be effectively provided at the proposed justice centres (hubs). Other opportunities to provide easier access to information across the full range of the administrative justice sector, including federal, provincial and other sector participants, are also being explored.
- Simplification:to make tribunal and other decision-makers’ procedures faster, proportional and more user-friendly. Best practises for tribunal case management and dispute resolution processes will be considered and tribunals will be encouraged to modify their rules to achieve those that may be identified. The ministry will also explore opportunities for consideration of the court rules that govern judicial review proceedings, with a view to reducing the complexity and lack of proportionality associated with the current rules. And the Administrative Tribunals Act will continue to be used as a comprehensive, consistent framework for the administrative justice system, to provide a timely, proportionate and more user-friendly alternative to the courts, with ongoing consideration to identifying opportunities to divert matters from the courts to tribunals.
- Resolution: to actively encourage early resolution through problem-solving and mediation, so adjudication is used only where no other option makes sense. Tribunals will be encouraged to initiate or build on their dispute resolution processes, as may be possible. Evaluating existing processes will be supported, and research is being undertaken on appropriate opportunities for mediation when determining statutory rights and entitlements.
