Environmental Scan: Access to Justice in Both Official Languages

Appendix 2

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INVENTORY ON ACCESS TO JUSTICE IN THE TWO OFFICIAL LANGUAGES

QUESTIONNAIRE FOR CHIEF PROSECUTORS

PART 1: Identification of respondent
Please provide the information requested

• Title of your position:
• Provincial or Federal Crown:
• Province or territory:
• Region or district:

N.B. In this questionnaire, official minority language means French outside Quebec and English in Quebec.

Section 530 of the Criminal Code provides that an accused has the right to be tried before a judge or before a judge and jury who speak both official languages of Canada or who speak the official language that is the language of the accused provided that the accused applies within the prescribed time.

Section 530.1 of the Criminal Code sets out the rights and obligations in relation to the accused's election.

Among other things, these sections include the right to a prosecutor who speaks the official language elected by the accused.

PART 2: Data and Statistics Related to Your Prosecution Department

• 1. Do you have any data on applications for criminal trials in the minority language in your jurisdiction?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • If yes, how many applications for such trials are there per year?
  • If no, could you estimate the number?
    
    
• 2. Do you have any data on the number of criminal trials that are actually held in your jurisdiction in the minority language?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • If yes, how many such trials are there per year? (#)
  • If no, could you provide an estimate? (#)
    
    
• 3. Do you have any data on applications for bilingual criminal trials in your jurisdiction?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • If yes, how many applications for such trials are there per year?
  • If no, could you estimate the number?
    
    
• 4. Do you have any data for the number of bilingual criminal trials that are actually held in your jurisdiction?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • If yes, how many such trials are there per year? (#)
  • If no, could you provide an estimate? (#)
    
    
• 5. Do you have any data on the number of complaints about the delivery of legal services in your jurisdiction in the minority language?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • If yes, how many complaints are there about the delivery of services in the minority language? (#)
  • If no, could you estimate how many? (#)
  • What is the nature of these complaints?
    
    
• 6. How many prosecutors are there under your authority who can work in the minority language, both written and oral, and what proportion do they represent (in %)?
  
  • Number:
  • Proportion:
  
  
• 7. How many prosecutors are there under your authority who can work in both official languages, both written and oral, and what proportion do they represent (in %)?
  
  • Number:
  • Proportion:
  
  
• 8. Are the general pre-printed parts of forms such as information and indictments written in both official languages (see s. 841(3) C.C.)?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  
  
• 9. Is the language used on the parts of the forms that are specific to each case that of the accused?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 10. If there is no information on the language of the accused when preparing forms, is it clearly indicted in writing that a translation may be obtained?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 11. In cases where the accused has made a choice on language, do your prosecutors file pleadings such as applications or written argument in the language elected by the accused?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 12. Do your prosecutors have ready access to model legal proceedings in the minority language?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 13. Do your prosecutors have ready access to legislation in the minority language?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 14. Do your prosecutors have ready access to court ruling case law in the minority language?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 15. Do your prosecutors have ready access to useful and necessary jurisprudence, i.e. legal sources, in the minority language?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 16. Are the prosecutors under your authority governed by a policy of active offer of legal services in the two official languages?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 17. If you answered yes to the preceding question, could you describe the main features of the policy or send us a copy?

PART 3: Access to Other Legal and Court Services in the Minority Language

• 18. In your jurisdiction, are legal services in the minority language readily available?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 19. In your jurisdiction, is it easy for an accused to have his preliminary inquiry or his trial held before a judge who speaks the minority language?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 20. To your knowledge, do judges advise unrepresented accused persons who are not represented by counsel, of their rights under sections 530 (3) C.C.?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • Not always:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 21. In your jurisdiction, is it easy to constitute a jury whose members can hear the case in the minority language?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 22. In your jurisdiction, is it easy to constitute a jury whose members can hear the case in both official languages?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 23. In your jurisdiction, is it easy to have access to interpretation (or simultaneous or consecutive translation) services?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  • I don't know:
  
  
• 24. How do you assess the quality of the interpretation or translation services?
  
  • Poor:
  • Satisfactory:
  • Good:
  • Excellent:
  
  
• 25. Are there necessary services with respect to section 530-530.1 (C.C.) that are not available? Please explain.

PART 4: Overall Evaluation and Improvements

• 26. Do you believe there are enough prosecutors under your authority, including private prosecutors, to meet the demand for legal services in the minority language?
  
  • Yes:
  • No:
  Please enter any comments you may have below.
  
  
• 27. In areas of federal jurisdiction, are minority language citizens at a disadvantage because of language?
  
  
• 28. What measures should the federal government put in place in your province or territory to improve access to the justice system in the minority language?
  
  
• 29. Please enter below any additional comments you may have.

Please return the completed questionnaire, by Fax or by E-mail, to:

Jean-Bernard Robichaud
Research Director
PGF/GTA Research
Fax: 1-613-241-2252
E-Mail: jbr@pgf.ca

THANK YOU FOR YOUR MUCH APPRECIATED CO-OPERATION

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