Legal Aid Research Series Court Side Study of Adult Unrepresented Accused in the Provincial Criminal Courts Part 1: Overview Report

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Table of Contents

• Executive Summary
• 1. Introduction
  • 1.1 Background and Project Objectives
  • 1.2 Format of the Report
• 2.Methodology
  • 2.1 Site Selection
  • 2.2 Data Collection Methodology
    • 2.2.1 Disposed Cases Sample
    • 2.2.2 Court Observation
    • 2.2.3 Key Informant Interviews
  • 2.3 Lessons Learned Regarding Methodology
• 3. Findings - context
  • 3.1 Availability and Quality of Representation
  • 3.2 Client Population
  • 3.3 Court Management and Operations Context
  • 3.4 Stages in the Criminal Process
  • 3.5 Service Delivery Models
  • 3.6 The Availability of Assistance from Other Sources
  • 3.7 Variance Across Sites and Within Provinces
  • 3.8 Summary: Importance of a Systems or Holistic Perspective
• 4. Findings - prevalence of legal representation
  • 4.1 Likelihood of an Accused Having Legal Representation
  • 4.2 Lynchpin Role of Duty Counsel
    • 4.2.1 Organizational Models
    • 4.2.2 Service Delivery: Scope and Strategies
  • 4.3 The Question of Under-Representation
    • 4.3.1 Legal Aid Stretched Everywhere
    • 4.3.2 Restricted Representation by Private Bar Members Under Legal Aid
• 5. Findings - Impacts of Unrepresented and under-represented Accused
  • 5.1 Key General Impacts
  • 5.2 Impacts on the Accused
    • 5.2.1 From Preparing for First Appearance to Trial
    • 5.2.2 At Trial and Sentencing
  • 5.3 Impacts on Officers of the Court and Others
  • 5.4 Impacts on Court Operations
    • 5.4.1 Duration of Individual Appearances
    • 5.4.2 Number of Appearances per Disposed Case
    • 5.4.3 Elapsed Times to Complete Cases
• 6. Solutions Suggested
  • 6.1 Legal Aid Eligibility Criteria
  • 6.2 Duty Counsel
  • 6.3 Other Aspects Principally Related to Staff Lawyer Systems
  • 6.4 Tariffs for Certificate Service by the Private Bar
  • 6.5 Court Case Management
  • 6.6 Information, Advice and Support to Accused
  • 6.7 General
  • 6.8 In Conclusion

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