Ladies and gentlemen, my presentation will focus on access to justice in both official languages. I will speak to the practical side of access to justice and leave the theory to my colleague. Specifically, I will address access to justice in French in Manitoba.
I am the director of Infojustice Manitoba, a legal resource centre in Winnipeg. Infojustice Manitoba is the initiative of the Société franco-manitobaine, a not-for-profit organization that advocates for the Franco-Manitoban community, looking after its well-being and lobbying for full respect of its rights. Infojustice Manitoba was established to promote access to justice in French in Manitoba.
Infojustice Manitoba is funded through the access to justice in both official languages support fund. In 2013, the federal government incorporated two pillars into the fund, information and training. Infojustice Manitoba is funded through the information pillar because we work to raise awareness and promote information and training in relation to language rights and access to justice in Manitoba.
Legal resource centres are part of a national initiative to promote access to justice in both official languages. Canada has a number of other legal resource centres, in Nova Scotia, Ontario, Saskatchewan and Alberta. Depending on the province's linguistic landscape, some legal resource centres are designated as bilingual, while others provide service mainly in French. Since Manitoba has anglophone legal resource centres, Infojustice Manitoba provides service solely in French.
As you know, despite existing statutory and constitutional obligations, Manitoba, like other provinces and territories, still falls short when it comes to ensuring access to the courts and legal information in French. That is why Infojustice Manitoba strives to ensure that legal information available in English is equally accessible in French.
A significant proportion of Manitoba's population is aging, while another sizable segment is made up of newcomers to Canada. These individuals have special needs when it comes to French-language legal services. Manitoba's francophone population is made up of mainly two groups: seniors who are usually more comfortable speaking French and immigrants who are not fluent in English.
Legal aid Manitoba provides bilingual service, but most of the individuals who have a legal issue are not eligible. Consequently, they have to represent themselves in court and deal with their legal issue with little to no French-language information. In the absence of French-language service, people have to access services in English or rely on a third party to help them navigate the legal system in English.
It is important to note that access to justice is more than just being able to speak French in court; most of the time, it involves being able to obtain advice and information in the official language of your choice. Most cases do not go to court and are settled thanks to legal advice or information provided to litigants. It is therefore essential that individuals be able to obtain legal advice and information in French if they are to have access to justice in French.
Infojustice Manitoba provides French-language services not just to Franco-Manitobans, but also to those who choose to speak French. Infojustice Manitoba works with a number of English-language legal resource centres in the province, including the Legal Help Centre and the Community Legal Education Association. Through these collaborative efforts, Infojustice Manitoba is able to reach all Manitobans and truly promote the use of French in Manitoba's legal system.
Despite the creation of a French-language legal resource centre, a serious imbalance still exists in Manitoba, in terms of legal information available in French versus English. We are therefore calling on the federal government to make a commitment in the next official languages action plan to support projects that promote French-language legal information in the provinces and territories.
Thank you. I would be happy to answer any questions you have.