A New Report Recommends Improvements to the Ontario Court System
As anyone who has been involved in litigation, either as a party or as a lawyer, will know it can be a lengthy, expensive, and frustrating process.
A recently released report by Coulter Osborne, the former associate chief justice of Ontario, advocates for a court system which is faster, more accessible, and more affordable to litigants than the one currently in place. An overarching principle of the report is the court and the parties to litigation must deal with a case in a way that is proportionate to what is involved, the judicial importance of the case, and the complexity of the proceeding.
All told, the report contained eighty-one recommendations including the following:
? The number of judges in the courts in Brampton, Newmarket, Hamilton, and Toronto should be increased;
? The limit in small claims court should be raised from $10,000 to $15,000 and, within two years, to $25,000;
? The limit for claims under simplified procedure should be raised to $100,000;
? A committee should be established to study the needs of self-represented litigants; and
? Parties and their counsel should be encouraged to increase their use of technology to share information electronically, thus decreasing the time and money involved in a matter.
The recommendations contained in the report are detailed, comprehensive and, if implemented, have the potential to vastly improve access to justice and the allocation of court resources in Ontario. It will be interesting to see how committed the government is to implementing the recommendations.
Have a great day!
Megan F. Connolly
