Amount to help fund causes or projects working to increase access to civil and family justice
The Federation of Law Societies of Canada contributed $250,000 to a fund established in honour of former Chief Justice of Canada Beverley McLachlin.
In a statement, the FSLC said that the fund issues grants to causes or projects that have a tangible effect on advancing access to justice in Canada, especially civil and family justice. According to the FSLC, the $250,000 donation was pooled from the members of the legal profession, as well as the provincial and federal judiciary who have attended its long-standing national legal education programs — the National Criminal Law Program and the National Family Law Program.
Former FSLC president Sheila MacPherson is a founding member of the fund's governing council, the group said.
“Access to justice is a central theme that preoccupies all stakeholders in the justice system, and taking steps to address it is a strategic priority for all of the federation's member law societies,” FSLC president Ross Earnshaw said in the announcement. “The federation has contributed to worthy access to justice related initiatives in the past, including the funding of research carried out by the National Action Committee on Access to Justice in Civil and Family Matters, and financing the start-up costs of a pilot project for an online dispute resolution platform in Nova Scotia.”
