More funding pledged for legal aid
Justice minister does not specify dollar figure
Justice Minister Jonathan Denis is pledging more funding for Alberta’s legal-aid program in next year’s budget, which would be the first increase from the provincial government since 2011.
Although he didn’t provide a dollar figure, Denis told the Herald on Wednesday there will be more provincial funding in 2015 for Legal Aid Alberta, the publicly funded agency that provides legal assistance to lowincome Albertans.
The province had previously resisted calls to increase its grant to Legal Aid Alberta, saying the federal government isn’t paying its share.
Denis said he will continue to lobby Ottawa for more legal-aid funding — but in the meantime he will commit to increasing the provincial government’s contribution next year.
The change of heart was prompted, in part, by Legal Aid Alberta’s decision to close five walk-in offices across the province and centralize operations in an Edmonton call centre — a move that will trim $4 million from its budget over the next three years.
“If Legal Aid Alberta is willing to make its operations more efficient and if the federal government isn’t willing to step up, we’re willing to look at what we can do in terms of finding some additional funding in next year’s budget,” Denis said.
The exact amount will be subject to the provincial government’s budgeting process, added Denis.
Legal Aid Alberta announced the office closures last week, saying they will result in 35 layoffs — including 16 in Calgary. The organization will be adding 16 positions to the Edmonton call centre.
The move is meant to reflect the fact about 90 per cent of Legal Aid Alberta’s clients are now seeking consultations via telephone, but the larger context is the organization is facing a $15-million deficit in three years without additional funding.
“Given the current environment we work in, we’re always looking for efficiencies,” said Derek Cranna, an Edmonton lawyer who chairs Legal Aid Alberta’s volunteer board.
Denis’ pledge was enough for Legal Aid Alberta to avoid any further cuts this year, but Cranna said the program needs more stable longterm funding.
“The board has taken it as essentially enough of a confidencebuilding assurance to proceed with this year’s programs,” he said.
But many in the legal community aren’t satisfied with the status quo.
The program has cut eligibility requirements to the point that Albertans receiving $1,588 a month on Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped don’t qualify for a discounted lawyer.
Ian Savage, president of the Calgary Criminal Defence Lawyers’ Association, said last week the system is “in crisis.” His counterpart in Edmonton, Shannon Prithipaul of the Criminal Trial Lawyers’ Association, said members of the two groups were considering withholding services to protest the situation.
With no word yet on how much additional money the provincial government will provide, Cranna couldn’t say if Legal Aid Alberta will be able to cover people who have been excluded by the current eligibility requirements.
“The people who are on AISH are a huge priority for us, the people who make minimum wage who aren’t eligible for our service are a huge concern to us,” he said.
“We think those people are entitled to legal representation too.”
Legal aid’s main source of funding is the provincial government, which is providing $48 million this year. The federal government’s current contribution is $11 million.
Although the province’s base funding has remained unchanged since 2011, Denis said it’s significantly higher than in 2005, when the province’s share was $20.2 million.
Meanwhile, Ottawa’s share has remained unchanged since 2005, when 785,000 fewer people lived in Alberta.
Last fall, Denis and justice ministers from the other provinces and territories wrote a letter to federal Justice Minister Peter MacKay urging the federal government to begin indexing its contribution to population growth.
Denis said he and his counterparts will press the issue again when their next annual meeting is held in Banff this fall.
“The province is doing more than its fair share,” he said.
Denis and Cranna co-signed a letter to MacKay in May, asking for “more equitable, sustainable and adequate” legal-aid funding for Alberta.
“The federal government could and should do more to service legal aid in the provinces,” said Cranna.