By Robert Todd | Publication Date: Monday, 01 September 2008
Attorney
General Chris Bentley believes a new information system will help
improve access to justice by “taking the mystery out of the law” for
ordinary Ontarians.



Attorney General Chris Bentley at the launch of Justice Ontario last week.

“We
should be able to invite anyone from the street into our legal system
and give them the assistance they need to navigate, even though they
don’t have a law degree,” said Bentley last week at the Toronto
Reference Library, where the province’s new Justice Ontario system was
unveiled.

The system, which Bentley called a “one-stop entry
point” to legal information, consists of a web site and telephone
hotline that provide basic information about family law, criminal law,
lawsuits and disputes, human rights, estate planning, and tickets and
fines.

It’s similar to the province’s ServiceOntario system,
which offers help accessing government services, and Employment
Ontario, which provides advice on training and work-related issues.

While the bulk of information on the web site (www.ontario.ca/justiceontario)
will be available only in English and French, the hotline
(1-866-252-0104) will link callers with translators in 173 languages to
get the same information on services such as lawyer referrals.

Bentley
said recent reports — including this year’s Trebilcock Legal Aid Review
and 2007’s Osborne Civil Justice Report — have found that easier access
to relevant information on the law is vital to improving access to
justice.

Bentley hopes to improve the site’s features through a
partnership with the province’s major legal bodies, including the Law
Society of Upper Canada, the Ontario Bar Association, the Advocates’
Society, the County and District Law Presidents’ Association, the
Ontario Trial Lawyers Association, Legal Aid Ontario, Community Legal
Education Ontario, and Pro Bono Law Ontario.

A list of
frequently asked questions will be created, and the partners will help
the government ensure that the information and links on the web site
are “as strong and clear as they need to be,” said Bentley.

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