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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 31, 2001

OTTAWA - Cameras in the courts, the latest developments on the CBA's Legal Aid Watch and who should control Multi-Disciplinary Practices (MDPs) are on the agenda for the Canadian Bar Association's Mid-Winter Meeting of Council, Feb. 16-18, 2001, at Mont Ste-Anne, Quebec.

Cameras in the Courts: Balancing Freedom of the Press with the Rights of Litigants, will focus on controversial questions including how a publicly accountable justice system stacks up against the right to privacy, and what impact cameras would have on the trial process. Moderated by Stephen Hanson, CBA Senior Director of Communications, the panel features Toronto lawyers David Lepofsky and Daniel Henry, legal counsel to CBC, who will present their opposing views on the subject.

CBA President Daphne Dumont, Q.C., of Charlottetown will update Council on the Legal Aid Watch (LAW), including her continuing efforts to pressure governments to improve the delivery of legal aid in Canada. "I plan to meet again with the federal justice minister to ensure that progress is being made on government promises made last fall for bridge funding, and on what's being done to meet the public's unmet needs for legal aid," says Daphne Dumont.

"At the same time, we are encouraging our Branches to ask the provincial and territorial attorneys general for a 10% increase in legal aid funding," she adds.

Launched in August 2000, the CBA's LAW is a grassroots network of lawyers across the country deeply concerned about the state of legal aid funding and its impact on Canadians. They monitor the administration of legal aid in their own communities and file e-mail reports of "horror stories" to the CBA, which in turn circulates these stories to media and legislators at both the provincial and federal levels.

Council will continue its debate on who should control multi-disciplinary practices (MDPs). A new resolution that would give lawyers control over the entire business operation of MDPs - not just the legal side of the practice - is on the table. This resolution would amend the CBA position taken in August 2000 that lawyers need control only the legal side of MDPs. The resolution further clarifies the role and responsibilities of law societies in MDPs. The debate is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 17.

Other resolutions on the Council agenda include an endorsement for permanent funding and a broader mandate for the Court Challenges Program, and a call for the CBA to undertake a national Aboriginal Justice initiative to look at emerging issues relating to Aboriginal rights.

The 2001 CBA Mid-Winter Meeting of Council is open to accredited media. Council meets at the Château Mont Ste- Anne, in the Conference Centre, Salon A all day Saturday, Feb. 17 and Sunday morning, Feb. 18.

The Canadian Bar Association is dedicated to improvement in the law and the administration of justice. Some 37,000 lawyers, notaries, law teachers, and law students from across Canada are members.

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CONTACT:  Hannah Bernstein, Canadian Bar Association, 500 - 865 Carling Ave. , Ottawa, ON, K1S 5S8 Tel: (613) 237-2925, ext. 146; E-mail: hannahb@cba.org