OCASI has launched a Colour of Poverty-Colour of Change (COP-COC) Access As Justice Project in partnership with, Chinese and Southeast Asian Legal Clinic, Rexdale Community Legal Clinic and South Asian Legal Clinic of Ontario.
Project Description
Making Administrative Tribunals in Ontario More Accessible For Indigenous Peoples and People of Colour
The Access As Justice (AAJ) Project would like to increase access to justice for users of administrative tribunals from racialized communities in Ontario. This will be done through meaningful engagement, capacity building, and championing the implementation of race-based data collection within the administrative tribunal system. Members of the AAJ Project’s Planning Committee, Advisory Committee and the Project Coordinator will work together to understand and address challenges faced by members of racialized communities i.e. Indigenous Peoples and People of Colour, as they navigate the administrative tribunal system in the province.
PROJECT GOALS:
A) Identify obstacles to accessing administrative tribunals for marginalized users in Ontario, with a focus on the experience of users from racialized communities.
B) Identify promising practices from Ontario and other jurisdictions that seek to improve access to justice for administrative tribunal users from marginalized communities.
C) Identify effective strategies for the collection of race-based data from administrative tribunal users in Ontario.
The work will begin with an environmental scan to identify comparable undertakings, relevant reports, academic writings and administrative tribunal materials. A series of policy questions will be developed out of conversations with Planning Committee members and external stakeholders to determine the project’s primary areas of inquiry.
Interpretation of information collected during the lifetime of the project will be undertaken and findings will be shared in a final report. An implementation plan will be developed in partnership with stakeholder groups, paying close attention to institutional partners that have the capacity to act on results and ensure the sustainability of the implementation plan.
The project is expected to conclude by the fall of 2018. For more information, please contact Jalana Lewis, Project Coordinator jlewis@ocasi.org.
Who we are
Planning Committee:
- Colour of Poverty - Colour of Change
- Chinese & Southeast Asian Legal Clinic
- OCASI - Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants
- Rexdale Community Legal Services
- South Asian Legal Clinic of Ontario
Stakeholders:
- Members of racialized groups who have attended a tribunal or considered resolving a matter via the tribunal system
- Tribunal members and staff
- Advocates (legal and non-legal) who serve racialized tribunal users
- Organizations and agencies that serve racialized communities
Project Timeline
PHASE I: May 2017 - September 2017
- Initiate environmental scan
- Develop research questions
PHASE II: October 2017- March 2018
- Engage with stakeholders regarding project goals & research questions
- Identify opportunities for collaboration with stakeholder groups
PHASE II: April 2018- September 2018
- Interpret information gathered during the lifetime of the project
- Provide stakeholders with a final project report
The AAJ Project is supported through funding from The Law Foundation of Ontario.