Aboriginal Justice Strategy
The Aboriginal Justice Strategy (AJS) is an initiative to expand access to justice and increase Legal Aid Ontario’s (LAO) ability to respond to local needs of First Nation, Métis, and Inuit clients and communities.
When the strategy was developed in 2008, four pressing concerns with LAO service delivery and organizational structures and priorities were identified:
- Indigenous Peoples are deeply impacted by systemic barriers to accessing justice
- There is a lack of Indigenous representation within LAO and LAO’s Advisory Systems
- LAO needs to work at improving service on Indigenous-specific legal issues and addressing the role of LAO in participating or supporting Indigenous-specific or driven processes
- There is a lack of Indigenous legal representation or legal representation that is appropriately informed on the unique needs of Indigenous clients
In the past ten years of the AJS, there have been a number of decisions and findings that find the criminal justice, correctional and child welfare systems continue to discriminate against Indigenous Peoples.
LAO has made public commitments to work in partnership with Indigenous Peoples, and federal and provincial governments to eliminate Indigenous overrepresentation in incarceration — both youth and adult — in accordance with the Calls to Action made by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The organization must, as part of this commitment, ensure that every policy being considered specifically addresses how the policy could impact Indigenous clients and communities. LAO should build on the relationships that have been born out of the consultation process to help answer those questions.
Reports
- Progress update: Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action
Paper | September 2022 - Relationships First, Business Later
Aboriginal Justice Strategy consultation report: Part 1
Paper | June 2021 - The Development of Legal Aid Ontario’s Aboriginal Strategy
Paper | June 2008