Category: New on Clicklaw

The proposal to expand “lawful access” is proving highly contentious in Canada. With the federal governments’ upcoming introduction of the “lawful access” bills – legislation that increases the ability of law enforcement agencies to lawfully conduct surveillance and intercept or collect individuals’ personal information – more and more people are debating where to draw the line between law enforcement and citizens’ rights to privacy.

Taking part in this debate is the BC Civil Liberties Association, whose latest report on this hot topic is now available on Clicklaw. In Moving Toward a Surveillance Society: Proposals to Expand “Lawful Access” in Canada, BCCLA argues that the “lawful access” proposals are an attack on personal privacy, and that there is a lack of real evidence to support the argument that they will ensure the security of Canadians.

Made possible by a research grant from the Law Foundation of British Columbia, this report explains each of the proposals and considers how the courts are likely to see the balance between enforcing the law and the rights of citizens.

For more information on individual privacy rights and access to information, get started with these great resources on Clicklaw.bc.ca.

You may recall that in 2010 West Coast LEAF  released Mapping the Gap, a report that provided a broad overview of the legal resources available to women in BC. The results of the surveys conducted during the preparation of that report indicated a significant gap in responses from Aboriginal organizations and centers. For West Coast LEAF, this gap highlighted a need to better engage with Aboriginal communities in order to learn what legal resources Aboriginal women are using and what needs remain unmet.

To this end, they initiated a new project in 2011 that specifically focused on community-based legal resources accessed by Aboriginal women and their advocates within the context of diminishing legal aid services.

Now available on Clicklaw, Mapping the Gap: Linking Aboriginal Women with Legal Resources and Services is a report that describes the results of their project and their findings that there are major gaps in service for Aboriginal women (including basic, face-to-face, legal support). The report also contains recommendations for the future.

More information about this project can be found on their website.