Task team recommends more accessibility to legal services
The province and the legal body that regulates lawyers in Saskatchewan are reviewing a list of recommendations aimed at possibly expanding the role of non-lawyers in Saskatchewan and reducing barriers to legal services for the public.
A joint task team looking at ways to improve access to legal services in the province has come up with several recommendations, including expanding the list of people who can provide basic legal services, such as when it comes to filling out legal forms, or for simple wills and cases involving power of attorney. The joint task team was made up of representatives from the Saskatchewan Ministry of Justice and the Law Society of Saskatchewan and looked at barriers to legal services, including high costs and a lack of access to legal services in remote communities or in a person’s own language or culture.
Gerald Tegart, who co-chaired the task team, said the overall goal of the study was to look at ways to make the legal system more flexible and accessible to the public. He said the recommendations look at how people who aren’t trained as lawyers can assist on more basic legal matters.
Currently in Saskatchewan, only lawyers who are members of the law society, or law students, can give legal advice and provide services.