Reducing Lloydminster Provincial Court to a circuit point is a step backwards, says a Lloydminster lawyer and secretary-treasurer of the Battlefords Bar Association.
On June 8 it was announced the Lloydminster court will be converted to a circuit point Sept.1 and run by North Battleford Provincial Court.
"This is a step backwards for the residents of Lloydminster and area,鈥� said Ryan Armstrong in a prepared statement.
鈥淭his does nothing to advance access to justice, and in fact reduces it. To suggest otherwise ignores the fact that there will inevitably be fewer sitting days in this area, resulting in greater delays in getting to trial or having a matter heard and resolved. It will undoubtedly force the hearing of some matters in North Battleford to ensure they are heard in a timely fashion, resulting in increased time and cost to people of Lloydminster and surrounding area.鈥�
The Chief Judge, in consultation with the Ministry of Justice, regularly reviews and assigns circuit points to balance the court鈥檚 workload and ensure communities receive appropriate service levels. Saskatchewan currently has 61 circuit points.
A spokesperson from Saskatchewan Courts said this particular change strengthens the court鈥檚 capacity in the area by centralizing judicial resources, which permits better sharing of workloads and streamlined scheduling, in turn improving the court鈥檚 ability to respond to community needs and decide cases in a timely manner.
Armstrong, however, said there was no consultation with the local Bar Association despite ample opportunity and availability.
鈥淲e鈥檙e a group of over 50 lawyers from Lloydminster to North Battleford, from Meadow Lake down to Unity. As a result, the local bar cannot explain or justify whether the reasons provided for the closure are appropriate.鈥�
Armstrong said this move will decrease access to justice and have a negative impact on residents in Onion Lake, Lashburn, Marshall, Maidstone and more who already travel to Lloydminster.
鈥淭hey are now forced to travel even further to North Battleford. For marginalized community members, travel to Lloydminster for court, for document filing, or simply for assistance with court process, is already a barrier to access to justice. The contemplated travel to North Battleford will be even further for some in those communities, increasing the barriers to access to justice, and likely leading to more warrants for failure to appear, incarcerations, and increased use of court time and resources.鈥�
Centralizing of court services is also a concern.
鈥淚f the centralization of court services is the way of the future, then at some point we can all expect to have to travel to Saskatoon and Regina to have the same access to justice as those residing in the largest centres.鈥�
Nine staff members in the Lloydminster Provincial Court office are affected by this decision. Two staff members will have the option to transfer to the North Battleford Provincial Court office, three positions will be ended and four term positions will end early.
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