As Canadians, we assume the poor and disadvantaged will have fair access to the justice system in Canada. The Canadian Bar Association says that is no longer true, and it is mounting a campaign to get Canadian governments to correct chronic underfunding and uneven coverage that is putting legal aid in crisis in Canada.

The Canadian Bar Association says there are four serious problems with legal aid in Canada:

• underfunding
• uneven coverage across Canada - legal aid varies widely from province to province in Canada
• fragmentation - legal aid coverage is only available for specific problems and procedures in any given jurisdiction, which is inefficient and may not solve an individual's legal problems.
• disproportionate impact - cutbacks in funding and restrictions on legal aid services have a disproportionate impact on low-income Canadians, including women, people with disabilities, and immigrants.

For legal aid services for criminal law matters in Canada, the federal government negotiated cost-sharing agreements with the provinces in 1972, agreeing to pay about half of criminal legal aid services. In 1990-91, the Canadian federal government capped its annual contributions at 1989-90 levels, or $86 million. It's now running at about $80 million a year, according to the Canadian Bar Association.

Federal government funding for legal aid services for civil law matters began in the late 1970s and in 1994-95 was rolled into Canada Health and Social Transfer payments to the provinces. About $90 million a year is transferred by the federal government to the provincial governments for civil legal aid, and the provinces decide how to spend it.

After years of lobbying for improved legal aid, the Canadian Bar Association plans further action to help resolve the legal aid crisis in Canada:

• The Canadian Bar Association has formed a coalition of nine organizations with concerns about the Canadian legal aid system, including the BC Public Interest Advocacy Centre, ARCH - A Legal Resource Centre for People with Disabilities, and the Canadian Council of Refugees
• The Canadian Bar Association is expanding its Legal Aid Watch program, asking members to report on real-life stories where individuals have suffered because of lack of legal aid
• The coalition is looking for test cases to use to file a Charter of Rights challenge to broaden the right of Canadians to legal representation. They feel it is time to get the courts to order governments in Canada to provide adequate legal aid services.

The Canadian Bar Association is also continuing to urge the Canadian federal government to take a stronger role in legal aid, not only in increased funding, but also in negotiating national standards for legal aid in Canada.