BarTalk October 2001
Volume 13, Number 5

Possible cutbacks of up to 40 per cent

The CBABC is gearing up for an intensive period of government relations activities and legislative reform, in light of the government’s announced Core Review and Administrative Justice Review, and recent comments by Minister of Finance Gary Collins about the need for budget cuts across government.

The CBA is very cognizant of the challenges ahead. We will be making the case for investing in the administration of justice – and access to justice – at a time when all other Ministries are competing for limited government dollars. Our message is simple: a strong and viable economy and province require a stable legal and judicial infrastructure to attract and sustain economic activity.

Every lawyer has a role to play in ensuring that each MLA is educated about the justice system and its importance. If you want materials to assist you in this, your CBABC Branch Office is ready to help. Call us at 604.687.3404 or toll free 1.888.687.3404.

Who’s Who?
There are now three Ministers who hold portfolios that include responsibilities and agencies that were previously the sole purview of the Ministry of the Attorney General.

The Attorney General is Geoff Plant, MLA for Richmond-Steveston, former practising lawyer, and longtime Opposition Justice Critic. He is well versed in the issues relating to his portfolio, and has worked hard to establish a good relationship with the CBABC and members of the bar. The traditional functions related to court, Crown, and legal services remain with this portfolio, with the addition of treaty negotiations to the Minister’s responsibilities. With this double portfolio, it is possible that the Attorney General will become preoccupied with treaty issues in the near future. He does, however, take a personal interest in the Administrative Justice Review, and has consistently stated that he is looking to lawyers to provide advice on how to improve laws and legal process in BC.

The Solicitor General and Minister Responsible for Public Safety is Rich Coleman, MLA for Fort Langley-Aldergrove, and a former member of the RCMP. Among other responsibilities, the Ministry includes Community Programs, Corrections, and Investigations, Inspection and Standards, BC Board of Parole, BC Coroners Services, Commercial Appeals Commission, Criminal Injury Compensation Program and Liquor Appeal Board.

The third Minister of note to lawyers is Stan Hagen, Minister of Sustainable Resource Management, MLA for Comox Valley, and former businessman. Contained within his portfolio, among many other land use responsibilities, is the Land Titles Office. Although the compilation of these functions makes some sense from a bureaucratic point of view, there are lawyers who have expressed concern about the detachment of the LTO from the Ministry of the Attorney General. There is concern that this reflects a commercialized rather than a legal approach to the overall concept of the Torrens system.

This article was published in the October 2001 issue of BarTalk and is subject to the copyright by the British Columbia Branch of the Canadian Bar Association, 2005, all rights reserved.