Law Times

lAw Times • April 14, 2014 Page 5 www.lawtimesnews.com provision in the proposed victims bill of rights that would force spouses to testify against each oth- er could lead to biased evidence, says the presi- dent of the Criminal Lawyers' Association. Anthony Mousta- calis says the provision is not only "disruptive" to personal relation- ships, it will also lead to unreliable evidence entered into the record in criminal cases. "e problem with forcing spouses to testify against each other is that it puts people in a difficult position and leads to unreliable evidence because there is already a presumption that someone who is married to someone else or is in a relationship with someone else is going to be biased," he says. "In my mind, that's going to cause some more complexity." Prime Minister Stephen Harper un- veiled the long-awaited victims bill of rights on April 3. "e victims bill of rights act is a sig- nificant piece of legislation that seeks to create clear statutory rights at the federal level for vic- tims of crime for the first time in Canada's history," an overview of the bill reads. "e legislation would es- tablish statutory rights to information, protec- tion, participation, and restitution, and ensure a complaint process is in place for breaches of these rights." But criminal lawyers say the bill mostly cop- ies Ontario's approach that already provides victims with informa- tion throughout the prosecution of a case. "It seems to me like the government is com- ing to the game aer it's already been played," says Ottawa criminal lawyer Sean May, who says the bill won't significantly alter victims' rights. "ere is a system in place and a vic- tim witness assistance service at, to my knowledge, every courthouse in Ontario and the federal government seems to be adding a layer into what already exists," he says. "It's almost like the government is jumping on a bandwagon that already is there." In introducing the bill, the Harper government said the rights of victims had faded in comparison to the justice sys- tem's focus on the rights of prisoners and those accused of crime. But to May, the imbalance actually disadvantages the ac- cused in a criminal justice system where legal aid is constantly "under attack." "Now we're talking about the federal government putting more money on the other side," he says. "When we have a spectre of unrepresented litigants or law- yers who are doing a lot of unpaid work because of reduced funding to legal aid or limited funding to legal aid, I think we run the risk of going in the direction where there's an imbalance." He adds: "I think it's quite appropriate to be sensitive to victims. Victims need to have a voice but they do." For Moustacalis, what victims want most is a speedy process and adequate restitution. ose things aren't part of the federal government's proposed bill of rights, he says, adding achieving a quick resolution oen involves more funding for legal aid. "To have a speedy process, you need accused people to be represented quickly and the way to do that is you have to fund legal aid plans across the county," he says. "e federal government would tell you that they have not reduced funding to legal aid funds. Although that's techni- cally true, with the erosion of inflation, the federal government used to fund On- tario's legal aid plan 50 per cent; now that same money covers only 20 per cent of Ontario's aid plan." LT Victims bill of rights Lawyers concerned about forcing spousal testimony NEWS Clarity makes the case Beyond all reasonable doubt From one team of professionals to another, we respectfully submit that when you or your clients are talking audit, tax and business advisory solutions, you should call us up to the stand. >P[OVɉJLZMYVTJVHZ[[VJVHZ[V\YWYVMLZZPVUHSZ VɈLY[OLNLU\PULPUZPNO[ZHUKVIQLJ[P]LHJ[PVUHISL advice you need to maximize opportunities in virtually every area of your business. Please the court with Collins Barrow. collinsbarrow.com Untitled-1 1 14-04-07 7:57 PM BY YAMRI TADDESE Law Times A The provisions on spousal testimony could lead to biased evidence, says Anthony Moustacalis. Key aspects of the victims bill of rights Right to information: Victims would have access to case-specific informa- tion, including the status and outcome of an investigation and the review and timing of an offender's conditional re- lease. Right to protection: Among the pro- visions, victims could seek to protect their identity from public disclosure. The changes would also affect third-party records in sexual assault cases, includ- ing a provision requiring the court to consider the security of the victim when deciding whether to disclose them. Right to participation: Victims would have increased leeway to express their views about decisions made at various stages of the justice system. Right to restitution: Victims could seek a restitution order against the of- fender and have it enforced as a civil debt. Victim surcharge: The bill seeks to clarify how much time an offender has to pay the victim surcharge by requir- ing payment within a period set by the province in question. Where the prov- ince hasn't set such a period, offenders would have to pay within a "reasonable time." Judges have discretion in deter- mining the reasonable time period.

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