Law Times

PAGE 10 FOCUS New working group ADR organizations seek collaboration BY JUDY VAN RHIJN For Law Times I n a move that reflects collabora- tive efforts south of the border, a swath of Ontario's mediation, arbitration, and collaborative law organizations are planning to join forces to create a joint work- ing group that they hope will heighten their success in advo- cacy, networking, and education. This development stems, in part, from their collaboration with the Ministry of the Attorney General Let us open right door for you the We specialize in Employment and Labour Law in Canada Kuretzky Vassos Henderson is a leading employment and labour law fi rm situated in the heart of Toronto. We are comprised of eleven lawyers, all of whom specialize in the area of employment and labour law. We act for many prominent public and private sector employers as well as for individuals. Kuretzky Vassos Henderson LLP Our work includes extensive experience in the areas of: Wrongful dismissal • Human rights • Labour relations/Labour law/Collective barganing • Workplace health and safety • Sexual harassment • Employment standards • Employment contracts • Canada Labour Code • Class actions • Mediation/arbitration/ADR www.kuretzkyvassos.com • 416.865.0504 Kuretzky_LT_July11_11.indd 1 7/5/11 3:32:01 PM and the Ontario Bar Association in developing the Four Pillars of Justice program that encourages recourse to family mediation and other alternatives to court. The wider alternative dispute resolution community is welcoming the move as the traditional court system con- tinues to attract criticism. Hull & Hull LLP's Ian Hull, who mediates extensively on es- tates issues, applauds the forma- tion of a conglomerate group. "It entirely makes sense with respect to training and exposure to issues. Dispute resolution continues to grow. It is the only effective way to resolve things." Hull believes practitioners have lost faith in the court process in terms of costs and timelines and that dispute resolution needs to provide an effective alternative. "Every day, we have to direct clients away from the court system. We have to develop more sophisticated processes and we need a voice to speak to government and the legis- lature to keep allocating resources." Mary Damianakis, president of Family Mediation Canada, agrees on the need for more efforts to raise the profile of dispute resolution. "Over the last decade, family medi- ation has increased dramatically in Canada. For example, the Ministry of the Attorney General in Ontario is expanding mediation services to all 49 family courts, ensuring ac- cess to family mediators across the province. Nevertheless, through- out much of Canada, mediation remains an underutilized and not well understood service by many who are trying to navigate their way through our family justice system." As a result, there's a sense of excitement in relation to a collab- orative group unofficially known as the Dispute Resolution Working Group that encompasses the inter- ests of various organizations com- prising about 2,000 members in Ontario. To date, the ADR Institute of Ontario, the Ontario Association for Family Mediation, the Ontario Collaborative Law Federation, and Family Mediation Canada have committed themselves to partici- pating. Other groups may also be- come involved. The working group has pre- pared some terms of reference for review and approval by the vari- ous boards of directors before they can proceed further. They're also contemplating a jointly sponsored continuing education program for 2013. Other plans include promot- ing awareness about dispute reso- lution among the public and other professionals as well as sharing in- formation and resources. In addition, the working group hopes to be able to join forces to advocate for mutual interests on future legislative changes concern- ing alternative dispute resolution at both the provincial and fed- eral levels. Joyce Young, president of the ADR Institute of Ontario, identifies a future advocacy oppor- tunity in the remarks by Attorney General John Gerretsen during a speech on March 7 in which he an- nounced he'd be pursuing a unified family court across the province. He noted the federal government has the authority to make all judi- cial appointments to the Unified Family Court and that he has in- vited it to begin those discussions. "Four of these groups did the CITED BY THE SUPREME COURT OF CANADA CANADIAN EMPLOYMENT LAW STACEY REGINALD BALL "The most comprehensive text on employment law in Canada. It is carefully constructed and accurate." Canadian Bar Review MORE THAN 6,075 CASES CITED Canadian Employment Law is a one-stop reference that provides a thorough survey of the law and analysis of developing trends, suggesting potential avenues of attack as well as identifying potential weaknesses in the law. Canadian Employment Law has been cited by the Supreme Court of Canada, in superior courts in every province in Canada and is used in law schools throughout Canada. ORDER # 804218-62305 $341 2 volume looseleaf supplemented book 4-5 supplements per year Supplements invoiced separately Anticipated upkeep cost-$219 per update 978-0-88804-218-3 CD -ROM or Internet version available separately Prices start at $473 With methodically organized chapters covering the complete range of employment law, Canadian Employment Law provides the kind of detailed examination of the facts you can count on. The subject-matter is wide-ranging and addresses issues such as: wrongful dismissal, fiduciary obligations, tort law and vicarious liability issues, remedies, constitutional issues, occupational health and safety, employment contracts, duty of good faith and fidelity and human rights. Includes a Table of Reasonable Notice — a chart, which groups together comparable types of positions so you can easily compare length of notice awards. Plus, all topics are illustrated with extensive case law and useful footnotes. AVAILABLE RISK-FREE FOR 30 DAYS Order online at www.carswell.com Call Toll-Free: 1-800-387-5164 In Toronto: 416-609-3800 Shipping and handling are extra. Price subject to change without notice and subject to applicable taxes. CANADA LAW BOOK® www.lawtimesnews.com advocacy for the recent family law reforms," says Young. "With the success of that under our belts, we may place this issue on our future agenda." Hull points to the recent criti- cism by Superior Court Justice David Brown of the court sys- tem as another call for advocacy from dispute resolution groups. On March 14, Brown launched a scathing attack on the system aſter it took staff an hour to find a document previously filed with the court. He referred to "our antiquat- ed, wholly-inadequate document management system" as imposing unnecessary costs on the members of the public who use the court. "The state of this court's docu- ment management and case sched- uling systems is a scandal, and the poor excuse of a system which cur- rently is employed should be subject to relentless criticism — judicial and otherwise — until it is discarded and the people of this province are provided by the provincial gov- ernment with a court administra- tion system of a quality which they deserve," he wrote. While each alternative dispute resolution group has its own dis- tinct identity and history and there are no plans for a wider merger, participants say they're excited about the added clout they hope to achieve on these and other issues by working together. LT April 2, 2012 • lAw Times

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