Reducing the 'Justice Gap' Through Access to Legal Information: Establishing Access to Justice Entry Points at Public Libraries

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beth Bilson ◽  
Brea Lowenberger ◽  
Graham Sharp
Keyword(s):  
Public Libraries ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Legal Information ◽  
Entry Points ◽  
Justice Gap

scholarly journals REDUCING THE “JUSTICE GAP” THROUGH ACCESS TO LEGAL INFORMATION: ESTABLISHING ACCESS TO JUSTICE ENTRY POINTS AT PUBLIC LIBRARIES

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 99-128
Author(s):  
Beth Bilson ◽  
Brea Lowenberger ◽  
Graham Sharp
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Access ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Collection Development ◽  
Legal Information ◽  
The Public ◽  
Legal Advice ◽  
Entry Points ◽  
Limited Scope

Among the strategies to improve public access to justice, increasing the accessibility and comprehensibility of legal information must be ranked as important. In this paper, the authors explore how libraries and librarians might play a role in providing the public with access and guidance to legal information. These issues are considered primarily in the context of two scenarios: that of the self-represented litigant, and that of a party to a limited scope retainer. The authors consider in particular how public libraries as a public space and public librarians as trusted intermediaries might support the objective of greater access. The possible roles of law society/courthouse and academic libraries in training and collection development are also considered. The distinction between providing access to legal information and giving legal advice is discussed briefly, and the authors suggest some possible ways of clarifying this distinction while pursuing the goal of expanding public access to legal information.

scholarly journals Book Review: Helping Library Users with Legal Questions: Practical Advice for Research, Programming, and Outreach

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnes Gambill West
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Legal Information ◽  
Practical Advice ◽  
The Public ◽  
Legal Questions ◽  
Library Users ◽  
American Legal System

Deborah A. Hamilton’s new book sheds light on the access to justice crisis in the American legal system and illustrates valuable strategies for how libraries can help. Hamilton’s passion for assisting the public with research and discovery of legal information makes her well-suited to share practical advice for research, programming, and outreach related to legal information literacy. Hamilton’s message to readers is clear: libraries can play a significant role in making the justice system more accessible and equitable by providing access to laws and legal information.

Advancing the frontiers of justice to the under represented in Nigeria through public law library legal clinics: issues for consideration

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (6/7) ◽  
pp. 607-616
Author(s):  
Oludayo John Bamgbose
Keyword(s):  
Public Libraries ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Public Law ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The People ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
Law Library

PurposeThe research sought to explore the role of public law libraries in advancing the net of persons who could access justice, using the law clinic in Nigeria as a gateway. It also examined how public law libraries could fit in drawing justice closer to the people using law clinics.Design/methodology/approachIn achieving the research intentions, the researcher adopted mixed research approach. For the doctrinal method, the study embraced a desktop review of relevant literature on law clinic, access to justice and law libraries. For non-doctrinal method, the researcher brought to bare, his observation, experience and participation in clinical legal education, law clinic and law librarianship for a period of almost a decade. The literature and the experience of the researcher formed the basis on which the paper was developed.FindingsThe findings from this research reveal that access to justice is constrained by a number of factors that make it impossible for many Nigerians to access justice. The study further brings to the fore the role of law clinics in widening the gap of access to justice. In addition, the place of public law libraries in expanding the frontiers of access to justice is further underscored.Originality/valueNot minding the potentials of public libraries in advancing access to justice world over, perusal of literature reveals that there is dearth of literature on the role of public law libraries in advancing access to justice through the instrumentality of law clinics in Nigeria. This research appears to be pioneering research in this regard.

scholarly journals Access to Justice Online: Are Canadian Court Websites Accessible for Users With Visual Impairments?

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cody Rei-Anderson ◽  
Graham Reynolds ◽  
Jayde Wood ◽  
Natasha Wood
Keyword(s):  
New Technologies ◽  
Visual Impairments ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Legal Information ◽  
University Of British Columbia ◽  
Or Groups ◽  
Testing Tool ◽  
Accessibility Issues ◽  
The University

Steps taken to make legal information available online have resulted in access to justice benefits for many. However, these benefits may not extend to everyone equally. As scholars have cautioned, the adoption of new technologies that purport to improve access to justice may perpetuate the exclusion of vulnerable and marginalized individuals and groups from the justice system. This article applies this insight to legal information made available online by Canadian court websites and CanLII.It does so through a two-part study. First, we used an automated testing tool to determine whether the websites noted above comply with accessibility standards. Second, after having secured research ethics approval, we worked with Access & Diversity at the University of British Columbia to recruit persons with visual impairments; these participants evaluated the same websites and provided feedback. Our results showed that while largely accessible, the tested websites fall short of best practices, presenting challenges to users with visual impairments. We recommend that Canadian courts correct the deficiencies identified by our study, that other online legal resources be tested for accessibility issues, and that future research focus on the extent to which online legal resources are accessible to other vulnerable or marginalized individuals or groups. Implementing these recommendations will ensure that the access to justice benefits of online legal information are extended to everyone.

Open Access…with a Twist! – Canadian Edition

2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonia Poulin
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Legal Information

The presentation delivered in Oxford during IALL's 35th Annual Course on Law and Legal Information offered my perspective on Open Access to legal information within the context of Access to Justice in Canada. Please find below an overview of my presentation.

Queensland Community Legal Centres' Use of Information Technology to Deliver Access to Justice

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Farrell ◽  
Emma Phillips
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Legal Assistance ◽  
Relevant Research ◽  
Legal Information ◽  
Legal Advice ◽  
Disadvantaged Groups ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Types Of Information

AbstractIn Queensland, Australia, community legal centres utilise a range of different types of information technology to provide legal advice and assistance to their clients, which include marginalised and disadvantaged groups. In this article Emma Phillips and James Farrell considers the use and efficacy of different types of information technology within the community legal sector, discussing the findings of recent empirical research on this issue in the context of the relevant research literature. The article then explores issues associated with the use of information technology in the provision of legal information and advice, including the limitations associated with this technology in the context of the delivery of legal assistance to vulnerable clients.

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