Founder of Families for Courtroom Integrity calls for paradigm built on consistency, accountability
This article was provided by Families for Courtroom Integrity.
My name is Robert Glegg, retired entrepreneur and CEO. I recently established Families for Courtroom Integrity to advocate for two important reforms to our civil court system so that it would provide consistency and accountability: with the correct decisions, fast and affordably.
I have been in a child custody dispute for a decade. I have experienced the failures of our civil court system firsthand. I am fortunate to be able to sustain a long, multi-million-dollar legal battle. For most Canadians, lengthy and expensive legal battles are not only unpalatable, but they are also not feasible.
An accessible and effective civil court system is essential in a democratic society. However, according to our judicial leaders’ unambiguous statements:
“The justice system is consequently at risk of being perceived as useless for civil matters.” – Chief Justice Richard Wagner of the Supreme Court of Canada - Globe & Mail, September 21, 2024.
“The Court runs the risk of becoming irrelevant in civil proceedings if action is not taken.” – The Office of Ontario’s Superior Court Chief Justice Geoffrey Morawetz – Globe & Mail, September 21, 2024.
Sadly, we have long accepted the paradigm that our civil court system is and will be highly dysfunctional for our citizens. It does not have to be this way. We can move to a new paradigm where our civil court system serves our citizens.
Correct decisions, dramatically reduced case times and legal fees with two reforms
Critical performance metrics for any organization are quality, delivery and cost. For our civil court system those metrics constitute: the correctness of its decisions, the durations of its case times, and the amount of legal fees charged.
Our civil court system has one output: its decisions. Separate and apart from the correctness of the decisions, today’s paradigm that we need years and exorbitant legal fees to reach those decisions is just a way of thinking that can be changed.
Two easy-to-implement reforms would obtain equitable results, and reduce case times and legal fees by 80 to 90 per cent, producing the right answers, quickly and inexpensively.
Reform 1: Harsh penalties for providing false information
Rules against lawyers providing false information to our civil courts are rarely enforced. There is no other industry or profession where intentionally propounding materially false statements is accepted conduct. Why should we allow this in our civil courts?
False information not only confuses the courts, importantly, it is critical to document here that dealing with false information represents a very high proportion of today’s total case times and legal costs. The basis for Reform 1 lies in the foregoing sentence. Put another way, the ramifications of this false information are profound.
Harsh penalties for lawyers providing this false information would be a crucial deterrent. Implementing suspensions and disbarments for lawyers who deceive, or are aware their clients are doing so, would ensure judges receive substantially accurate information and massively reduce case times and legal fees.
Reform 2: Transparent standardized judicial processes
A most troubling aspect of our civil court system is the near-absolute immunity enjoyed by judges, even when their decisions are blatantly biased or legally unsound. Many litigants have seen how a single judge’s prejudice or incognizance can devastate their lives.
Rigorous standardized processes ensure that the critical performance metrics are met. They keep technology working, businesses operating successfully, and provide an intrinsic means to measure that performance. For example, airplanes are very safe because that industry uses standardized processes. Our civil courts need to employ standardized processes.
If changes are made that force truthfulness (Reform 1), and judges through transparent standardized processes are required to apply essentially true and admissible facts to the appropriate laws at each step, the correct decisions will be reached, expeditiously and economically.
No additional judges required, significant increase in lawyer client pool
There are numerous articles in the press about the unfilled positions for additional judges. The implementation of these two reforms would decrease the load on our civil court system such that there would be no need for additional judges.
Clearly, with these two reforms, the average time that a lawyer spends on a case would be tremendously reduced. However, many willing and able new clients for whom the use of lawyers is closed off today would be seeking legal representation because our civil court system would become accessible and effective for them. These two easy-to-implement reforms would result in consistently correct decisions and cut case times and legal fees by 80 per cent to 90 per cent, creating a civil court system that serves our citizens.
