Identifying Legal Needs and Their Costs

This case study is part of the OGP Justice Policy Series, Part I: Access to Justice.

Researchers can dig deeper at the national level. For example, in 2018, JusticeTo address barriers that prevent citizens from having their justice needs met, OGP participating governments are working to expand transparency, accountability, and inclusion into all systems of justi... Canada, partnering with several other federal departments, began work to have Statistics Canada develop and implement a national legal needs survey, currently called the National Legal Problems Survey (NLPS). The NLPS is based on a 2014 York University questionnaire and updated through consultations with federal departments and external stakeholders. Additional content development and a second round of testing will be completed in the Fall of 2019 with the goal of placing the NLPS in the field from 2020−2021, with results released the following year.

In addition to this government-led survey, a multi-stakeholder group is examining the social and economic costs of Canada’s justice system between 2011−2018. The Cost of Justice Project is producing empirical data to inform access to justiceAccessible justice systems – both formal and informal – ensure that individuals and communities with legal needs know where to go for help, obtain the help they need, and move through a system tha... More policy in Canada. The effort demonstrates a commitmentOGP commitments are promises for reform co-created by governments and civil society and submitted as part of an action plan. Commitments typically include a description of the problem, concrete action... by the government, academia, and civil society to better understand the costs to Canadian society from the justice gap.