Architects of Justice

Architects of Justice is an initiative of the Action Group on Access to Justice (TAG) that increases public participation in the development of access to justice solutions. Over the last two years, TAG has conducted applied research and outreach at public events across the province, sharing public legal education materials and inviting people to imagine the justice system of the future. The results of the first Architects of Justice project, Access to Justice at Toronto`s CNE (2015), are available to the public.

In 2017, TAG and OJEN will collaborate to expand the Architects of Justice program’s reach. To do that, we will engage law students at every law school in Ontario to go out and talk to people about their experiences with the legal system and their ideas for making it better.  We’ll tap into local knowledge to find out what’s happening on the ground, where there’s need, and what solutions look like in every region of the province.

Your Role in Architects of Justice

We’re looking for 6-10 law students from each law school who are willing to commit about 15 hours of volunteer time over the winter semester. Student Researchers will work in pairs to survey people in a public place (like a community event, farmer`s market, mall, or community centre) about their experience of access to justice, recording qualitative data that will supplement the quantitative data TAG is collecting elsewhere through phone surveys.

The estimated 15 hours includes training, a few hours of planning and set-up time, and the time spent to run and report on a minimum of two 3-4 hour public outreach sessions in the local community. At each public outreach session, students will set up a small information booth with a selection of public education materials and solicit people to complete the survey together. Surveys have been developed by TAG and can be administered from a tablet, which will be provided for student use. We encourage students to talk to members of the public about their experiences and ideas. After administering the survey, students will record a voice log with an overview of what the person said. Some of the anecdotes and ideas recorded will be incorporated into Season Two of TAG`s upcoming podcast. There is no transcription or data entry involved.

We will also be looking for one student from each law school to act as the Co-ordinator for their school. The Co-ordinator will communicate directly with TAG and provide basic oversight and support to the Student Researchers.

Training

All volunteers will be required to attend their local training session. Please confirm your availability in advance. The dates are as follows:

• Kingston (Queen’s University): Thursday January 25, 6-9pm
• London (University of Western Ontario): Thursday September 28, 6-9pm
• Ottawa (University of Ottawa): Wednesday January 24, 6-9pm
• Thunder Bay (Lakehead University): Thursday October 12, 6-9pm
• Toronto (Osgoode Hall Law School, University of Toronto): Thursday January 18, 6-9pm
• Windsor (University of Windsor): Wednesday September 27, 6-9pm

Training will include an introduction to the Architects of Justice research process and fundamental training on public outreach, giving legal information, and making good referrals to appropriate legal services.

Questions? Comments? Please contact Michelle at mthompson@ojen.ca