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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Letter of the Day
'In a state of crisis'
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Re: Divorce papers filed day before slaying (May 4). After Ontario Chief Justice Warren Winkler's appointment in 2007, he travelled throughout that province to get feedback on issues that were facing the legal system. He believes access to justice to be the greatest challenge facing the legal profession today, especially in family law. The overwhelming theme of the conversations with litigation lawyers is that family law is in a state of crisis.
He says this state of frustration is shared by the public. Almost everyone knows someone who has been involved in a family law dispute. It is almost inevitable that these stories will be sad from a personal standpoint. But the sadness is invariably exacerbated by experiences of frustration and dissatisfaction with the legal system. The effect our legal system has on family disputes has been described as throwing gasoline on a fire.
Winkler states courts should not be the first stop in divorce and custody disputes. The traditional adversarial system works where you are dealing with parties who will never have to deal with each other again, but is lacking where ongoing co-operation is needed. His recommendation is we should move toward a system with presumptive mediation.
Bill C-422 amends the Divorce Act to replace the concept of "custody orders" with that of "parenting orders." It instructs judges, when making a parenting order, to apply the principle of equal parenting unless it is established the best interests of the child would be substantially enhanced by allocating parental responsibility other than equally.
After all these years, instead of trying to affix blame, shouldn't the powers that be start making changes that have been recommended by experienced and knowledgable professionals, and have a system that truly works in the best interests of the child?
DOLORES BELOT
Winnipeg
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition May 7, 2012 A11
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