Judicial education on IPV should not be optional
As discussed in our blog posts over the last few weeks, we are spending time this month discussing the importance of judicial education on intimate partner violence (IPV). Keira’s Law was a giant leap forward on this issue, officially including IPV in the list of possible topics for judicial education in the governing legislation. It also increased public awareness and discourse on IPV more generally and, in particular, on the importance of having legal decision-makers who understand what IPV looks like and their role in addressing it.
However, this giant leap forward comes with one limitation – the legislation makes education on IPV optional, not mandatory.
Understanding the legislation
The Courts of Justice Act governs education for provincially appointed judges who preside over cases in the Ontario Court of Justice. The Chief Justice of the Ontario Court of Justice is responsible for establishing and implementing an education plan for judges once this plan has been reviewed and approved by the Judicial Council. Bill 102, Strengthening Safety and Modernizing Justice Act, which was passed in the spring of 2023, changed this legislation to require that all new judges undertake to participate in courses created by the Chief Justice. This part of the amendment is mandatory – new judges must take the courses the Chief Justice offers. The problem is that the Chief Justice doesn’t need to create courses that deal with IPV. According to the amended legislation, the Chief Justice “may” create courses respecting IPV and coercive control in intimate partner and family relationships.
The Judges Act governs education for federally appointed judges who preside over cases in the Superior Court of Justice, including judges in the Unified Family Court. This legislation provides authority over judicial education to the Canadian Judicial Council (CJC), which includes the Chief Justice of Canada as chairperson. Bill C-233, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Judges Act (violence against an intimate partner), which passed in the spring of 2023, changed the Judges Act to list IPV and coercive control in intimate and family relationships among the list of seminar topics that the CJC “may” establish. Like its provincial counterpart, the optional nature of this wording means that the CJC may or may not include IPV in course content.
Accountability
Even though the wording of the legislation makes education on IPV voluntary, the Chief Justice of Ontario and CJC are accountable for reporting on the IPV-related content offered each year. The Chief Justice of Ontario must submit an annual report to the Attorney General on the number of courses that address IPV and the number of judges who attended these courses. The report is then tabled at the legislature. The CJC is similarly obligated to submit to the Minister of Justice an annual report on the seminars on matters related to IPV and coercive control offered in the prior year. The report is then tabled in the House, and a listing of all programs provided to judges in the year is made available on their website. These reports allow the judiciary to be held accountable for ensuring content addressing IPV is offered. For this reason, it is pivotal that these reports be made publicly available and accessible to the public.
Join us in calling for action!
Despite the voluntary nature of Keira’s Law, there are things we can do to ensure the legislation is meaningfully implemented and not treated as optional. We provided some suggestions for action in our earlier blog post, Back to School for Judges. In addition to these suggested steps, we can work together to advocate for further changes to the legislation to strengthen the existing language. This could include specifically listing IPV and coercive control along with sexual assault law and social context in the list of content new judges must undertake to participate in.
As students across the province start the school year, let’s encourage judges and other legal system stakeholders to see themselves as lifelong students and to understand the importance of continuing education programs that address IPV.
