2006-07-13
Author: 800 CHAB NEWS

Bicyclists passing through Moose Jaw on a cross-Canada trek are not all that uncommon. But one such rider who dropped into the Friendly City Wednesday evening was a little different.

He's Dugald Christie, a 65 year-old Vancouver lawyer who is heading for St. John's, Newfoundland while trying to raise awareness among lawyers and the public about his proposed reforms to the Canadian Justice system. "Its gonna be a long journey to get access to justice. There has to be an awakening as to the importance of the issue. What's the point in having all of our glorious laws if the ordinary person can reach them? It has to have priorities, it has to have co-operation of the government, and of the profession."

Christie proposes that the government and the legal profession need to cooperate in making Canadians aware that many lawyers voluntarily offer free legal advice. Christie is the founder of the Western Canada Society to Access Justice that operates free legal advice clinics across western Canada.