METRAC Action on Violence

METRAC works with individuals, communities and institutions to change ideas, actions and policies toward the goal of ending violence against women and youth. Delivering relevant and boundary-breaking services and programs, we focus on education and prevention and use innovative tools to build safety, justice and equity.

METRAC’s Community Justice Program builds the capacity of individuals, groups, and organizations within Ontario, through legal education and information, research, partnerships and policy discussion to increase access to justice for vulnerable women and youth affected by violence. METRAC is a founding member of the Family Law Education for Women Campaign (FLEW), a successful Ontario-wide initiative which is considered a promising practice by the Law Commission of Ontario, for its innovative methods of delivering web-based legal information.

What we do:

• Develop and distribute legal information resources in multiple languages on intersecting areas of the law, including: family law, criminal law, immigration and refugee law, employment law, human rights law
• Provide current, clear-language legal information about the law affecting women, legal processes and the justice system
• Help women to understand and consider their legal options, rights and responsibilities so they may make informed choices to protect themselves and their children
• Work in collaboration with a broad network of partners, to deliver legal education and information trainings, workshops and webinars for practitioners who work with women and youth
• Create and disseminate legal information resources in English and 12 other languages including American Sign Language (ASL) as well as, large print, audio formats, viral videos, online seminars, and culture-based materials in print and electronic copies
• Coordinate the Family Law Education for Women (FLEW) Campaign, an Ontario-wide initiative to increase access to legal information affecting women and their families, especially at family breakdown
• Coordinate the Ontario Women’s Justice Network website owjn.org to help women and youth know their legal rights and options on a wide range of topics, in accessible, plain language and multilingual formats. OWJN demystifies the legal system and increases access to justice by providing the public and service providers with legal information found nowhere else

Some of the ways METRAC has worked to increase access to justice:

• 1988: Intervened at the Supreme Court of Canada in Canadian Newspapers Co. v Canada where mandatory publication bans on the identity of sexual assault complainants upon request were found Constitutional
• 1991: Intervened at the Supreme Court of Canada in R. v Seaboyer to minimize the impact of rape myths in sexual assault trials, where the law excluding evidence of sexual reputation was found Constitutional
• 1993: initiated passage of criminal harassment (stalking) legislation
• 1997: participated in legislative consultations to protect women’s records in sexual assault cases
• 1998: granted standing at the Coroner’s inquest into the murder of Arlene May
• 2005-2006: participated in successful initiatives to prevent religious arbitration in Ontario family law matters
• 2011: intervened at the Supreme Court of Canada in Canada v Mavi to protect the interests of immigrant women who face sponsorship debt after escaping violent partners
• 2013: intervened at the Ontario Court of Appeal in ODSP v Surdivall to protect women receiving Ontario Disability Support Program benefits so that overpayment debts that arise in situations of abuse may be forgiven

2013 impact:

• 98% of our legal training and webinar participants report increased understanding of women’s rights and options under the law
• 95% of legal training and webinar participants report they feel better equipped to educate vulnerable women on their rights and options under family law
• Of 72 survey respondents, 94% say the information on the OWJN website is helpful and easy to read
• Of 72 survey respondents, 88% say they would recommend the OWJN to others
• 20,781 hard copies of written legal information distributed across Ontario
• 547,930 legal information website views (onefamilylaw.ca and owjn.org)