The Legal Eye - Faculty.law.ubc.ca - University of British Columbia

A visit with Judge Mary Ellen Turpel Lafond
The Honourable Judge Mary Ellen Turpel Lafond flew in from Saskatoon in mid-October for three days at UBC – three very packed days. Not only did she deliver the inaugural
Marlee Kline Lecture in Social Justice, Judge Turpel Lafond also met with faculty and students associated with the Centre for Feminist Legal Studies, spoke at a lunch time session
organized by the First Nations Legal Studies Program, and participated in a discussion with Native students, educators and community members at a forum at the First Nations
House of Learning organized by Myrna McCallum and the First Nations Law Students Association. On top of that, she also met privately with The Honourable Alfred Scow, a former
BC provincial court judge, and his wife, and with Dean Emeritus George Curtis. And she did all of this with her (adorable) six-month old son, Isaiah Denning Lafond, in tow.
Justice for all?
Not if you are an Aboriginal woman
by Samuel Hu, Law II
In delivering the inaugural Marlee
Kline Lecture in Social Justice, the Honourable
Judge Mary Ellen Turpel Lafond
turned our attention to the plight of Aboriginal
women and the struggles they face
when relating to the Canadian legal system.
Starting with an example of how the
legal profession must change in its attitude
towards mothers and those who are contemplating
motherhood, Judge Turpel
Lafond went on to relay her personal experiences,
first as a lawyer and now as a judge
in the provincial court in Saskatoon, in
assisting and dealing with legal issues common
to Aboriginal women.
One issue Judge Turpel Lafond said
that she faces far too often is the fact that
Aboriginal women who have been assaulted
either by their partner or a stranger
often do not continue with criminal proceedings.
Among the reasons cited by Judge
Turpel Lafond are the fear of re-victimization
in the witness box, fear of revenge at
the hands of their attacker, and a mistrust/
misunderstanding of the legal system.
Judge Turpel also talked about dealing
with the cases of youth affected by fetal
alcohol syndrome. These youths – many
of whom are young Aboriginal women –
are seen as easy targets for violence and
victimization. However, as a result of their
disability, they are often unable to provide
solid testimony in court.
Unfortunately, as Judge Turpel Lafond
pointed out, the issues facing Aboriginal
women are not isolated to criminal law
matters. One other glaring example of how
the law works against Aboriginal women
is that the Indian Act does not allow women
to have any interest in a matrimonial home
that is located on reserve, in the event of a
divorce. This has led to many successful
Aboriginal women deciding not to live on
reserves, which only serves to separate them
and their families from their culture.
So what can be done?
Judge Turpel Lafond suggests that
change must begin by eliminating the indifference
that those in the legal profession
show towards Aboriginal women. Only
then can we begin to bridge the gap between
the suffering and the justice that they
so desperately require.
Academics can play a vital role by focusing
their research on the specific needs
of aboriginal women and how those needs
can be accommodated by the law. Lawyers
and judges can invoke change by being conscious
of the unique situations Aboriginal
women come from when they are brought
in front of the justice system. But most importantly,
we must all ask ourselves what
we can do to bring hope and justice to a
precious but marginalized group in Canadian
society.
In her talk, Judge Turpel Lafond referenced
the recent Amnesty International
report entitled, “Stolen Sisters.” It provides
a look at the treatment of the indigenous
women of Canada and can be found at
http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/
ENGAMR200012004.
Marlee Kline
Endowed Lectureship
in Social Justice
To commermorate the contributions of Professor Marlee Kline to legal scholarship,
teaching and social justice, the UBC Faculty of Law has established the Marlee Kline
Endowed Lectureship in Social Justice. Professor Kline joined the Faculty in 1989; her
research focused on child welfare law, restructuring of the welfare state and the structures
of sexism and racism within the law. In 2001, after a courageous battle with leukemia,
Professor Kline passed away.
The Faculty’s goal is to raise $250,000 in order to support annual guest lecturers to
UBC Law in perpetuity. The Marlee Kline Lectures will provide an invaluable opportunity
for UBC students, faculty, alumni, legal professionals and the general public to learn
about current issues in the area of social justice. To make a special gift to this endowment,
contact Janine Root, Development Coordinator, UBC Faculty of Law, 1822 East
Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z1; tel: (604) 822-6266; email: jroot@law.ubc.ca.
November 2004 The Legal Eye
Judge Mary Ellen Turpel Lafond (centre) with her son Isaiah
and law professors June McCue and Michael Jackson.
photo by Agnes Huang
Balancing Cree law
with common law
by Myrna McCallum, Law III
On October 15th, the First Nations
Law Students Association hosted a discussion
forum between Judge Mary Ellen
Turpel Lafond and First Nations students
and professors from UBC, SFU and UVic
and various community members. The purpose
of this gathering at Sty’wet’tan Hall
in the First Nations House of Learning was
to provide an opportunity for Native students
to hear Judge Turpel Lafond share
some of her experiences, and for the students
to ask questions about various legal
issues affecting Native people.
Judge Turpel Lafond discussed diverse
subjects including traditional knowledge,
treaties, land claims, alternative sentencing
models and offenders with fetal alcohol
syndrome (FAS), as well as the path
that led her to Harvard and subsequently,
back to Saskatchewan. She stated that Cree
culture and language motivated her to return
to Saskatoon. “Some things can only
be learned at home,” she said. In addition,
raising her children with the determination
of having them understand the Cree
language is better achieved when they grow
up surrounded by fluent speakers.
As much as Judge Turpel Lafond enjoys
working within her own community
and with other Crees, she explained that
her job isn’t always satisfying. One of the
most disconcerting matters she encounters
in her courtroom is the alarming increase
in Native FAS defendants. According to
Judge Turpel-Lafond, many FAS offenders
end up in correctional centres when they
ought to be placed in facilities that specialize
in dealing with FAS-related problems.
The judicial treatment of FAS offenders,
as such, is disappointing since the
courts are not required to order testing to
diagnose FAS defendants. As such, a great
number of defendants become undiagnosed
FAS inmates. Judge Turpel Lafond realizes
that although a jail sentence isn’t appropriate
for these offenders, at this time unfortunately,
there are few alternatives available
for FAS offenders in the justice system.
Twice, I heard Judge Turpel Lafond
share that under Cree law, every child is
born perfect. As such, she finds it bothersome
to apply sentences prescribed by the
Criminal Code to FAS offenders, when she
knows that her own culture would advise
care and consideration over incarceration.
Nonetheless, Judge Turpel Lafond conveyed
that it is important for First Nations
people to understand the law and still continue
to practice their own traditional laws.
The accommodation and recognition of
Aboriginal law has allowed for an acceptance
of Cree values in the common law
system. This is evidenced in the relatively
recent emergence of Cree circuit courts in
northern Saskatchewan, the implementation
of healing circles as an alternative to
incarceration, and the introduction of Native
Elders and ceremonies in correctional
institutions.
The time spent listening to Judge
Turpel Lafond was not only inspiring but
equally thought provoking. For the last
three years, I have focused solely on learning
the common law but my real passion,
as I was reminded, is in practicing and protecting
Cree law in conjunction with
practicing common law. And from the stories
Mary Ellen shared, it sounds like balancing
both will be quite the challenge.
Good thing I am familiar with walking a
tightrope!
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