Department of Justice Canada

The December 2021 Mandate Letter tasked the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada with the development of Canada’s Black Justice Strategy (the Strategy) to address the overrepresentation of Black people in the criminal justice system, including as victims of crime. An external...

In Canada, responsibility for criminal justice is shared between the federal government for criminal law making and criminal procedure and the provincial and territorial governments for the administration of the justice system, outside of criminal prosecutions in the territories which are a...

Child Advocacy Centres (CACs) and Child and Youth Advocacy Centres (CYACs) arose out of a need to reduce stress placed on child/youth victims during sexual abuse investigations. Previously, a lack of coordination between social services and the criminal justice system meant victims were...

Seniors safety, including the elimination of neglect, abuse and violence against older persons (hereafter referred to as “senior abuse”), is a national and international priority. In order to develop evidence-based solutions, data on the nature and extend of senior abuse are required. As law...

This report describes key findings from Justice Canada’s 2019 national Survey of Lawyers and Quebec Notaries on Family Law and Family Violence in Canada (“the 2019 survey”). The purpose of this survey was to assess how legal advisors identify and respond to family violence in their family law...

Purpose of the toolkit This toolkit was developed with input from family law and family violence experts from across Canada. It is designed to: Respond to research calling for a tool designed specifically for family law legal advisers to use in identifying and responding to family violence;...

Section 4.2 of the Department of Justice Act requires the Minister of Justice to prepare a Charter Statement for every government bill to help inform public and Parliamentary debate on government bills. One of the Minister of Justice’s most important responsibilities is to examine legislation for...

In consultation and cooperation with Indigenous and provincial and territorial partners, Justice Canada is developing an Indigenous Justice Strategy to address systemic discrimination and the overrepresentation of Indigenous people in the justice system. In the spirit of reconciliation, and out...

The United Nations’ Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) asserts Indigenous peoples’ “right to access to and prompt decision through just and fair procedures for the resolution of conflicts and disputes” with “due consideration to the customs, traditions, rules and legal...

Crime in Canada is a costly social phenomenon that affects everyone. The effects of crime are far-reaching and can include: -direct financial costs to the institutions that make up the criminal justice system; -ndirect costs to other social institutions and to the Canadian economy more broadly;...

This document provides an overview of the significant number of priorities and proposed measures shared by Indigenous peoples, to date and summarized by Justice Canada, in the context of developing a federal Action Plan to achieve the objectives of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of...

This document presents findings from a study that was conducted to understand how children’s views are included in family law disputes in Canada, including through the use of Voice of the Child Reports (VCRs). VCRs, also called Views of the Child Reports or Hear the Child Reports, are...

Youth believed victims require more attention and support from the Criminal Justice System (CJS). Victims should be aware of their rights, have an opportunity to tell their stories, and receive some form of restitution for the harm experienced.

This fact sheet is based on data obtained through special requests to Correctional Service Canada (CSC) and Statistics Canada (Census). It examines the number and rate of federal adult offenders under community supervision over time, and draws comparisons between Indigenous and non-Indigenous...

This Litigation Year in Review 2016 is intended to provide Canadians with some highlights of the progress we made this past year in several important areas of litigation. In reviewing and rethinking the Government’s litigation strategy over the course of 2016, I focused on three main themes:...

The release of this action plan is the result of the first and second phase of the consultation and cooperation process and reflects another important step on our journey of reconciliation. We acknowledge the tight timeframes imposed by the UN Declaration Act, which created challenges for us all....

This fact sheet is based on data obtained through special request to Correctional Services Canada (CSC) and Statistics Canada (Census). It examines the numbers and rate of federal adult offenders in custody supervision over time, and draws comparisons between Indigenous and non-Indigenous groups....

This annotated bibliography provides a comprehensive inventory and accessible summary of research and scholarly discussions on RJ in cases of adult sexual violence. The annotated bibliography is organized into two main sections: 1) quantitative or qualitative assessments of RJ programs and their...

Indigenous people are overrepresented in Canada's criminal justice system as both victims and as people accused or convicted of crime. There are only a few national data sources that provide criminal justice statistics disaggregated by Indigenous identity. National data that does exist to...

The Minister of Justice prepares a "Charter Statement" to help inform public and Parliamentary debate on a government bill. One of the Minister of Justice's most important responsibilities is to examine legislation for consistency with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms ["the Charter"]....