N.B. social workers slam province for court mediation cuts despite report

The New Brunswick Association of Social Workers is accusing the provincial government of slashing the jobs of 14 court mediators in its March budget despite a major report that calls for more mediation.

'This actually contradicts significantly the recommendation by Judge Guerette.' — Miguel LeBlanc, N.B. Association of Social Workers

On Tuesday, Justice Minister T.J. Burke released the Access to Family Justice Task Force report, a scathing document that said families are facing unacceptable delays in seeing their cases resolved because the system is overwhelmed by paperwork and by procedure.

Justice Raymond Guerette, the task force's chairman, also recommended a series of new ways to make the system less adversarial and include more mediation.

Burke said in question period on Wednesday that the task force's final report hit his desk in January and was immediately sent for translation so it could be released publicly.

Two months later, Finance Minister Victor Boudreau's budget called for a series of belt-tightening measures to deal with the $740-million deficit and the Department of Justice instituted a number of cuts, including the elimination of the mediators.

Miguel LeBlanc, the executive director of the social workers' association, said he's troubled by that decision.

"This actually contradicts significantly the recommendation by Judge Guerette," LeBlanc said.

Mediators were doing more paperwork than mediation

Mary-Eileen Flanagan, who was also a task force member, said the issue is much bigger than the job cuts.

Because of procedure and paperwork demands, the mediators who were cut had actually been doing very little mediation, she said.

Implementing the task force's recommendations would involve making more alternatives available to families who want to avoid going to court, including mediation.

"There will be new mediators in the new paradigm. However, they will not be doing what the mediators have been doing," Flanagan said.

The justice minister announced plans this week to set up one or two pilot projects this fall to try out a new system along the lines of the report's recommendations.