Dugald E. Christie

Mr. Christie: A crusader for social justice.

Photos of Dugald (2)

Mr. Christie as he embarks on his cross-country cycling trip to Ottawa on a typical rainy Vancouver day!

photos of Dugald (1)

Mr. Christie is having a very good time!

Our Deepest Condolences

Dear Readers,

As some of you may already know, Mr. Dugald Christie, founder of the Western Canada Society to Access Justice, was killed in an accident in Ontario. He was riding his bicycle across Canada to bring to the attention of government officials the important need of ensuring that all citizens, irrespective of status or income, have equal access to justice.

Due to Mr. Christie's schedule, he was not able to devote much time to this blog, and as such, updates were infrequent. However, in honour of all that he has accomplished, and the cause for which you and me strive for, let us now say thank you to Mr. Christie for his tireless efforts to develop Access Justice and to enhance the public's faith in lawyers and the legal system.

Mr. Christie will no doubt be missed, but his legacy lives on in Access Justice. Let us always continue to ensure that justice is truly just for all, and that our society truly embodies the time-honoured principle of equality before the law.

Sincerely,

Joash Fang

Mr. Christie's Blog Personnel

Newsletter-Jan 11, 2006

Dear Friends,

The decision by the Court of Appeal to allow our cross-appeal on December 22, 2005 was a landmark decision, not only for lawyers and clients throughout BC, but for our society! The cynical will say that the court’s abolition of PST is a windfall to the big corporations and wealthy lawyers who do little to help the ordinary person. Our answer to that cynical approach is a very practical one: we can demonstrate that literally hundreds of well-off lawyers who normally cater to the needs of the ‘wealthy’ visit our clinics on a regular basis to help people less fortunate than they. Our society is helping change a very unflattering image of the legal profession – of lawyers who are solely interested in their own gain and have little interest in access to justice. We now have 414 lawyers who regularly attend our 60 clinics throughout BC. The Vancouver and Victoria big firm lawyers are no slouches! They help clients by means of our televideo clinics throughout the province and also at specialized and other clinics in downtown Vancouver. The number of such lawyers who are volunteering is steadily increasing.

With Best Regards,

Dugald Christie

Album

Importance of Pro-bono Legal Advice

Why is pro-bono legal advice so important? There are literally dozens of reasons. If it is only the affluent and those who have easy access to lawyers who get the necessary legal advice, our court system would be showing favouritism towards the wealthy and bias against the lower classes. I have confidence in the fairness and equality of our justice system, hence, my belief that even the underdog can win!

Dugald Christie

To whom it may concern

Dear Visitors,

This is a preliminary message by Joash Fang, to clarify that this new Blog will commence on behalf of Dugald Chrsitie, founder and director of the Western Canada Society to Access Justice. I will maintain this online Blog on behalf of Mr. Christie, and will messages, newsletters and other material on his behalf.

Mr. Christie warmly welcomes your correspodence.

Sincerely yours,

Joash Fang