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2008 Conference Synopsis

"Serving a Diverse Population"
CCAT's 24^th Annual Conference
The Hilton Lac Leamy, Gatineau, Quebec
June 25 to 27, 2008

This year's conference was attended by over 325 people, of whom 275 were conference registrants and the balance invited speakers and moderators. Attendees came from all Canadian provinces and territories as well as from Brazil and Taiwan. Some 50 speakers addressed issues dealing with diversity, the country's changing social and cultural fabric, and how administrative tribunals should respond with these new realities.

The first day of the conference, Thursday, June 26, began with an interesting and insightful plenary session, "Census 2006 – Portrait of the Canadian Population in 2006". Dr. Rosemary Bender, Director General, Social and Demographics Statistics Branch, Statistics Canada, gave an overview of the social, economic and demographic changes that are reshaping Canadian society.

The morning continued with a series of six tribunal sector roundtables where delegates from across Canada discussed with colleagues emerging issues and their impact on adjudication in the fields of workers' compensation, labour and employment, human rights, immigration and citizenship, rental housing and economic regulation.

At lunch following the tribunal sector roundtables, Bertrand Roy, Commission des lesions professionnelles du Québec, was awarded the 2008 CCAT Medal. This medal is meant to recognize the recipient's ongoing contribution to administrative justice in Canada. The Annual General Meeting of CCAT and election of members to the Board of Directors took place after the Medal presentation.

At the afternoon plenary session, "Cultural Competence – Part 1", Professor David Thomas of Simon Fraser University made a thought provoking presentation in which he outlined what is culture and how it affects both decision-makers and witnesses.

Delegates then had a choice of four concurrent workshops to complete the afternoon.

• The first session dealt with recruitment of tribunal members and differences in how appointments are made in several jurisdictions.
• The second session, dealing with cultural competence, was moderated by Professor Thomas. Presenters discussed the meaning of the concept and how tribunal members should possess certain minimum competencies to interact effectively with parties from diverse cultural backgrounds.
• In the third session, speakers addressed the relative efficiency of the courts as compared to administrative tribunals.
• The fourth session explored issues related to mental health, including the importance of tribunals ensuring that the rights and dignity of those living with mental illness are respected.

The second day of the conference, Friday, June 27, began with a plenary session, "Access to Justice for a Diverse Population," moderated by Odette Laverdière, Tribunal administratif du Québec. Speakers included the Honourable Michel Robert, Chief Justice, Quebec Court of Appeal, the Honourable Laura B. Gerow, British Columbia Supreme Court, and the Honourable Allan Lutfy, Chief Justice, Federal Court of Canada. The speakers examined the relationship between independence and accountability, instruments for defining and safeguarding independence, and tribunal autonomy.

Participants then had a choice among four concurrent workshops to complete the morning.

• The first session addressed the challenges faced by tribunal staff in dealing with a diverse population.
• The second session explored the pros and cons of adversarial and inquisitorial models of adjudication within administrative tribunals.
• In the third session, speakers discussed the concept of the reasonable person in light of Canada's changing social mosaic.
• The fourth session was on administrative law update presented by Jeff G. Cowan, a partner at WeirFoulds LLP in Toronto.

Following lunch, the conference co-chairs, Brian Goodman and Jean-François Martel, introduced Louanne Labelle and Diane Zwicker, the co-chairs of CCAT's 25^th Annual conference to be held in Halifax, Nova Scotia from May 31 to June 1, 2009.

The closing plenary "Accommodation Practices and Cultural Differences" followed. The session was moderated by Jean-François Martel and the speakers included the Honourable Justice Anne Mactavish, Federal Court of Canada, Professor Marie McAndrew, Department of Education and Administration of Education Studies, University of Montreal and Ratna Omidvar, Executive Director, The Maytree Foundation, Toronto.

The conference concluded with three concurrent workshops.

• The first session dealt with the corporate responsibility of tribunal members and examined the need to foster certain fundamental tribunal values in them.
• The second session, "Wandering from the Safety of the Hearing Rooms: Stakeholders and Institutional Litigants Relations" examined how stakeholders relations can be managed appropriately without sacrificing tribunal integrity or independence.
• In the third session, speakers discussed how to ensure access to tribunals, particularly among non-represented parties and first-time users of administrative tribunals.

A pre-conference training day on Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) organized by CCAT's Professional Development Committee was held on Wednesday, June 25^th. It was led by Hélène de Kovachich, Présidente, Tribunal administrative du Québec, with assistance from eight experienced facilitators. The full-day workshop combined presentations on the theory of ADR with hands-on sessions involving role play scenarios.

Most conference papers and presentations are available from the "CCAT Members Extranet" under 2008 Conference Papers. Please see: http://www.ccat-ctac.org/en/.

On behalf of CCAT's Executive Committee and the Board of Directors, we would like to thank the many volunteers who assisted us in preparing the program as well as the speakers and moderators who graciously volunteered their time and expertise to make this conference so successful and such a valuable learning experience.

Brian Goodman and Jean-François Martell, Co-Chairs of CCAT's 24^th Annual Conference

August 30, 2008