10 - Sunday, June 7, 1987 - North Shore News Volunteers seek out recurring problems SINCE ITS February 1985 inception as a vehicle for monitoring the vital statistics of North Vancouver family and youth courts, the North Vancouver Family Court Committee (NVFCC) Court Watch Program has grown into a vital community link in the legal system chain. The NVFCC, jointly appointed by North Vancouver District and North Vancouver City councils, trained its first installment of vol- unteer court watchers April 1986. The combined observations and recommendations of a core group of 10 watchers have focused atten- tion on recurring problems in the courts and, in some cases, have resulted in effective lobbying ef- forts for change. Problems identified over the past year by regular family court watchers include the lack of legal representation for women appear- ing in family court to resolve sup- port issucs. “The husbands often have the means to hire a lawyer and the women usually can’t afford one for support order enforcement or upholding an existing order,’’ said North Shore Information and Volunteer Centre legal information counsellor Pearl McKenzie. “What's been happening is that people, usually the men, come in with incomplete financial informa- tion and delay the hearings,’’ said McKenzie. . Said Susan Bauman, who has been with the NVFCC one year and its chairman since January 87, ‘‘These women who go in without lawyers are at a disadvan- tage. Legal aid is backlogged and a long shot for these women to get into.” The NVFCC is lobbying the at- torney general to make it man- datory for a financial information exchange between parties prior to the hearing. “We have heard that the at- torney general's office is looking By MICHAEL BECKER News Reporter into a means of doing it,’’ said McKenzie. Problems identified in youth court include parents confused about what is happening to their children. ‘‘Parents are at a loss about how to understand what is happening .to their children,"’ McKenzie said. Another problem is the time lag between the initial charge and the time youths appear in court — sometimes as rauch as 10months, according to Bauman. Said Bauman, ‘You lose the thread with a time lag. The young offender doesn’t see. that he is responsible.’’ The heart of the program is its 14 active court watchers. The volunteers sit in on family court, which meets Wednesday mornings, and youth court on Thursdays with two watchers per session. “They don’t cover child ap- prehension cases, which sometimes involve sexual abuse cases,’’ said Bauman, ‘‘The area is just too sensitive. Often the courts are cleared by the judges anyway. We can get the statistics through other sources.”’ Ninety per cent of the cases court watchers sit in on in family court are maintenance cases with the balance involving custody or show-cause maintenance. Youth court casés deal with breaches of the Young Offenders Act. Fifty-five-year-old Marilyn Harman heard about. the local court watch program through the Our mobile plant comes right to your home. Exclusive truck mount cleans top-to-bottom, right down to the roots of your carpet — gets it looking bright and fresh. And it protects the fife of your carpets, too. Now save $25 off the regular price. Options For Volunteers column run regularly in the North Shore News. “I’m interested in the whole legal systcra and | wanted to do volunteer work and feel I was do- ing something for the communi- ty,’’ said Harman. She sits in on family court pro- ceedings twice a month. ‘‘We want to make sure that everybody in the system is treated fairly.’’ Court watchers report their observations at a regular monthly mieeting and the various observa- tions are forwarded to the North Vancouver Family Court Commit- tee. Phone for a free estirnate 984-9151 a's RUG & FURNITURE CLEANING Open Daily till 5 pm Saturday till 2 pm SINCE 1961 NEWS photo Stuai NORTH VANCOUVER Family Court Committee chairman Sue Bauman, left, and vulunteer family court watcher Marilyn Harman, right, stand watch outside the North Vancouver courthouse. The ‘court watch pro- gram, started in early 1985, monitors the court process. ¢ Weekdays 9:00-5:30 * Saturdays 10:00-1:00 6 >. NORTH SHORE GIRLS JUNE 13th NORTH VAN REC CENTRE BORN IN 1981 SANLLAdWOO 9 VD RECREATIONAL SOCCER FOR GIR Unitial consultation wi 7 GARY BALDWIN | LAWYER } : LYNN VALLEY CENTRE Evening Appointments 984-3366 ithout feo) wu» x 23rd/LONSDALE 10:00 - 2:00 PM FREE REGISTRATION FOR GIRLS FOR INFORMATION CALL 988-3561 Lions Gate Hospital goals worth supporting — Maintaining a high standard of health care. - Ensuring continued development of extended care facilities for the elderly. Obtaining appropriate funding from the provincial government. ba: avis ¢S OF ALLAGES Clarifying policies in the area of medical ethics. RICK MURRELL Board Cand idate