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A Thesaurus of Canadian Civil Justice Terminology Michael Lines Canadian Forum on Civil Justice, U of A. Slide 2 Two Research Projects Foundation Research demonstrating the need for better access to this area of documentation (UofA funded) Construction Research exploring how best to actually create a useful thesaurus (CALL funded) Slide 3 The Need for a Thesaurus Lit Review: lots of scholarship on the civil justice systems in Canada and abroad, most of it using the term civil justice. Examples of civil justice materials (practical and scholarly): Jack I. H Jacob, The Fabric of English Civil Justice (London: Stevens, 1987). Thomas A. Cromwell, "Canada: changing priorities" (1999) 20 The Justice System Journal 151. Jean-Maurice Brisson, Donna Greschner & Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice, Public Perceptions of the Administration of Justice (Montral: ditions Thmis, 1996). Canadian Bar Association & Task Force on Systems of Civil Justice, Report of the Canadian Bar Association Task Force on Systems of Civil Justice (Ottawa: The Association, 1996). Harry Woolf, Great Britain & Lord Chancellor's Dept, Access to Justice: Final Report (London England: H.M.S.O, 1996). Ontario et al., Civil Justice Review: Supplemental and Final Report (Toronto: Ontario Civil Justice Review, 1996). Allan C Hutchinson, Access to Civil Justice (Toronto: Carswell, 1990). Jean-Maurice Brisson, Universit de Montr al & Facult de droit, La Formation D'Un Droit Mixte: L' volution De La Proc dure Civile De 1774 1867 (Montr al: ditions Th mis, 1986) Jeff Leeuwenburg, Anne Wallace & Australian Institute of Judicial Administration, Technology for Justice 2000 Report (Carlton South, Vic.: Australian Institute of Judicial Administration, 2001). Slide 4 Access to the literature Assessment of current subject access tools: LC Classifications and LCSH do not use the term civil justice. The topic is treated incompletely, inconsistently, and unsystematically. Terminology differs between jurisdictions. Slide 5 KE, etc. There can only be one location for each item in a classification system, so we expect less than perfection in subject access. Still, it is worth pointing out that law classifications focus on the substantive law, and LC particularly on administrative law. In fact, reading the LC schedules shows that they are almost exclusively a classification for legal treatises, without a place for discussions of how the legal system works. This is part of a general unwillingness in legal circles to seriously consider studying the systems of law from an empirical standpoint, in spite of Bentham, Pound, Weber, Galanter, Jacob, and Canadians Cromwell, Baar, and others. Slide 6 So, work on justice systems are jammed into the corners of the classifications: KE 225-237, Trials KE 330-372, Legal Profession KE 429-430, Criticism, Law reform KE 8200-8605, Courts. Procedure, including Administration of justice Court Organization and procedure Civil procedure Etc. Something unified, like this, would be better: Justice systems Civil justice systems Judiciary Legal profession Court management Legal process Community resources Law reform Etc. Slide 7 LCSH - the cataloguers view Slide 8 ADMISSIONS LAW AMPARO WRIT ARBITRATION AND AWARD ATTACHMENT AND GARNISHMENT CLASS ACTIONS CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE PLEADING COMPLAINTS CIVIL PROCEDURE COMPROMISE LAW CONCILIATION CIVIL PROCEDURE DEFENSE CIVIL PROCEDURE DIVORCE SUITS EQUITY PLEADING AND PROCEDURE EXCEPTIONS LAW EXECUTIONS LAW EXTRAORDINARY REMEDIES INJUNCTIONS INTERVENTION CIVIL PROCEDURE JOINDER OF ISSUE JUDGMENTS JUDICIAL ASSISTANCE LAW AND FACT MATRIMONIAL ACTIONS NISI PRIUS NON-CONTENTIOUS JURISDICTION PARTIES TO ACTIONS PLEADING PREJUDICIAL ACTIONS PROBATE LAW AND PRACTICE PROCESS PROVISIONAL REMEDIES REMEDIES LAW SELF-INCRIMINATION SET-OFF AND COUNTERCLAIM SMALL CLAIMS COURTS SUMMARY PROCEEDINGS TIME LAW VENUE ADMISSIONS LAW AMPARO WRIT ARBITRATION AND AWARD ATTACHMENT AND GARNISHMENT CLASS ACTIONS CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE PLEADING COMPLAINTS CIVIL PROCEDURE COMPROMISE LAW CONCILIATION CIVIL PROCEDURE DEFENSE CIVIL PROCEDURE DIVORCE SUITS EQUITY PLEADING AND PROCEDURE EXCEPTIONS LAW EXECUTIONS LAW EXTRAORDINARY REMEDIES INJUNCTIONS INTERVENTION CIVIL PROCEDURE JOINDER OF ISSUE JUDGMENTS JUDICIAL ASSISTANCE LAW AND FACT MATRIMONIAL ACTIONS NISI PRIUS NON-CONTENTIOUS JURISDICTION PARTIES TO ACTIONS PLEADING PREJUDICIAL ACTIONS PROBATE LAW AND PRACTICE PROCESS PROVISIONAL REMEDIES REMEDIES LAW SELF-INCRIMINATION SET-OFF AND COUNTERCLAIM SMALL CLAIMS COURTS SUMMARY PROCEEDINGS TIME LAW VENUE Slide 9 Some anomalies courts, verdicts and interrogatories appear in more than 1 location Under civil procedure: amparo writ and self-incrimination In Civil procedure: Attachment and Garnishment not under remedies law Slide 10 LCSH the user s view The 4 main subject headings in use where civil justice materials can be found Note: Dead Bodies (Law) 5 items, Practice of Law 0 items The 4 main subject headings in use where civil justice materials can be found Note: Dead Bodies (Law) 5 items, Practice of Law 0 items Slide 11 52,433 titles 5835 subject headings in use Law : 4856 items 2282 subject headings with a single item Additional 1185 with 2 or 3 items 52,433 titles 5835 subject headings in use Law : 4856 items 2282 subject headings with a single item Additional 1185 with 2 or 3 items Slide 12 Top subject headings Of the top 200 most-used subject headings in the Weir library, we extracted these, which identify civil law-related materials Slide 13 Estimate of the Weir Civil Justice collection At the Weir library, the civil justice collection is estimated at about 7,000 titles, or about 15% of the collection. Slide 14 Assessment of Canadian Collections We asked experts to help us compile a representative sample of civil justice works, selecting for a variety of qualities, including importance, rarity, and publisher type. We tested 11 important academic, court, law society, and parliamentary libraries for the 48 titles. We found that the libraries collected an average of 28 titles, or 58%. We asked experts to help us compile a representative sample of civil justice works, selecting for a variety of qualities, including importance, rarity, and publisher type. We tested 11 important academic, court, law society, and parliamentary libraries for the 48 titles. We found that the libraries collected an average of 28 titles, or 58%. Slide 15 Assessment of Collections The Weir library collected 77% of the titles. Since that collection is currently in the range of 7000 titles, we can estimate that Weir may need to collect an additional 3000 titles to become comprehensive. Most law libraries could probably stand to gain several thousand civil justice titles, if they want to be close to comprehensive. Due to the deficiencies in subject access via LC and other tools, this body of knowledge will require a new tool. Slide 16 Why a Thesaurus? A new LC subject heading for Civil Justice would be useful. However, to provide access to collections of several thousand titles, more is needed. Additionally, civil justice terminology differs between jurisdictions, which makes simple subject headings less than ideal. A Thesaurus can meet this difficulty by collecting terms in use and providing preferred terms. Slide 17 Example the several provincial simplified proceedings regimes in place across Canada Ontario: simplified procedure B.C. fast track litigation Alberta streamlined procedure Manitoba, expedited actions Slide 18 How much of a problem is this? In our collection there are 4 monographs addressing this topic, as well 14 other publications, including reports, grey literature and periodical articles. I suspect we are missing a few. Joseph F. Kenkel, William S. Chalmers, Small claims and simplified procedure litigation, Toronto, Butterworths 1998. E. Dennis Schmidt, A Model for economic small and medium litigation in provincial court, Canadian Association of Provincial Court Judges 1995. Julie Vennard, Patricia Morgan, Great Britain. Home Office. Research and Planning Unit., Pre-trial delay : the implications of time limits, London, Her Majesty's Stationery Office 1989. Lon Lorrain, Prcis de la procdure sommaire spciale dans les causes entre locateurs et locataires, Montral, A. Periard 1985. Joseph F. Kenkel, William S. Chalmers, Small claims and simplified procedure litigation, Toronto, Butterworths 1998. E. Dennis Schmidt, A Model for economic small and medium litigation in provincial court, Canadian Association of Provincial Court Judges 1995. Julie Vennard, Patricia Morgan, Great Britain. Home Office. Research and Planning Unit., Pre-trial delay : the implications of time limits, London, Her Majesty's Stationery Office 1989. Lon Lorrain, Prcis de la procdure sommaire spciale dans les causes entre locateurs et locataires, Montral, A. Periard 1985. Slide 19 Steps toward the Thesaurus To identify the civil justice titles in a collection: use an authoritative list derived from the Forum s collection (about 20,000 works). To mark them as civil justice related, a new LCSH heading is needed, and we have a chance to work with OCLC to include the heading in MARC records. A Draft Thesaurus has been written Ideas on how to offer the Thesaurus needed Slide 20 Currently Sources of terminology have been identified, but more may arise. Identifying and evaluating appropriate technology options for the construction of the Thesaurus is underway. We need to facilitate ongoing collaboration and discussion of the results in the legal research and law library communities we need partners. Slide 21 Drafts and Tools drafts of the full research results: to be supplied draft of the Thesaurus: http://www.cfcj-fcjc.org/research-thesaurus- draftThesaurus.htmhttp://www.cfcj-fcjc.org/research-thesaurus- draftThesaurus.htm electronic bulletin board: http://www.cfcj-fcjc.org/thesaurus/http://www.cfcj-fcjc.org/thesaurus/