The new multi-purpose tribunal room is based on the aboriginal concept of a medicine wheel, where everyone in the circle is equal. (Radim Bohacek / Bohacek Associates Inc.) Click here to see full sized version.

The recently enacted Specific Claims Tribunal Act creates a new independent tribunal that incorporates aboriginal culture in its process — along with cutting-edge technology.

Unlike the former Indian Claims Commission, which could only make recommendations, the new Specific Claims Tribunal will have the power to make binding decisions to award monetary compensation of up to $150 million per claim. For this reason, the tribunal is seen as a key initiative in speeding up the resolution of outstanding land claims.

Under the new legislation, hearings will be conducted by judges of the superior court from the various provinces. The chair of the tribunal and the names of these judges have yet to be announced. The tribunal will also have many of the powers of a superior court of record, with judicial review of the tribunal’s decisions going to the Federal Court of Appeal.

Administratively, however, the tribunal’s work is already underway, supported by a national registry headed by Wayne Garnons-Williams. A lawyer, administrator and member of the Moosomin First Nation of Saskatchewan, Garnons-Williams was formerly registrar of the Federal Court of Canada. As registrar of the new tribunal, he is responsible for setting up administrative offices and developing operating systems to support the work of the tribunal.

Garnons-Williams is working on a number of exciting new initiatives on a shoestring budget. One involves an electronic registry, expected to be up and running late this year. Moving from the paper-based system currently used in courthouses across the country, the tribunal’s electronic registry will allow legal counsel for First Nations across Canada to file paperless claims. Instead of filing documents as hard copies, lawyers will be able to file materials from their computer desktops. Even motions and submissions will be fileable using the registry website and its menu of options.

When documents require a judge’s review, the judge will receive instantaneous notification that the documents have been filed in the registry subsite, allowing virtual real-time access to these materials. Communications between counsel and the registry, as well as communications between the registry and the judiciary, will be as rapid as the Internet permits. All of this will cut down considerably on the processing time, administrative delay and expenses usually associated with such claims.

Using PIN numbers and security access codes, lawyers will also be able to easily track the progress of the claim with the click of a mouse. Plans are underway to include a registry calendar with bring-forward dates and search engines that will allow for keyword searches of all documentation in this user-friendly software.

Cutting-edge in its inception and implementation, there is no registry system in Canada quite like the one Garnons-Williams is working on. As he explains, the software is similar to that used by large industries, allowing multiple users to access the same data. If the process works as well as intended, it could have wide application in other courts in Canada and internationally.

Another registry initiative involves the construction of a multi-purpose tribunal room, again unlike anything in the traditional courtroom setting. While s. 18 of the Act allows the presiding tribunal judge to determine the location of the hearing,  some aspects of the hearings or settlement discussions could be conducted using the multi-purpose tribunal room, located in Ottawa.

As the artist’s rendering above demonstrates, the multi-purpose tribunal room is designed using the aboriginal concept of the medicine wheel, in which everyone in the circle is equal. The circular seating underlines this concept. Semi-circular tables are placed at the four points of the medicine wheel — tables can be pulled apart and reconfigured for multiple use. There is no judge’s dias, although the judge’s chair will be demarcated.

Two glass windows conceal simultaneous translation booths, where evidence or proceedings can be translated into French, English or aboriginal languages as needed. Video cameras are positioned throughout the room so that witnesses and experts can testify without having to travel to the hearing, if the judge agrees.

As Garnons-Williams explains, the multi-purpose tribunal room will form the hub of a new process intended to acknowledge and support aboriginal culture, while retaining the transparency, independence and administrative fairness required of the new process.

“Our new processes are respectful of aboriginal culture,” Garnons-Williams says, “while at the same time embracing technological advances in judicial administration.” He notes that the work of the registry should be like the behind-the-scenes work of stagehands: invisible. He adds, “If the administration of justice runs smoothly, we’ll be satisfied that we’ve done our job.”

Peggy Blair is an Ottawa lawyer specializing in aboriginal law. She has worked as a policy advisor, analyst, report writer and legal advisor to the former Indian Claims Commission.