2016–17 Departmental Results Report

Results: what we achieved

Strategic Outcome 1: A Fair, Relevant, and Accessible Canadian Justice System

The Department plays a stewardship role in ensuring a fair, relevant and accessible Canadian justice system. This Strategic Outcome is a shared responsibility among a broad range of players, including Parliament, the judiciary, federal departments and agencies, partners in provincial, territorial and municipal governments, a broad range of non-governmental organizations and stakeholders, and, ultimately, all Canadians.

Program 1.1: Stewardship of the Canadian Legal Framework

Description

The Department fulfils its stewardship role by ensuring a bilingual and bijural national legal framework for the administration of justice that contributes to a safe and just society for all Canadians and confidence in Canada’s justice system. The Department develops and tests innovative approaches to strengthen the legal framework within the following domains: criminal law, youth criminal justice, sentencing, official languages, marriage and divorce, access to justice, bijuralism, human rights, privacy, access to information, and Aboriginal justice. In addition, in view of the federal government's shared interest in a sustainable justice system, the Department promotes and facilitates ongoing dialogues with the provinces and territories in the areas of shared jurisdiction and provides funding for the delivery of programs that directly support federal policy objectives.

Results

In 2016-17, the Department spent $409,973,313 on the Stewardship of the Canadian Legal Framework Programand employed 256 FTEs. These resources were spent on activities aimed at three organizational priorities: renewing the relationship with Indigenous peoples; criminal law; and public law. Through coordination, consultation and collaboration with various partners and stakeholders, the Department continued to work towards the advancement of Government priorities, as presented in the Minister’s mandate letter. These priorities included: the review of the criminal justice system; legalizing, strictly regulating and restricting access to cannabis; medical assistance in dying; criminal law reform; strengthening security and better protecting Canadians’ rights; changes to immigration and refugee protection that support Canada’s humanitarian tradition; and supporting official languages minority communities.

Renewing the Relationship with Indigenous Peoples

The Department continued to make progress in renewing Canada’s nation-to-nation relationship with Indigenous peoples based on recognition of rights, respect, cooperation, and partnership.

The Department worked with provincial and territorial partners to involve Indigenous representatives in federal-provincial-territorial (FPT) discussions, and continued to co-chair the FPT Working Group on Aboriginal Justice to discuss Indigenous justice issues, including reconciliation and violence against Indigenous women and girls.

Also, of note, is the Department’s work through the Task Force on Constitutional Relations with Indigenous Nations, which, together with other parts of the Department, articulated the legal theory to support a renewed relationship, and supported the implementation of the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action, and of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) informed by Section 35 of the Constitution Act.

In particular, the Department:

The Department also continued to support a variety of existing initiatives, including the Federal Victims Strategy, which aims to give victims and survivors of crime a more effective voice in the criminal justice system. Justice continued to work in collaboration with Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada and Status of Women Canada to implement year two of the Action Plan to Address Family Violence and Violent Crimes Against Aboriginal Women and Girls to increase access to specialized supports including victim services for Indigenous victims and survivors of crime.

Criminal Law

In ensuring that legislation meets the highest standards of equity, fairness and respect for the rule of law, the Department supported several initiatives, including reviewing the criminal justice system, leading a process to respond to the Supreme Court of Canada decision on medical assistance in dying, and working to create a process that will lead to the legalization and regulation of cannabis.

The Department established a dedicated Criminal Justice System Review Secretariat to review the criminal justice system and support engagement, coordination, transparency and tracking of progress. The Secretariat has been in place since April 2016 and has provided advice to the Minister on the direction of the criminal justice review, and has established a program of engagement with provincial and territorial partners, stakeholders and the public. Public consultation has been via a public information platform/portal through which progress on the mandate can be tracked, information received and input provided directly to the Secretariat.

Also, a Deputy Minister-led task force on data and metrics was established, and is tasked with looking at ways of reducing the overrepresentation of vulnerable populations in the criminal justice system. As part of this effort, the Secretariat explored the feasibility of developing a multi-dimensional measurement framework.

With regards to Medical Assistance in Dying, Bill C-14 received Royal Assent on June 17, 2016. This legislation provides clear rules around eligibility, safeguards to be followed with respect to medical assistance in dying, and creates a monitoring regime. The Minister of Justice and the Minister of Health announced, on December 13, 2016, that the Council of Canadian Academies (CCA) will be undertaking independent reviews on medical assistance in dying to examine three particularly complex types of requests that were identified for further review and study. These cases include requests from mature minors, advance requests, and requests where mental illness is the sole underlying medical condition. In these reviews, the CCA will compile and assess information and evidence to inform the ongoing policy discussion on the issues related to medical assistance in dying in these three circumstances. These reviews will be made public in December 2018.

Other bills introduced in support of the Minister’s mandate commitments include Bill C-28, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (victim surcharge); Bill C-32, An Act related to the repeal of section 159 of the Criminal Code; and, Bill C-39, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (unconstitutional provisions) and to make consequential amendments to other Acts.

Public Law

Through a variety of initiatives, the Department developed public law policy to advance the Government’s commitment to upholding the Constitution and the rule of law, and the Government’s domestic and international legal and policy interests.

Justice provided ongoing support to the Minister to help ensure that the Government demonstrated the greatest possible commitment to respecting the Charter. This included an innovative initiative to pilot “Charter Statements” on Department of Justice bills to provide more information to Parliament and the public about the effects of proposed legislation on Charter-protected rights and freedoms. Six Charter Statements were tabled in 2016-17.

The Department supported the Government in implementing a new Supreme Court of Canada appointment process, announced in August 2016, which is more open, inclusive, independent and accountable, and centered on an open application process. This included an Independent Advisory Board that recommends a shortlist of candidates to the Prime Minister based on public assessment criteria. This process upholds a strong, independent, meritorious and diverse judiciary, and a fair, efficient and accessible court system that responds to the needs of Canadians. The new appointment process led to the appointment of Justice Malcolm Rowe in late October 2016. Both the process and the appointment itself were well-received, and delivered on the Government’s commitment to strengthen the Supreme Court of Canada appointment process and to ensure that new appointees are functionally bilingual.

In June 2016, the Department released a consultation paper on reform of the judicial discipline process and engaged key stakeholders. Reform proposals were developed and further stakeholder discussions held. Proposed reforms aim to further confidence in the judiciary by improving the discipline process’s fairness, timeliness, accountability, transparency, and cost-effectiveness, while upholding judicial independence. As well, in 2016, the Minister received the Report of the 2015 Judicial Compensation and Benefits Commission and, resulting from this, Budget 2017 announced the intention to proceed with legislative amendments to review judicial compensation in a manner consistent with judicial independence.

The initial groundwork was laid for expanding Unified Family Courts (UFCs) including canvassing provincial and territorial jurisdictions in April 2016 as to their interest in taking part. Justice then worked with interested jurisdictions to begin developing their proposals. The Department also engaged with central agencies to clarify the parameters of the initiative, with a view to launching a formal request for detailed proposals in spring 2017. Justice also met with various stakeholder groups and made presentations to relevant audiences as part of continued engagement. The creation of UFCs depends on willing provincial and territorial partners, which in turn depends on the conditions of participation. An identified challenge for expanding the UFCs includes the lack of early decisions which could negatively impact uptake by jurisdictions and delay or inhibit fulfillment of the commitment. Another challenge is that the number of UFC judges requested may exceed available federal funding.

In the area of human rights policy, the Department supported the Minister in her policy responsibility for the Canadian Human Rights Act. This included delivering on the Government’s commitment to strengthen legal protections for transgender and gender diverse Canadians against discrimination and hate crime under Bill C-16, introduced in May 2016.

The Department worked with Canadian Heritage officials to restore a modern Court Challenges Program, which was publicly announced in February 2017. Also, the Department worked to raise awareness of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms through a social media campaign celebrating the Charter’s 35th anniversary.

Justice provided policy support for the Government’s review of the Access to Information Act, including the commitment to apply the law appropriately to administrative bodies that support the federal courts. In March 2016, the Department consulted with the Office of the Registry of the Supreme Court of Canada, the Courts Administration Service, the Office of the Commissioner for Federal Judicial Affairs, and the Canadian Judicial Council to begin discussions on how to meet this commitment. In addition, Justice provided assistance relating to the protection of personal information in the public sector, including a review of the Privacy Act.

The Department promoted official languages development and vitality in minority communities in compliance with Part VII of the Official Languages Act. The first five-year integrated Departmental Official Languages Action Plan, for which adoption is expected in 2017, was also developed using policy and legal expertise.

Evaluations

Through grants and contribution funding, the Department continued to facilitate access to the justice system by enabling Canadians to obtain assistance and legal information in order to resolve their legal issues, whether in the formal justice system or through alternative resolution mechanisms. Justice conducted a series of evaluations in its efforts to maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of departmental functions and programs. Information on these evaluations follows:

Results achieved
Expected results Performance indicators Target Date to achieve target 2016–17 Actual results 2015–16 Actual results 2014–15 Actual results
Justice laws and policies promote a fair, relevant, and accessible justice system in Canada Canada’s international ranking with respect to fairness of the justice system 10thTable note i March 2017 12th 11th 15th
Table note i

The Department’s performance target is an international ranking of tenth place or better for Canada (source: World Competitiveness Yearbook).

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Budgetary financial resources (dollars)
2016–17 Main Estimates 2016–17 Planned spending 2016–17 Total authorities available for use 2016–17 Actual spending (authorities used) 2016–17 Difference (actual minus planned)
400,491,696 400,491,696 420,670,448 409,973,313 9,481,617Table note ii
Table note ii

The variance between Actual spending and Planned spending is primarily explained by the receipt of funding through the 2016-17 Supplementary Estimates process (Supplementary Estimates)

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Human resources (full-time equivalents)
2016–17 Planned 2016–17 Actual 2016–17 Difference (actual minus planned)
258 256 -2

Information on the Department of Justice’s lower-level programs is available on the Department of Justice website and in the TBS InfoBase.

Program 1.2: Office of the Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crime

Description

The Office of the Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crime (OFOVC) was created to provide a voice for victims of crime at the federal level and to ensure that the federal government meets its commitments to victims. The Office provides direct information, referral and complaint‑review services to its primary clients: victims, victims’ family members or representatives, victim‑serving agencies, and other related stakeholders. The Office also helps raise awareness of systemic issues among all criminal justice and victim‑serving personnel, and provides related recommendations and advice to the Government of Canada through the Minister of Justice. In order to fulfill its mandate, the Office promotes access by victims to existing federal programs and services for victims; addresses complaints of victims about compliance with the provisions of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act; promotes awareness of the needs and concerns of victims and the applicable laws that benefit victims of crime, including Canadian Victim Bill of Rights and the principles set out in the Canadian Statement of Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime; identifies and reviews emerging and systemic issues that negatively impact victims of crime; and facilitates access by victims to existing federal programs and services by providing them with information and referrals. The Ombudsman reports directly to the Minister of Justice and, as such, the Office falls outside the Department’s governance framework.

Results

As the OFOVC falls outside the Department’s governance framework, information regarding activities performed in 2016-17 is made available in the Office of the Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crime 2016-17 Annual Report. For further information regarding the 2016-17 activities, please refer to the OFOVC’s website.

Results achieved
Expected results Performance indicators Target Date to achieve target 2014-15, 2015-16, 2016-17 Actual results
Victims of crime access information on their rights and the federal programs and services that are available to them and/or access a complaint review process to address complaints about federal programs, services, laws, or policies regarding victims of crime Year-over-year percentage increase of client contacts with OFOVC 2 March 2017 Please refer to the OFOVC website.
Federal departments, agencies and other stakeholders are provided with OFOVC recommendations on how to effect change for victims of crime Percentage of OFOVC recommendations submitted and acknowledged and/or acted upon 100 March 2017 Please refer to the OFOVC website.
Stakeholders have access to timely and relevant information about the OFOVC and its activities Percentage of all pre‑identified key stakeholders contacted annually 100 March 2017 Please refer to the OFOVC website.
Year-over-year percentage increase of visits to the OFOVC website 5 March 2017 Please refer to the OFOVC website.
Budgetary financial resources (dollars)
2016–17 Main Estimates 2016–17 Planned spending 2016–17 Total authorities available for use 2016–17 Actual spending (authorities used) 2016–17 Difference (actual minus planned)
1,324,227 1,324,227 1,338,475 1,008,746 -315,481
Human resources (full-time equivalents)
2016–17 Planned 2016–17 Actual 2016–17 Difference (actual minus planned)
10 9 -1

Strategic Outcome 2: A Federal Government that is Supported by High-Quality Legal Services

Under the Department of Justice Act, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada provides high-quality legal services to the federal government and its departments and agencies. According to section 4 of the Act, the Minister is the legal member of the Queen’s Privy Council responsible for seeing that the administration of public affairs is in accordance with the law. Under section 4.1 of the Act, the Minister is responsible for examining all government bills introduced in or presented to the House of Commons and, subject to the Statutory Instruments Act, all government regulations to ascertain whether any of their provisions are inconsistent with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Additionally, under section 5 of the Department of Justice Act, the Attorney General is responsible for advising the heads of government departments on all matters of law and for conducting all litigation for any federal department or agency of the Crown with respect to any subject within the authority or jurisdiction of Canada.

Program 2.1: Legal Services to Government Program

Description

The Department of Justice provides an integrated suite of high-quality legal advisory, litigation and legislative services to the Minister of Justice and to all federal departments and agencies to support them in meeting the Government’s policy and programming priorities and to advance the overall objectives of the Government. Services are provided through a network of departmental legal services units co-located with client departments and agencies, specialized legal capacities within national headquarters, and a network of regional offices and sub-offices providing legal advisory and litigation services to federal departments and agencies across the country.

Results

Through the Legal Services to Government Program, $198,793,560 was spent, including 3,096 FTEs, on activities supporting the provision of high-quality legal services to the Government and federal departments and agencies. The Department continued to support federal departments and agencies in the delivery of their legislative agenda in the areas of economic affairs, social affairs, international affairs, and government affairs.

Economic Affairs

In support of economic affairs, the Department provided legal services to help implement initiatives that invest in Canada and Canadians in an effective and fiscally responsible way, so as to deliver a growing economy that works for every Canadian. Initiatives included major infrastructure investments as well as efforts to reduce barriers to internal trade, investment and worker mobility between provinces and territories through the Canadian Free Trade Agreement. Justice supported the drafting of amendments to the Metal Mining Effluent Regulationsto address diamond mines, two Budget Implementation Acts (Bill C-15 and Bill C-29), and Bill C-23 on the Preclearance Act to support the flow of people and goods between Canada and United States.

With a view to advancing the Government’s priority of reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, the Department provided legal services regarding the economic development of Indigenous peoples through various efforts including the Federal Framework for Aboriginal Economic Development and priorities in the area of Indigenous lands. Justice supported the negotiation of settlement agreements under the Specific Claims Policy, assisting Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada in securing authority to modify the assessment approach for specific claims to better reflect risk management principles and increase the potential for claims to be accepted for negotiation. This included providing legal opinions in regard to 33 specific claims, one special claim filed by an Indigenous group not presently recognized as a First Nation, and representing the Government before the Specific Claims Tribunal. Justice also provided advice and expertise for the implementation of the new Cabinet Directive on the Federal Approach to Modern Treaty Implementation and renewing the Comprehensive Land Claims Policy. Collaboration involving multiple departments continued in the areas of resource development, major oil sands, gas pipelines, and Northern mining projects. The Department provided legal, policy and strategic advice for the negotiation of the Nunavut Devolution, the implementation of the Northwest Territories Devolution Agreement, the development of the new Nutrition North program, land and water administration, clean-up of contaminated sites, and legislative reform.

Social Affairs

In the domain of social affairs, the Department worked in collaboration with Health Canada to pass Bill C‑14 Medical Assistance in Dying, which received Royal Assent on June 17, 2016. With regard to the legalization and regulation of cannabis, Justice, working with Health Canada and Public Safety, has focused on developing new regimes for the legalization, regulation, and restriction of access to cannabis for non-medical purposes in order to protect youth and keep profits away from organized crime.

For the implementation of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, the Department provided services for the development of a resolution strategy for other Indigenous childhood claims. Also, Justice contributed to alternative legislation such as the First Nations Education Act, First Nations Land Management Act, and First Nations Fiscal Management Act. As a further contribution to the Government’s reconciliation agenda, the Department hosted a two-day workshop on Indigenous Legal Traditions in January 2017 that promoted diversity awareness and multiculturalism.

The Department supported the Minister in reviewing and rethinking the Government of Canada’s litigation strategy, with a focus on three main themes: respecting the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, recognizing the rights of Indigenous peoples, and making decisions consistent with the Government’s priorities and Canadian values. Legal analysis took into consideration legal and public policy implications beyond the particular cases before the courts. In collaboration with various federal departments and agencies, Justice directed that litigation with Indigenous peoples be conducted respectfully, in light of the important relationship between the Crown and Indigenous peoples. One example of the change in approach was the effort to make admissions wherever possible, including both admissions of fact and admissions relevant to the establishment of Indigenous rights and title. This resulted in a narrowing of the issues in dispute, and signals Canada's respect for and recognition of Indigenous rights. Furthermore, the Department of Justice instructed litigators to work closely with their departmental clients to explore avenues for reconciliation both within the litigation process and in out-of-court forums. As a result, Canada is engaged in good-faith settlement negotiations in relation to some of its most complex and long-standing litigation with Indigenous Peoples.

International Affairs

In the area of international affairs, the Department’s work contributed to initiatives to combat crime, terrorism, and tax evasion and avoidance, as well as extradition and mutual legal assistance. The Department provided legal services in support of reforms to Canada’s economic sanctions regimes for North Korea, Ukraine and Russia and to programs to ensure the safety of citizens and to defend its sovereignty. In addition, the Department played a major part in international trade through Bill C-30 Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement Implementation Act; Bill C-31 Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act; and in preparation for renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement. At the World Trade Organization, Canada successfully challenged Chinese measures on dissolving pulp. Justice also continued to engage in international private law activities, including negotiations, and the implementation, application and operation of international private law instruments in collaboration with federal, provincial and territorial counterparts.

Also in international affairs, the Department played a key role in advancing work on reenergizing Canadian diplomacy and leadership on key international issues (diversity, human rights, and rights of women and refugees), notably working with Global Affairs Canada in activities promoting gender equality, addressing violence against women, and promoting equality for the LGBTQ2 community. Justice also provided support for Canada’s presentation of reports to the United Nations on women’s rights and the rights of persons with disabilities, as well as advancing work on the potential ratification by Canada of additional human rights treaties.

Government Affairs

The Department was also engaged in initiatives pertaining to government affairs, such as amendments to private and public pension legislation and regulations. A key achievement was successful labour negotiations for public service collective agreements renegotiation. Justice also managed legal issues and risks for clients including the preparation of the federal Budget 2017 and the supervision of federally regulated financial institutions. Specifically, the Department provided advice on the implementation of the risk-based compliance initiative and the administrative monetary penalties regime, notably the Government’s review and appeal process under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act.

The Department supported the introduction of Bill C-39 to remove unconstitutional provisions in the Criminal Code and Bill C-42 on veterans’ well-being. Justice was instrumental in the policy and legislative development related to the Government’s Cyber Security Strategy and national security law reform as well as the tabling of legislation establishing the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians, and the tabling of preclearance and entry/exit legislation. As well, the Department provided support to the Minister of Justice and the Cabinet Committee on Litigation Management as part of the Government’s litigation strategy. To date, there have been a number of settlements of cases and abandoned appeals, as well as holds on cases while parties negotiate. For more on the progress made on the review of the Government of Canada’s litigation strategy please see Litigation Year in Review 2016.

The Department played a key role in assisting client departments to manage significant litigation, including national security litigation, administrative segregation litigation, Charter challenges to provisions of the Criminal Records Act and Sex Offender Registry Act, as well as the RCMP harassment settlement. Also, Justice worked to enable the tabling of legislation amending the Citizenship Act.

Justice defended the Government’s position in over 8,000 tax litigation files and provided legal services in support of new legislative measures and tax changes to improve the integrity of the tax system. This contributed to ensuring that everyone pays their fair share of tax and helped to combat tax evasion and tax avoidance. Tax law-related legal services also included contributing to improving the quality of investigative work that targets criminal tax evaders, and enhancing the quality of cases going to the Public Prosecution Service of Canada.

Audits

An audit of Regulatory Services was conducted in 2016-17 by the Department’s Internal Audit Services. The internal audit made the following recommendations:

The Department agreed with the recommendations and set February 28, 2018, as the deadline for steps to be taken in relation to the first recommendation. For the remaining recommendations, Justice set December 31, 2017, as the deadline for measures to be taken, which include engaging central agencies and looking at best practices.

Results achieved
Expected results Performance indicators Target Date to achieve target 2016–17 Actual results 2015–16 Actual results 2014–15 Actual results
Federal departments and agencies receive high‑quality legal services Client satisfaction mean rating on the overall quality of legal advisory, litigation, legislative, and regulatory drafting services on a 10‑point scale 8.0 November 2016

Advisory: 8.5Table note iii

Litigation: 8.3Table note iii

Legislative: n/aTable note iv

Regulatory: n/aTable note iv

Advisory: 8.4Table note iii

Litigation: 8.3Table note iii

Legislative: 8.5Table note iii

Regulatory: 8.5Table note iii

Advisory: 8.4Table note iii

Litigation: 8.3Table note iii

Legislative: 8.5Table note iii

Regulatory: 8.5Table note iii
Client satisfaction mean rating on the Department of Justice Canada performance against service standards for the delivery of legal services on a 10‑point scale 8.0 November 2016

Responsiveness/

Accessibility: 8.7Table note iii

Usefulness: 8.4Table note iii

Timeliness: 8.2Table note iii

 

Responsiveness/

Accessibility: 8.6Table note iii

Usefulness: 8.0Table note iii

Timeliness: 7.9Table note iii

Responsiveness/

Accessibility: 8.6Table note iii

Usefulness: 8.0Table note iii

Timeliness: 7.9Table note iii
The Crown’s interest is represented before courts and tribunals Percentage of litigation files that have a successful outcome (settled and adjudicated) 70 April 2017 80Table note v 81 71.1
Table note iii

The results presented reflect interim feedback collected during Cycle III of the Legal Services Client Feedback Survey (2016-2017). The Departmental Survey report will be completed in 2020. As the Survey only resumed in 2016-17, results for Cycle II (2009-2012) are reflected for 2014-15 and 2015-16.

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Table note iv

There was an insufficient number of respondents to report results for this service.

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Table note v

All settlements of litigation are included as successful outcomes. Previously, there was a separation between settlements considered successful and others. As a result of the clarified methodology, there is a year-over-year increase in successful outcomes.

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Budgetary financial resources (dollars)
2016–17 Main Estimates 2016–17 Planned spending 2016–17 Total authorities available for use 2016–17 Actual spending (authorities used) 2016–17 Difference (actual minus planned)
199,619,747 199,619,747 207,124,393 198,793,560 -826,187
Human resources (full-time equivalents)
2016–17 Planned 2016–17 Actual 2016–17 Difference (actual minus planned)
3,039 3,096 57Table note vi
Table note vi

The variance between Actual FTEs and Planned FTEs is mostly explained by an internal reallocation of FTEs between activities.

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Information on the Department’s lower-level programs is available on the Department of Justice website and in the TBS InfoBase.

Internal Services

Description

Internal Services are those groups of related activities and resources that the federal government considers to be services in support of programs and/or required to meet corporate obligations of an organization. Internal Services refers to the activities and resources of the 10 distinct service categories that support Program delivery in the organization, regardless of the Internal Services delivery model in a department. The 10 service categories are: Management and Oversight Services; Communications Services; Legal Services; Human Resources Management Services; Financial Management Services; Information Management Services; Information Technology Services; Real Property Services; Materiel Services; and Acquisition Services.

Results

In 2016-17, the Department spent $80,043,827, including 950 FTEs, on Internal Services in support of the Department’s two strategic outcomes. Initiatives under the Internal Services program contributed directly to responsible departmental financial management and the priority of managing organizational transformation in support of business and legal excellence.

In support of the Federal Public Service Workplace Mental Health Strategy and the priority of a psychologically healthy and safe environment, the Department provided employees with information and access to resources and training to support their mental health. As of March 2017, all managers completed “The Working Mind: Workplace Mental Health and Wellness” training, and additional mental health training was offered to all employees. Justice also ensured, through training and communiqués, that employees are aware of their obligations and expected behaviours under the Values and Ethics Code of the Department of Justice. The Department also put in place initiatives to support professionalism and creating a respectful workplace where conflict is resolved at the lowest level.

In order to maintain a safe and secure work environment, Justice continued to educate its workforce and raise awareness by providing training sessions such as the Armed Intruder Awareness Session. Working towards creating a more innovative workplace, in alignment with the Government of Canada Workplace 2.0 standards, the Department continued to reduce its space utilization footprint. The execution of the National Accommodations Plan also supported the Department’s efforts in meeting its objectives under the 2013-2016 Federal Sustainable Development Strategy.

To enhance professional excellence and ensure that the workforce has the right capacity and is equipped to deliver its mandate, Justice developed a talent management vision and strategy as the cornerstone of its Human Resources Management Plan for 2017-20. Moreover, the following plans, programs and strategies were updated: the Employment Equity Plan for 2017-20, the Action Plan on Official Languages, the Flexible Career Development Initiative, the Legal Excellence Program, and the National Paralegal Strategy. As part of a more integrated departmental talent management strategy, collective staffing processes were undertaken to establish pools of qualified candidates for more efficient staffing and succession planning needs, and the use and role of paralegals across the Department were expanded. Additionally, new centres of expertise were created to provide single-window service for procurement law and labour and employment law.

In October 2016, a new Directive on Legal Project Management (LegalPM) was launched, providing a standardized approach and tools to manage certain legal files formally as projects. Additionally, through the implementation of the Professional Responsibility Service Initiative, the Department continued to engage its legal community on the importance of legal ethical issues in the practice of the law.

In alignment with Government of Canada priorities, Justice supported enterprise solutions such as GCDOCs and Shared Case Management and is implementing a new Legal Case Management System (LCMS), providing more integrated and consistent performance information on legal services and better reporting and resource management. Furthermore, the first phase of “Open by Default” was launched in 2016-17 in support of Open Government, providing broader access across Justice to information and documents. To strengthen cybersecurity, Justice implemented the Government of Canada Secure Remote Access (GCSRA), took measures to prepare Justice to migrate to GC Identity and Credential and Access Management Services, and is piloting the GC Secret Infrastructure Network (GCSI). Furthermore, Justice contributed to other Government of Canada initiatives such as data centre consolidation.

The implementation of Blueprint 2020 was actively supported by Justice in 2016-17 through various initiatives, including further implementation of the Information@Justice Strategy. The Digital Workspace has been rolled out to all employees to promote collaboration, streamline Departmental business processes, achieve efficiencies, and enhance productivity. To support and promote inclusiveness for the 1,400 Justice employees who are co-located in the offices of other federal departments to whom they provide legal services, the Departmental Legal Service Units Connectivity project was launched, and has been successful in better connecting a first wave of Justice employees.

The Financial Management Planning module of Justice’s Integrated Financial Management System was also implemented to better track financial resources and to better align program spending with departmental priorities. In addition, the Department implemented the envelope funding and advanced billing processes, both of which reinforce and support collaboration between the Department and client departments in jointly planning and managing legal resources.

Finally, as noted by the Clerk, in the Twenty-Fourth Annual Report to the Prime Minister, as part of the Government’s ongoing efforts to address the Phoenix Pay System issues, the Department has responded by establishing a centralized Trusted Source Liaison Unit. New processes have been implemented, training and information have been provided, and a helpline has been put in place to allow for regular communications with Justice employees. Much remains to be done in this area to address the accumulated backlog of queries and complaints.

Budgetary financial resources (dollars)
2016–17 Main Estimates 2016–17 Planned spending 2016–17 Total authorities available for use 2016–17 Actual spending (authorities used) 2016–17 Difference (actual minus planned)
77,424,860 77,424,860 95,250,612 80,043,827 2,618,967
Human resources (full-time equivalents)
2016–17 Planned 2016–17 Actual 2016–17 Difference (actual minus planned)
1,004 950 -54Table note vii
Table note vii

The variance between Actual FTEs and Planned FTEs is mostly explained by an internal reallocation of FTEs between activities.

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