B.C. women who fear violence from the men in their lives should not have to pay $200 when they seek protection orders from the B.C. Supreme Court, says B.C.’s representative for children and youth.
“Everywhere else in Canada, you don’t pay,” said Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, adding the fee is “callous” and should be scrapped by Attorney General Suzanne Anton.
Three-quarters of court protection orders — formerly known as restraining orders — come via provincial court, where there is no application fee, the Ministry of Justice says.
But women seeking protection orders alongside child support, divorce and division of property — issues that are dealt with in B.C. Supreme Court — must pay $200 in advance. “You don’t get a court date without paying,” Turpel-Lafond said.
The ministry said the filing fee is consistent with those for similar services and that those who cannot afford it can apply for a waiver.
“This fee is unfair and can be humiliating to the person applying for a waiver,” Turpel-Lafond said in an email to the Times Colonist. “Justice must be accessible to victims without cost.”
B.C.’s Family Law Act, which came into effect in March 2013, broadened the definition of family violence, created a new type of protection order and made it a criminal offence to breach such an order by contacting or harassing a victim.
But there has been no increase in the number of protection orders, Turpel-Lafond said, suggesting money is an issue for women making decisions about their safety when they are vulnerable.
About 100 protection orders are issued each month, a number Turpel-Lafond called “far too low.”
Whether the order comes through provincial court or B.C. Supreme Court, the issue is the safety of women and children, she said.
“Creating a cost in one court over another, then expecting victims to navigate that maze in a time of stress, is the product of a system that has not been improved for victims,” Turpel-Lafond said.
“We need to eliminate barriers — fiscal, access and otherwise — and not leave it up to citizens to have to pay for protection.”
Depending on the circumstances of the case, the court can direct police officers or sheriffs to deliver protection orders, at no cost to the applicant. In other cases, the applicant must arrange, at their own cost, for the protection order to be delivered, usually by commissionaires, Turpel-Lafond said. “They need to be served by a real police officer — it’s not something to leave to a commissionaire.”
The larger issue is one of enforcement and the safety of women and children, particularly those in rural or remote areas, Turpel-Lafond said.
“If the nearest police officer is two hours or more away, how effective is any protection order? What are the options for these women seeking safety? In some cases, there are none.”
