To this day, no court in Canada has ever allowed I.O or I.F to attend any Canadian courtroom, at any level whatsoever. Their voices have never been heard. No judge has ever set eyes on them. They are “represented” by a handful of very poor, legal aid lawyers, none of whom care squat for their perspective, or their wishes. They are treated like chattel. These lawyers work for the Office of the Children’s Lawyer, a government agency already named in litigation.
In France, as part of the European Union, children have the basic right to address the courts to the best of their ability. I.O and I.F testified directly to the judge. They selected their lawyer. They were represented as a family. They wrote letters directly to the judge. Their voices were heard.
The archipelago of Saint Pierre et Miquelon (French Territory) is eleven kilometres south of Burin, Newfoundland [map]. What a difference eleven kilometres makes.
