"On 23 February 2016, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights (the Committee) decided to undertake a study on access to justice by proceeding in several phases, the first consisting of reviewing the Court Challenges Program. The Committee tabled its report on the Court Challenges Program in September 2016. The second phase of the study on access to justice entailed a review of legal aid. From December 2016 to May 2017, the Committee held seven meetings at which it heard testimony from representatives of the Department of Justice, experts and organizations involved in the delivery of legal aid services. This report starts by explaining the federal role in legal aid and its role in funding provincial and territorial legal aid plans. It then outlines a number of measures that could increase access to legal assistance to maximize the impact of existing funding, and finishes by examining ways to improve data and research on legal aid"--Introd., p. 1-2.