Daniel MacIsaac
Northern News Services

Inuvik (Nov 19/99) - The Beaufort Delta Legal Services Clinic is welcoming two new staff on board this month, from very different backgrounds.

Lawyer John MacFarlane, an Ottawa native, joins the team after having operated his own practice in the nation's capital and having spent time in the Middle East. Court worker Sheila Nasogaluak is originally from Sachs Harbour and has lived for many years in Inuvik.

Both say they are looking forward to new challenges.

MacFarlane, officially called to the territorial bar Friday morning said, "I like to experience different cultures and the environment. And I thought the work looked interesting."

He should know. Working through Oxfam International, he recently spent two years in the Israel-controlled West Bank, helping the Palestinian authorities develop a law school in Ramallah, not far from Jerusalem. MacFarlane said it was tough to remain an objective observer in such a heated, divided political situation.

"I became very sympathetic toward the Palestinians," he said. "I was working with them, living with them and found them very friendly and outgoing."

A colleague in Pond Inlet told MacFarlane about the Inuvik opening and he leapt at the chance to come North. He said he understands the nature of the legal practice here is quite different from the Middle East, but that with his background in criminal law, he's confident he'll fit right in.

Clinic director Andrew Fox said the office services legal-aid clients in the region's eight communities, and travels on the bi-weekly court circuit. Fox said he and MacFarlane -- who replaces Richelle Gardener -- are the clinic's only lawyers, although there may soon be a third.

"The Legal Services Board just passed a resolution put forward by our board to have a family lawyer based here in Inuvik to look after matters like child custody and divorce, which are handled out of Yellowknife, with a backlog of about two months," he said. "Right now the load in the criminal docket alone is enough to keep two lawyers busy."

The clinic is provided with an operating budget of $300,000 by the territorial Department of Justice, and Fox said the idea behind setting up regional offices was to bring the system closer to the people it serves. He added that the circuit system remains imperfect, with prosecutors and judges still travelling north from Yellowknife.

"It's even more stark when the team flies into a small hamlet like Paulatuk and decides who will pay a fine, who will serve time and who will walk away free," he said. "It's hard for the locals to understand because other than the RCMP and maybe a witness or the accused, none of them are participating in the process."

Fox said the clinic's existence alleviates this situation somewhat, as has the development of the local justice committees.

"It takes a lot of time to get someone unfamiliar with the system to trust you," he said, "and that's also why we're embracing the justice committees."

Nasogaluak said knowing the people in the region will doubtless help her settle in as court worker in Inuvik. The clinic also has two other court workers, in Fort McPherson and Tuktoyaktuk, and Nasogaluak's duties in Inuvik will include meeting with individuals making their first appearance before the court as well as standing as agent in the justice of the peace court.

"It'll be a challenge, but I'm looking forward to it," she said.