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Additional Tools and Resources

The resources which are identified immediately below, are only some of the many print and audio-visual resources which could be of use to people working in the courts. If you are interested in a more comprehensive list of available resources, we would suggest that you contact the John Howard Society nearest you or the Literacy Organizations and the Public Legal Education and Information Organizations listed in Sections VIII and IX of this manual.

1. Communicating Clearly, a kit produced by Lawyers for Literacy, in 1996, is a project of the Canadian Bar Association, B.C. Branch. This kit contains four main publications including:

• Communicating Clearly: How Client Literacy Affects your Law Practice and What You Can Do";
• Communicating Clearly: How to Recognize When Your Client Doesn't Understand and How You Can Help";
• "The Law Firm Literacy Audit"; and
• "What's Available: A Resource Guide for Communicating Clearly". This last resource provides:
  • suggested resources for use with clients when you cannot use print; and
  • suggested resources for use by lawyers, including publications on:
    1. how to recognize if your client has literacy problems;
    2. adapting to meet client needs by writing and speaking clearly;
    3. taking action to promote literacy awareness and training;
    4. what's available on-line concerning plain language and literacy;
    5. pictionaries; and
    6. services available in B.C. for native and multicultural groups.