A day hardly goes by without some media attention of the effects of underfunding of state courts in the United States. The American Bar Association has championed the issue of the need for adequate and stable funding for state courts. Regrettably underfunding courts is not a peculiar phenomenon of state courts. Arguably the situation in British Columbia is every bit the crisis that exists in many states. The Globe & Mail reports that:

The number of cases on the edge of being thrown out because of unreasonable delays sits at more than 2,500. These involve defendants charged with everything from attempted murder to drug dealing to drunk driving. In some cases, the accused have committed other crimes while awaiting trial.

There were 109 youth and criminal cases stayed in 2011, which is almost double the number from the previous year. Despite hiring 14 new judges in the past two years, the province is still 17 judges short of 2005 levels, which is helping create historic backlogs. 

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