Best Practices for Writing Gladue Reports and Understanding Gladue Principles

Describes the approach taken by the Legal Aid BC Gladue Program up until March 31, 2021, when Legal Aid BC ceased to operate its program and provincial responsibility for Gladue reports shifted to the First Nations Justice Council.

Provides a set of guidelines to support Gladue report writers in preparing reports to submit at bail and sentencing hearings for Indigenous people. Guidelines describe:

• standards of conduct and communication with criminal justice professionals
• basics of Canadian criminal law concerning sentencing, bail, dangerous and long-term offenders, and Indigenous people
• how Gladue principles are applied in practice and how to provide all necessary information in Gladue reports to support courts in applying them
• differences between Gladue reports and principles for sentencing, bail, dangerous and long-term offenders hearings, and resolution discussions
• including Indigenous law in Gladue reports and using Indigenous law in court
• how to interview the report’s subject and collaterals, write the subject’s sacred story, address legal issues, and produce high-quality reports that the subject and courts can depend on

Also includes a checklist for submitting Gladue reports for legal review, a glossary, an extensive bibliography, Gladue report templates, a guide to citation styles, and an orientation guide for Gladue report writers.