NSRLP Team

The National Self-Represented Litigants Projects takes its mandate from the Final Recommendations of the Research Report: 10 Actions Step for the SRL Phenomenon. We are very excited about continuing our work with and for SRLs. We invite you to join us – by inviting a member of the NSRLP team or an SRL to speak to your professional conference, law school class, participate in a policy working group or “road test” a new SRL resource – by participating in the regular discussion on our Facebook page, following our Blog and/or signing up to receive our newsletter below.

Who We Are

NSRLP aims to continue to generate energy and motivation towards serious contemplation of system change, reflecting the findings of Dr. Julie Macfarlane’s 2013 Research Study on self-representation in Canada. NSRLP is committed to collaboration to enhance the responsiveness of the Canadian justice system to SRLs, and to continuing dialogue among stakeholders who include SRLs, lawyers, judges, and court services staff. NSRLP also acts as a clearinghouse for information and resources related to the SRL phenomenon, and is committed to information and resource-sharing on the SRL phenomenon among all interested and affected parties. NSRLP is financially supported by funding from grants, including the Law Foundation of Ontario’s Catalyst program, as well as generous support from individual donors. If you would like to support the work of the NSRLP, please consider donating – any amount is welcome!

Our Team Includes

– Our NSRLP team of professional staff and student research assistants;

– The NSRLP Board of Directors and Advisory Panel;

– Our volunteers;

– The many SRLs and justice system professionals who collaborate with us;

The collective effort of all these groups of individuals from across Canada continues to advance the NSRLP mandates of research, resource development, and dialogue and collaboration.

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Meet Our Team

Jennifer Leitch

Executive Director
Dayna Cornwall

Project Manager
Moya McAlister

Communications Manager
Keerthi Chintapalli

Research Assistant

Jennifer Leitch

Executive Director

Jennifer Leitch, JD, LLM, PhD is a researcher and law teacher, primarily in the area of legal ethics and professionalism, access to justice, and dispute processes. Her PhD dissertation at Osgoode included ethnographic research involving self-represented litigants’ experiences participating in the civil justice system. She continues to research and publish in the fields of access to justice and legal ethics. She also practiced civil litigation at Goodmans LLP in Toronto. Jennifer was been an adjunct faculty member of Osgoode Hall Law School and the University of Toronto Faculty of Law where she taught legal ethics and professionalism, legal process and legal research and writing as well as torts most recently. She is also the Associate Director and an instructor in the Ethics, Society and Law program at Trinity College, University of Toronto and a Senior Research Fellow with the Canadian Forum on Civil Justice. Jennifer lives in Toronto with her partner and twins.

Dayna Cornwall

Project Manager

Dayna Cornwall holds degrees in English Literature and Education from the University of Windsor, and a Master of Library and Information Science degree from the University of Western Ontario. She has worked previously in public and academic libraries, in education research, and in human resources, and has brought a passion for information literacy to the NSRLP since joining the organization in 2016. Dayna coordinates the day-to-day and long-term objectives of the NSRLP, overseeing administration, information organization, and various special projects which include, among others: the 2018-2020 Family Law at the Library pilot program; the ongoing School for Family Litigants; and 2023’s Virtual Hearings Research Project. Dayna has spoken widely on the self-representation phenomenon at workshops and conferences across North America, is a contributor to the NSRLP blog and Slaw columns, and produces and co-hosts NSRLP’s award-winning podcast, “Jumping off the Ivory Tower.”

Moya McAlister

Communications Manager

Moya McAlister has over 8 years of professional experience in marketing, fundraising, and non-profit management, and brings a passion for social justice issues to everything she does. Moya’s education is in English and Musical Studies, as well as Advertising and Marketing Communications Management. She was an Account Executive at a top North American advertising agency, but she has also worked as Volunteer and Development Coordinator at the Windsor Humane Society. Moya is heavily involved in community arts and social justice initiatives, including serving as Board Vice President and Marketing Director of Windsor’s Arts Collective Theatre, and Board Director of the Black Women of Forward Action. As Communications Manager, Moya leads activities related to revenue generation through grants and fundraising initiatives. She also manages project budgets and timelines and works closely with the social media coordinators to ensure NSRLP resources are spread efficiently across multiple digital platforms. Moya is also the point person for SRL outreach across Canada.

Keerthi Chintapalli

Research Assistant

Keerthi is a second-year law student at the University of Windsor Faculty of Law. Prior to law school, she completed her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Criminology at the University of Toronto. She has experience working with social advocacy groups in Toronto and continues to study the economic and social hurdles self-represented litigants face.

Keerthi has been with the NSRLP since her first year of law school and continues to apply her skills, expertise and education towards improving equity and access to justice.

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