B.C. Supreme Court expands guidance on civil, family matters

By Ian Burns

Law360 Canada (June 4, 2020, 11:21 AM EDT) -- The B.C. Supreme Court has issued a new notice concerning civil and family matters as it continues to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the court’s notice, civil jury selections are suspended, and civil jury trials are cancelled, up to and including Sept. 7. Until court registries reopen for in-person services, parties will not be able to submit jury fees. Applications to abridge timelines to pay jury fees will be considered once registries reopen for in-person services. Since resumption of jury selections must precede resumption of jury trials, jury trials may be further delayed.

For civil matters where a jury notice has been filed and served, if all parties consent to proceeding by judge alone, they may seek such an order at a trial management conference (TMC) or a judicial management conference (JMC). More information can be found here.