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Court of Appeal
The Court of Appeal is the highest court in the province. It hears appeals from the Supreme Court, from the Provincial Court on some criminal matters, and reviews and appeals from some administrative boards and tribunals.
The Court of Appeal is constituted by the Court of Appeal Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 77. The Court of Appeal Act provides for a Chief Justice and 14 other justices, as well as for supernumerary justices. Thus, the Court of Appeal actually has more than 15 judges. The Chief Justice of British Columbia heads the Court of Appeal.
The Court of Appeal has a registrar who, in addition to other administrative duties, hears matters related to the settling of orders and bills of costs.
Announcements
March 31, 2020
B.C. COURT OF APPEAL ANNUAL REPORT 2019
The Annual Report of the B.C. Court of Appeal covering the activities of the Court for 2019 is now available.
March 30, 2020
UPDATED NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC REGARDING THE COURT OF APPEAL'S RESPONSE TO COVID-19
This updated Notice to the Public replaces the Notice to the Public issued by the Chief Justice of British Columbia on 17 March 2020 (effective 18 March 2020). It reflects changes to the court's operations related to Ministerial Order No. M086 regarding the suspension of timelines to commence civil or family proceedings.
March 27, 2020
SUSPENSION OF LIMITATION PERIODS
Limitation periods to commence court proceedings in British Columbia have been suspended, and statutory decision-makers have been provided discretion to waive, suspend or extend time periods related to their powers. Click on these links for details regarding this announcement and the associated ministerial order. The Court of Appeal will provide further directions once the suspension is lifted.
March 27, 2020
NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC REGARDING AFFIDAVITS FOR USE IN COURT PROCEEDINGS
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Court of Appeal for British Columbia, the Supreme Court of British Columbia, and the Provincial Court of British Columbia will make accommodations for the commissioning of affidavits in circumstances where it is not possible or is medically unsafe for the deponent to attend before a commissioner. All three levels of court will follow the same process, set out in the directives linked below:
Court of Appeal for British Columbia
Supreme Court of British Columbia
Provincial Court of British Columbia
March 23, 2020
NOTICE TO ACCREDITED MEDIA REGARDING ACCESS TO COURT OF APPEAL PROCEEDINGS
The Court of Appeal for British Columbia recognizes the critical importance of the open courts principle, including in the exceptional circumstances related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Court proceedings have temporarily been limited and modified, but they must remain open to public scrutiny and media plays a special role in that regard. The Court of Appeal is taking the following steps to ensure that accredited media continue to have options for observing and reporting on court proceedings during this exceptional time:
- The Court of Appeal's weekly hearing list is updated daily here.
- The Court of Appeal's upcoming judgment list is also updated daily here.
- Members of the accredited media should watch the hearing list, and, if they wish to observe, they should contact the Honourable Bruce Cohen, Superior Courts Communications Officer, at SCJCommunicationsOfficer@bccourts.ca, for more information about how they can participate (e.g. by dialing into a teleconference). Media participation in court proceedings taking place by telephone may be subject to limits on the number of callers that can be connected through a single teleconference number.
- For access to audio recordings please review and submit an access request form available here.
March 17, 2020
COURT OF APPEAL FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA - STRICTLY LIMITED COURT OPERATIONS
To protect the health of litigants, court staff, judges and members of the public and to help contain the spread of the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19), the Court of Appeal is strictly limiting its operations through this direction by the Chief Justice of British Columbia, effective 18 March 2020, and until further notice.
March 13, 2020
COURT OF APPEAL FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA MODIFIED PROCEEDINGS
As a result of the rapidly evolving situation with COVID-19, the Court of Appeal is, effective immediately, instituting modifications to its normal operations. For more details click here.
March 13, 2020
BC COURTS' RESPONSE TO COVID-19
In response to the rapidly evolving situation with COVID-19, the Court of Appeal for British Columbia, the Supreme Court of British Columbia and the Provincial Court of British Columbia ("Courts") have developed a coordinated approach to manage impacts of the virus on the operations of the Courts. For more details click here.
March 12, 2020
NOVEL CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK (COVID-19)
British Columbia is experiencing an increase in cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and it is anticipated that the virus will continue to spread. The Court of Appeal for British Columbia and the Supreme Court of British Columbia continue to monitor information and take guidance from public health officials and are taking steps to try to ensure the safety and health of the members of the public who interact with the Court. READ MORE
March 5, 2020
AMENDED PRACTICE DIRECTIVE: DECLARATIONS IN COURT ORDERS
The civil and criminal practice directive, Declarations in Court Orders, describes the practice required for orders relating to a declaration and has been amended to reflect its application to both civil and criminal appeals. It replaces and repeals the civil practice directive, Declarations in Court Orders, 11 October 2019.