COVID updates

COVID-19 Government policies update - $14 Billion Federal offer to provinces and territories, the curve is flattening, United States of America update, 290 000 jobs in May... Click to read. (Earnscliffe)

5 June 2020

Notice to the Profession and Public NP22: Resuming In-Person Proceedings During COVID-19: Health & Safety Protocols issued by Chief Judge Gillespie of the Provincial Court of BC
BC Weekly Update (Earnscliffe)

29 May 2020

Announcement – Update on traffic, ticket or bylaw matters in BC Provincial Court
BC Weekly Update (Earnscliffe)
This week in review (Earnscliffe)

28 May 2020

Government working to support in-person court appearances. Read more...

27 May 2020

Updated Notice to the Public Regarding the Court of Appeal's Response to COVID-19 - Further Suspension of Service and Filing Deadlines issued by the Supreme Court of BC
See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC

26 May 2020

COVID-19 Notice 24: Filing of Affadavits of Service and Delivery - Civil and Family Matters issued by the Supreme Court of BC
Announcement - Update on in-person and remote proceedings in BC Provincial Court.

22 May 2020

UPDATED: COVID-19 Notice 20: Civil and Family Proceedings - Resumption of Trial Management Conferences and Trials issued by the Supreme Court of BC
UPDATED: COVID-19 Notice 19: Civil and Family Proceedings -Resumption of Some Court Operations - Civil and Family Matters issued by the Supreme Court of BC
This week in review (Earnscliffe)
See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC

21 May 2020

BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)

20 May 2020

Remote execution of legal documents allowed during pandemic. Read more...

19 May 2020

See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC
As provided in COVID-19 Notice No. 20 – Resumption of Trial Management Conferences and Trials - Civil and Family Matters, JMCs can now be booked online here - issued by the Superior Courts of BC.
BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)
Read a message from the Chief Judge of the Provincial Court

17 May 2020

What to expect in a family or small claims conference held by telephone or video - provided by the Provincial Court of BC.

15 May 2020

Starting 15 May, the Court of Appeal Weekly Hearing List will include links to observe live video conference appeal hearings.
As provided in COVID-19 Notice No. 20 – Resumption of Trial Management Conferences and Trials - Civil and Family Matters, TMCs can now be booked online here.
BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)
Government policies update - extension of the wage subsidy program, liquidity program for large businesses, regional recovery program... Click to read. (Earnscliffe)
British Columbia Weekly Update (Earnscliffe)

14 May 2020

Starting 15 May, the Court of Appeal Weekly Hearing List will include links to observe live video conference appeal hearings.
COVID-19 Notice 21: Resumption of Some Regular Court Operations - Criminal Proceedings issued by the Court of Appeal for BC
Impacts of COVID-19 on ICBC
BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)

13 May 2020

COVID-19 Notice 20: Civil and Family Proceedings - Resumption of Trial Management Conferences and Trials issued by the Supreme Court of BC
COVID-19 Notice 19: Notice to the Profession, the Public and the Media Regarding Civil and Family Proceedings - Resumption of Some Court Operations issued by the Supreme Court of BC
BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)

12 May 2020

BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)

11 May 2020

COVID-19 Notice 18: Notice to the Profession, Public and Media Regarding Criminal Proceedings - Suspension of Regular Supreme Court Operations issued by the Supreme Court of BC
Large Employer Emergency Financing Facility (LEEFF) Package (Earnscliffe)
See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC
Emerging Economy Task Force Report & Putting Innovation to Work for BC (Report by Alan Winter) (Earnscliffe)

10 May 2020

See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update: Commencing Recovery of some Court Operations (NP 19) issued by the Provincial Court of BC

8 May 2020

BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)
See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC
Weekly Update - including The Current State of Play (Earnscliffe)

7 May 2020

Notice to the Media Regarding Access to Court Proceedings issued by the Supreme Court of BC
BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)
Release of BC's Restart Plan (Earnscliffe)

6 May 2020

Notice to the Profession and the Public - Guide to Remote Proceedings issued by the Provincial Court of BC
See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC
As provided in COVID-19 Notice 14: Application by Written Submissions issued by the Supreme Court of BC, booking for applications by written submissions can only be done with this online booking form.

5 May 2020

Notice to the Profession, the Public and the Media Regarding Civil Proceedings - Insolvency COVID-19: Suspension of Regular Court Operations issued by the Supreme Court of BC
Notice Regarding Criminal Proceedings COVID-19: COVID Pre-Trial Conferences issued by the Supreme Court of BC

4 May 2020

See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC
BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)

1 May 2020

The CRT Rules have been revised effective May 1, 2020. A table of changes tracking the amendments can be found on the CRT’s website here.
See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC
Provinces Present Divergent Frameworks for Reopening (Earnscliffe)

30 April 2020

Read a message from the Chief Judge of the Supreme Court of British Columbia
BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)

29 April 2020

Notices to the Profession issued by the Court of Appeal for British Columbia
See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC
BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)

28 April 2020

Recovery of some Provincial Court of BC operations
- See the Court's eNews with updated Notice to the Profession and Public: NP19 and Criminal Practice Direction CRIM 12: Criminal Pre-Trial Conferences During COVID-19
BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)
Notice to the Profession - Expansion of Civil and Family Matters - Applications by Written Submissions issued by the Supreme Court of BC. For details about bringing an application by written submissions, click here

27 April 2020

See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC

26 April 2020

Notice to the Profession, the Public and the Media Regarding Civil and Family Proceedings - COVID-19: Expansion of Civil and Family Matters – Telephone Conference Hearings from the BC Supreme Court

24 April 2020

See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC
Notice to the Profession, the Public and the Media Regarding Civil and Family Proceedings - COVID-19: E-Filing and Desk Order Applications from the BC Supreme Court (updated)
Notice to the Profession, the Public and the Media Regarding Civil Proceedings – Bankruptcy and Insolvency - COVID-19: E-Filing and Bankruptcy Desk Order Application from the BC Supreme Court

23 April 2020

BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)
General support programs provided by the governments (Earnscliffe)
Canada Emergency Relief Benefit (CERB) & Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) (Earnscliffe)

21 April 2020

BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)

20 April 2020

See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC
Updated Notice to the Public Regarding the Court of Appeal for British Columbia's Response to COVID-19 - New Information Regarding Continuation of Court Operations

18 April 2020

Notice to the Profession, the Public and the Media Regarding Civil and Family Proceedings, COVID-19: Telephone Conference Hearings issued by the Supreme Court of BC
Read a summary of government responses to the COVID-19 pandemic for the last week and a look ahead to how the debate around re-opening our economies will be shaped. (Earnscliffe)

17 April 2020

British Columbia Weekly Update (Earnscliffe)

16 April 2020

BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)
Notice to the Profession, the Public and the Media Regarding Criminal Proceedings, COVID-19: Suspension of Regular Supreme Court Operations issued by the Supreme Court of BC

15 April 2020

See the BC Provincial Court’s Announcement today regarding Unsworn & Unaffirmed Affidavits for Urgent Hearing Applications issued by the Office of the Chief Judge.
See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC
BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)

14 April 2020

What's happening in the BC Provincial Court during COVID-19?
BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)

13 April 2020

Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy and other Policy Updates (Vancouver Board of Trade)

9 April 2020

After our first month of COVID-19 and #workfromhome, the seriousness of the public health crisis and its economic consequences has settled in. Read more (Earnscliffe)

8 April 2020

BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)

7 April 2020

BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)

6 April 2020

BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)
See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC

3 April 2020

BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)
See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC, including Major System Upgrade/systems unavailable; Update from the courts

2 April 2020

BC COVID-19 News Updates (Earnscliffe)
An overview on the recently announced wage subsidy programs, CEWS and CERB as they are currently understood. The document will be updated as further information becomes available. (Earnscliffe)

1 April 2020

See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC, including: LTSA Process; Support for lawyers to manage impacts of COVID-19.
Prime Minister releases details about the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy to assist Canadian businesses struggling financially due to the COVID-19 crisis. Read more (Earnscliffe)

30 March 2020

See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC, including: Suspension of limitation periods; Update regarding execution of affadivits; Update on changes to the Supreme Court registry services; Update on Provincial Court; Supports for managing health and social impacts of COVID-19.
See the following notices and direction issued by Chief Judge Gillespie:
- Notice to the Profession and Public - COVID-19 Suspension of Regular Court Operations (NP 20)
- FAM 07 Practice Direction - CFCSA Consent Requisitions
- Announcement regarding Changes to Provincial Court Registry Services

27 March 2020

In the face of “almost total economic shutdown,” the Prime Minister announced major improvements to the package of supports for small and medium-sized businesses. Read more (Earnscliffe)
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. Read more
See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC, including: List of COVID-19 essential services: Deferral of second installment of LIF fees; Virtual commissioning; PLTC update; Impact on NCA examinations.

26 March 2020

Lawyers and paralegals are included in the list of essential services in British Columbia during the COVID-19 pandemic. These daily services are those deemed essential to preserving life, health, public safety and basic societal functioning. They are the services British Columbians come to rely on in their daily lives. See the full list here.
The Family Justice Services Division of the BC Ministry of the Attorney General has updated the Court on how it will operate during the pandemic. The Division provides a range of services to help resolve family disputes in a fair and timely way. Its in-person services are temporarily not available, but you can still access many of their services by telephone or other virtual means. Read more

25 March 2020

After more than 12 hours of negotiations between the political parties, agreement was reached on the contents of the legislation needed to approve the government’s COVID-19 package. The COVID-19 Emergency Response Act was passed unanimously by the House of Commons just before 6:00 AM this morning. The legislation moved directly to the Senate where it was debated and passed without amendment around midday. Read more (Earnscliffe)

24 March 2020

Updated Notice NP19 contains directions on applications for judicial authorization, Criminal Code s. 490 applications & extensions & necessary in-person applications. Peace officers should have affidavits sworn before attending Justice Centre.
In anticipation of today’s extraordinary session of the House of Commons to consider the federal COVID-19 measures, the government yesterday released its draft legislation to the opposition parties. While the draft contains the legislative authorities to implement the $82 billion aid package announced last week, it touched off a firestorm of criticism because it also included unprecedented powers to spend, tax, borrow and regulate without approval of the House of Commons. By late last night, the Government House Leader had backed down, saying “We consulted with the opposition and will bring changes to the draft legislation." When the House convened, it suspended operations almost immediately to allow for further negotiations on the legislation. The parties did not reach a resolution and the House of Commons remained suspended to allow more time for a consensus to emerge. Read more (Earnscliffe)

23 March 2020

As the number of COVID-19 cases being spread by community transmission rise, calls continue for the federal government to invoke the Emergencies Act. Pressure is building for the federal government to take stricter enforcement action to compel Canadians to stay home and to standardize the patchwork of bans on assembly that have arisen by province and municipality across the country. Read more (Earnscliffe)
See the Notice to the Profession: COVID-19 Update issued by the Law Society of BC.
The BC Government announced its $5 billion COVID-19 Action Plan for the Economy. This will complement the $82 billion federal economic response package announced last week. The provincial plan invests in critical services such as health care, provides financial relief for workers, and earmarks $2.2 billion specifically for businesses and recovery. Read a detailed memo from Earnscliffe breaking down the Action Plan.
See the Notice to the Profession and Public - COVID-19 Suspension of Regular Court Operations (NP 19) (Revised) issued by Chief Judge Gillespie today.
Revised BC Provincial Court closures

21 March 2020

See the Notice to the Profession regarding Issuing Affidavits and Information from the courts issued by the Law Society of BC.

20 March 2020

See the Notice to the Public Regarding Affidavits for use in civil and family proceedings issued by Chief Judge Gillespie today. Also see the revised BC Provincial Court Closures.
The Prime Minister today announced urgent procurement measures to obtain necessary medical supplies to fight COVID-19 and a change in policy to close the Canadian border to asylum seekers and confirmed that the Canada-U.S. border will be closed to non-essential travel at midnight tonight. In his morning address, the PM made public a startling statistic, that the federal government has received 500,000 applications this week for Employment Insurance. In a normal week, 27,000 applications are received. (Earnscliffe)
The BC government is preparing to announce a major economic package next week. Provincial Health officials prohibited dine-in service at all restaurants across the province, mandating take-out and delivery only. Strategies to support seniors and child-care will be announced next week. In Vancouver, a 60-day property tax grace period was announced along with a new Economic Recovery Task Force to look specifically at business taxes. (Earnscliffe)
See the following link for Notice to the Profession and Public - COVID-19: Suspension of Regular Court Operations (NP 19) issued by Chief Judge Gillespie effective March 25, 2020 (unless otherwise stated in the Notice): Notice to the Profession and Public (NP 19) - COVID-19: Suspension of Regular Court Operations.

19 March 2020

By the numbers: Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Tam reported that globally there are now 230,000 cases of COVID-19 in 177 countries. In Canada, there are more than 800 cases and have been 9 deaths. There are 10 cases confirmed at CFB Trenton. Over 50,000 Canadians have been tested. Read more (Earnscliffe)
Reaction to Federal Economic Package: Response to the first phase of the federal government’s economic relief package has been largely positive. Most economists and stakeholder groups hailed the announcement as an important first step in helping households and vulnerable workers but warned that much more will be needed as the COVID-19 crisis deepens, and that the success of some of the initiatives will depend on how quickly the government can get money into the hands of Canadians. Read more (Earnscliffe)

18 March 2020

BC moved today to declare a provincial state of emergency for the next two weeks, which gives the government additional powers to respond to the COVID-19 crisis and can be renewed by Cabinet order. The City of Vancouver followed suit, asking all residents to immediately limit the time they spend in public spaces and restaurants, except for take-out and delivery, were ordered to close. The BC Legislature will return on March 23 to sit for one day, with a quorum of 12 members, to pass legislation related to the Supply Act and amendments to the Employment Standards Act. (Earnscliffe)
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.
The Provincial Court’s March 18, 2020 (10:30 AM) Court Closures Update (222 Main Street and Downtown Community Court also now closed).
Due to the ongoing health crisis (COVID19), the Supreme Court of BC under the direction of Chief Justice C. Hinkson has ceased operations until further notice. https://bccourts.ca/supreme_court/
The Law Society has published FAQs on practice management, PLTC and business operations. Check the website regularly for updates.

17 March 2020

The Provincial Court of BC’s Tuesday, March 17, 2020 COVID-19 Update: https://www.provincialcourt.bc.ca/COVID19. This March 17, 2020 Update replaces the Court’s March 15 and 16, 2020 Updates).