Announcements

The “Law Needs Well-Being Because...” Campaign is a national photo campaign that invites lawyers, articled clerks, and law students from all over the country to reflect on why well-being is important for our profession.

A new location of the Supreme Court of British Columbia is opening in Abbotsford. The courthouse is expected to open to the public on January 18, 2021. Effective February 1, 2021 the Court will begin hearing trials in Abbotsford. As per most Supreme Court locations, matters in Abbotsford will be scheduled according to the assize system.

The most current updates and notices for the Court of Appeal for BC, the Supreme Court of BC, and the Provincial Court of BC.

The Provincial Court of BC recognizes that the Province is still impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Chief Public Health Officers of Canada and the Province still require people to keep a safe distance from each other, but currently there can be a cautious reopening of public places with health and safety protocols in place to minimize the transmission of the virus. Taking this into account, the Provincial Court has developed the plan set out in this Notice to resume further court operations.

The Canadian Bar Association, BC Branch (CBABC) has once again honoured both outstanding BC lawyers and an innovative organization, all of whom have contributed to the profession and community. CBABC President Ken Armstrong presented three special recognition awards to Simon Coval, QC, Tina Parbhakar and the BC Prosecution Service on Saturday, September 26 at the virtual CBABC Provincial Council meeting.

"This isn't necessarily about more lawyers, it's about more interaction with the people with the problems"

British Columbians will head to the polls on October 24. As with every BC election, CBABC will bring forward justice issues to the parties and candidates, while maintaining a non-partisan position overall.

The B.C. government is suspending civil jury trials for just over a year as a means of minimizing the impact of delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The suspension begins Sept. 28 and will run until Oct. 4, 2021. Any trial taking place during this time period will be heard by judge alone. In addition, neither plaintiffs nor defendants will be permitted to adjourn cases to a later date in order to have the matter heard by a jury, unless the court orders otherwise.

Catherine Kinahan has been appointed as judicial justice. After earning her law degree from the University of British Columbia, she was called to the bar in 1981. She was a City of Vancouver lawyer from 1985 to 2017, including her role as assistant director, enforcement and bylaw prosecutions. Prior to that, she worked as Crown counsel in Vancouver.

A new model to help families with mediation and conflict resolution is being expanded to Surrey.