CBABC In the Media

The suspension starts Sept. 28, with civil jury trials set to resume on Oct. 4, 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to courtroom doors being shuttered and hearings being held on online platforms rather than boardrooms. But the new president of the Canadian Bar Association, B.C. branch (CBABC) says it has also led to the reshaping of a profession which still had many of its traditions rooted in the past.

What has become clear, however, is the benefits from the incredible improvement in communications Eby has nurtured and what that has meant.

COVID-19 has ravaged the country’s legal system and precipitated a long backlog of cases that has Attorney General David Eby and his counterparts in other provinces scrambling.

B.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Christopher Hinkson told a webinar hosted by the Canadian Bar Association (B.C. branch) that during the past several months, little has been heard in court except urgent cases.

British Columbia has revealed a strategy for its justice system aimed at reducing the number of Indigenous people who find themselves before criminal courts and ensuring First Nations are more involved in the legal services that affect them.

Kevin Westell, representing the Canadian Bar Association and Criminal Defence Advocacy Society, said the regime should not apply to the legal profession. Requiring lawyers to report suspicious activity to the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre, or Fintrac, would violate solicitor-client privilege, he said.

Legislative amendments have been introduced that the BC government claims will reduce the cost and complexity of lawsuits under the current auto insurance system. Jennifer Brun, vice president, Canadian Bar Association BC, joined Adam Stirling at CFAX 1070 to explain why CBABC is opposed to these amendments.

"CBABC 'wholeheartedly reject[s] the government’s implication that this change will result in savings for motor vehicle accident victims, who far too often are offered settlements intended to save ICBC money.'”

The government of British Columbia has announced plans to transition to a no-fault automobile insurance system to deal with ballooning costs at the provincially-owned Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC), a move that has raised the ire of many in the provincial legal community.