Difference between revisions of "The Court System for Family Matters"

* ''Early Resolution Registries'' (Currently, Victoria, Surrey and Port Coquitlam, although in April 2025, the registries in Abbotsford, Chilliwack and New Westminster will become Early Resolution Registries, followed by Vancouver (Robson), North Vancouver, Richmond, Sechelt and Pemberton in November 2025) These Provincial Court registries follow a fairly new kind of procedure that's designed to resolve cases without the need for going to court. The early resolution process in these registries is a much different procedure compared to traditional Provincial Court procedure. The good news is that many people will find the process more straight forward, less complex, and less adversarial. Before going to court, parties must:  

* ''Family Justice Registries'' (Kelowna, Nanaimo, and Vancouver (Robson Square)), which require parties to go through a family needs assessment at the very beginning.

* ''Parenting Education Program Registries'', are the default type of registry found in the remaining registry locations of the Provincial Court. Unless you’re in Kelowna, Nanaimo, Surrey, Vancouver, or Victoria, this will be the registry type you'll deal with. (If your matter is in Kamloops, and it looks like it's going to trial, you might need to learn about that registry's new ''Informal Family Court Trials'' pilot, which is explained on the [https://www.provincialcourt.bc.ca/enews/enews-16-05-2022 Provincial Court's website], and on [https://family.legalaid.bc.ca/bc-legal-system/if-you-have-go-court/informal-trials-kamloops-court-registry Legal Aid BC's Family Law website].

Regardless of which type of Provincial Court registry is handling your family law matter, it's important that you read and understand the Provincial Court Family Rules. The rules say how every aspect of a Provincial Court case is run, from starting a court proceeding to scheduling a trial. They set out important deadlines and limitations, and say what court forms must be used for which purpose. You also need to have a look at the [https://www.provincialcourt.bc.ca/types-of-cases/family-matters/chief-judge-practice-directions Practice Directions] issued by the Chief Judge, which clarify certain aspects of the rules of court and describe additional processes and procedures.

Provincial Court Family Rules changed considerably in 2021. Provincial Court procedure now depends a lot on where the parties live and in which registry the claim is filed. At the time of writing, there are effectively three types of Provincial Court registries, and three of these have some unique procedural processes:

'''Early Resolution Registries'''

Surrey and Victoria's Provincial Court registries now follow a new procedure designed to resolve cases without the need for going to court. The early resolution process in these registries is quite a different procedure compared to traditional Provincial Court procedure. The good news is that many people will find the process more straight forward, less complex, and less adversarial.

'''Family Justice Registries'''

Kelowna, Nanaimo, and Vancouver's Provincial Court registries have a special process for court applications that involve children. Before the Court hears any applications, the parties have to take a parenting course and meet with a family justice counsellor to do a ''family needs assessment''.

 

All of the other Provincial Court registries require that parties who are parents of children under 19 take a parenting after separation course in most cases. A certificate of completion of the parenting after separation course is filed with the registry, and this lets you proceed to make court applications.

 

The person who starts a proceeding in the Provincial Court is the ''applicant''. The person against whom the court proceeding is brought is the ''respondent''.

An applicant starts by filing a form, although a different form is needed for ''Early Resolution Registries'' than in other Provincial Court registry locations. To read more about the Early Resolution process in Victoria and Surrey see the [https://www.clicklaw.bc.ca/resource/4843 BC Ministry of Attorney General's website], which also makes available a brochure with a simplified process map. The procedures explained below do not apply to the Early Resolution Registries.

In most Provincial Court registries you start by filing an Application About a Family Law Matter in [[PCFR Form 3 Application About a Family Law Matter|Form 3]] and then serving it on each person named as a respondent. The form must be ''personally served'' on the respondent by an adult other than the applicant — you can't do it yourself. The respondent has 30 days to answer the claim by filing a Reply to an Application About a Family Law Matter in [[PCFR Form 6 Reply to an Application About a Family Law Matter|Form 6]] at the court registry. The court clerk will send a copy of the Reply to the applicant. The Reply can also be used to make a ''counter application'', the respondent's own claim against the applicant. A respondent who does not file a Reply to an Application About a Family Law Matter is not entitled to notice of further hearings in the case!

After the proceeding has been started, registry locations usually require the parties (if there is a matter involving children) to attend a ''parenting after separation course'', and the Family Justice Registries further require the parties to meet with a ''family justice counsellor'' for a family needs assessment before they can go to see a judge. Family justice counsellors are government employees trained in mediation who can help with issues about the care of children, child support, and spousal support.

The parties' first appearance before a judge is normally at a ''family management conference'', where the judge (or a family justice manager, but we'll just refer to the judge for simplicity's sake) will see if the parties can resolve their issues early on. A family management conference is a private meeting between the parties, their lawyers — if they have lawyers — and the judge. In general, a judge will not make orders at a family management conference except with the parties' agreement, but the judge can direct the parties to hold another family management conference, or to go to a family settlement conference, if the first meeting ends before a resolution is agreed to. All of these early conferences can be very helpful as they provide a great opportunity to talk about the legal issues and explore potential areas of compromise.  

After the family management conference, ''interim applications'' — applications for temporary orders — can be made formally, triggering another hearing.