8,391
edits
Changes
no edit summary
| smallimage =
| textstyle =
| text = '''Note:''' This page has been assembled by Drew from several different pages that JP created: [[Introduction to the Legal System]], [[Introduction to the Legal System ~ The Law]] , [[Introduction to the Legal System ~ The Courts]], . - Dec 21/12
| smalltext =
}}
The common law provides direction and guidance on a wide variety of issues, such as how to understand legislation, the proper interpretation of contracts, the test to be applied to determine whether someone has been negligent and the rules of evidence. However, unlike legislated laws, the common law doesn't usually apply to our day-to-day lives in the sense of imposing rules that say how fast we can drive in a school zone or whether punching someone is a criminal offence.
==The Courts==
The fundamental purpose of the courts is to resolve legal disputes in a fair and impartial manner. The courts deal with all manner of legal disputes, from the government's claim that someone has committed a crime, to a property owner's claim that someone has trespassed on their property, to a shareholder's grievance against a company, to an employee's claim of wrongful dismissal.
No matter what the nature of the dispute is, the judge who hears the dispute must give each party the chance to tell their story and give a complete answer, listen to each party without bias, and make a fair determination resolving the dispute based on the facts and the laws which apply to the dispute.
===The Courts of British Columbia===
There are three levels of court in this province: the Provincial Court of British Columbia, the Supreme Court of British Columbia, and the Court of Appeal for British Columbia. Each level of court is superior to the one below it. A decision of the Provincial Court can be challenged before the Supreme Court, and a decision of the Supreme Court can be challenged before the Court of Appeal.
====The Provincial Court====
There are four divisions of the Provincial Court: Criminal and Youth Court, which mostly deals with charges under the ''Criminal Code''; Small Claims Court, which deals with claims about contracts, services, property and debt; Traffic and Bylaw Court, which deals traffic tickets and provincial and municipal offences; and, Family Court, which deals with certain claims under the ''Family Law Act''.
The jurisdiction of the Provincial Court is fairly narrow. It can only deal with the subjects assigned to it by the provincial government, and unless the government has expressly authorized the Provincial Court to deal with an issue, the Provincial Court cannot hear the case. For example, Small Claims Court, can only handle claims up to $25,000.00, and Family Court cannot deal with claims involving family property or family debt, or claims under the ''Divorce Act''. Each branch of the Provincial Court has its own set of procedural rules and its own court forms.
====The Supreme Court====
The Supreme Court can deal with any claim and there is no limit to the court's authority, except for the limits set out in the court's procedural rules and in the constitution. There are three kinds of judicial official in the Supreme Court, registrars, masters and justices. Justices and masters deal with most family law problems.
There are two sets of rules in the Supreme Court, the Supreme Court Family Rules, which apply just to family law disputes, and the Supreme Court Civil Rules, which apply to all other non-criminal matters. Each set of rules has its own court forms.
The Supreme Court is a trial court, like the Provincial Court, and an appeal court. The Supreme Court hears appeals from Provincial Court decisions, and justices of the Supreme Court hear appeals from masters' decisions.
====The Court of Appeal====
The Court of Appeal is the highest court in British Columbia and hears appeals from Supreme Court decisions; the Court of Appeal does not hear trials. The Court of Appeal has its own set of procedural rules and its own court forms.
===The Federal Courts===
The Federal Court of Canada is a second court system that is parallel to the courts of British Columbia and the other provinces and territories. The Federal Court and Federal Court of Appeal only hear certain kinds of disputes, including immigration matters and tax problems.
The federal courts also deal with ''Divorce Act'' claims in those rare cases when each spouse has started a separate action for divorce on the same day but in different provinces.
===The Supreme Court of Canada===
The highest level of court in the country is the Supreme Court of Canada. This court has three main functions: to hear appeals from decisions of the provinces' courts of appeal; to hear appeals from decisions of the Federal Court of Appeal; and, to answer questions of law for the federal government. Most of the court's time is occupied with hearing appeals.
Decisions of the Supreme Court of Canada are final and absolute. There is no higher court or other authority to appeal to.
{{JP Boyd on Family Law Navbox|type=chapters}}