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The ''discovery processand disclosure'' involves process is all about learning about (— or "discovering) " — the other party’s case. It allows each party to learn 's about the getting information and evidence that documents from the other party intends that are relevant to use at trial (for example through receiving documents from the other party and asking legal issues in a court proceeding, including the other party questions about their case) information and the arguments documents that the other party side intends to make use to prove their case at trial to support the position(s) they are taking.
The discovery and disclosure process is an important process because it allows lets you to collect the information you need to assess the strengths and weaknesses in both your case and in the other party’s case. This helps you to prepare for trial, assess your chances of success at trial and , respond to formulate any settlement offers offer you wish to makemight get from the other party, and prepare your own settlement offer. It is 's a good idea to consult a lawyer as you begin the discovery and disclosure process, as a lawyer can provide advice about what you need to disclose to the other party, what you need to prove in court for your case to be successful, and what you need to know about the other party’s case. ==Introduction== In Canada, we don't litigate with cards up our sleeves. Instead, all of everyone's cards are on the table face up. This may not make a lot of sense right away, partly because of what we see on American media, but the point is to cut through the bullshit to give each case the best possible chance of settling without having to go through a trial. If you have a smoking gun that will devastate the other party's case, isn't it better to let everyone know about that as soon as possible so that you can resolve the case quicker and for less money than if you had to go to trial? In family law, each side to a case has the same interest in finding out what each other's income is, knowing each other's physical and mental health, getting the likely sale price of the family home, and knowing how much money is in everyone's investment and RRSP accounts. The discovery and disclosure process is all about exchanging the information and documents necessary to understand each other's case. Even the court has an interest in making sure that each party understands every other party's case because of the administrative and other costs involved in running trials. As a result, the rules of court, particularly the rules of the Supreme Court are chock full of rules intended to speed the discovery and disclosure process, and automate as much disclosure as possible. For example, when someone starts a court proceeding asking for orders about child support, spousal support and the division of property and debt, Rule 5-1(11) requires them to file a Financial Statement in Form F8 within 30 days of filing the Notice of Family Claim. Rule 5-1(13) lets the other side ask for more details if the Financial Statement is vague, and a person filing a Financial Statement is under a continuing obligation to keep the information accurate and up-to-date under Rule 5-1(15). Likewise, Rule 9-1 requires someone who started a court proceeding to serve a List of Documents in Form F20 within 35 days of getting the other side's Response to Family Claim. Under Rule 9-1(1)(a), the List of Documents is supposed to list: <blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(i) all documents that are or have been in the party's possession or control and that could, if available, be used by any party at trial to prove or disprove a material fact, and</tt></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(ii) all other documents to which the party intends to refer at trial</tt></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote> ==The Provincial Court== The discovery process is less extensive in the Provincial Court than it is in the Supreme Court. As a result, while there are fewer hoops to jump through to get to trial in Provincial Court, you also have fewer ways of getting information and documents from the other side. The information in this section ''does not'' apply to family law cases in the Victoria registry of the Provincial Court. Those cases are managed following the Early Resolution and Case Management Model, a new project being tested in that registry. The project is governed by its own rules and uses its own forms. For more information about the pilot project, read the [[Provincial Court Early Resolution and Case Management Pilot Project]] section in this chapter. ===First appearance=== Parties to a court proceeding in Provincial Court are required to attend a ''first appearance'' before a judge. This is scheduled by the judicial case manager of the registry. The parties are not consulted about the date. Under Rule 6 of the Provincial Court Family Rules, the judge at the first appearance (or any subsequent appearance) may:<blockquote><tt>(a) make an order that all parties consent to in respect of all or any part of what is claimed in the application or reply; </tt></blockquote><blockquote><tt>(b) make an interim order under section 216 or 217 of the ''[[Family Law Act]]''; </tt></blockquote><blockquote><tt>(c) if a party has failed to provide financial information in accordance with rule 4,</tt></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(i) make an order requiring the party to file that financial information within a set time, </tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(ii) draw an adverse inference from that failure and impute an amount of income to that party that the judge considers appropriate, </tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(iii) make an interim order under section 216 or 217 of the ''[[Family Law Act]]'', and </tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(iv) if the judge considers that the circumstances justify it, make a final order;</tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><tt>(d) adjourn the case for a specified period of time that the judge considers appropriate;</tt></blockquote><blockquote><tt>(e) order a party to allow another party to inspect and copy records, specified in the order, that are or have been in that other party's possession or control or, if not in that other party's possession or control, are within that other party's power; </tt></blockquote><blockquote><tt>(f) set a date for a family case conference under rule 7;</tt></blockquote><blockquote><tt>(g) set a date for a trial preparation conference under rule 8;</tt></blockquote><blockquote><tt>(h) if the judge does not set a date for a family case conference or for a trial preparation conference, set a trial date for the matter or set a date for a trial that is restricted to issues defined by the parties; </tt></blockquote><blockquote><tt>(i) make a conduct order under Division 5 of Part 10 of the ''[[Family Law Act]]'', including an order </tt></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(i) requiring the parties to participate in family dispute resolution within the meaning of the ''[[Family Law Act]]'', or </tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(ii) requiring one or more parties or, with or without the consent of the child's guardian, a child, to attend counselling, specified services or programs; </tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><tt>(j) hear evidence and make an interim or final order for child or spousal support or for guardianship, parenting arrangements or contact with a child; or</tt></blockquote><blockquote><tt>(k) make any other order or give any direction that the judge considers appropriate.</tt></blockquote></tt> === Financial Statements ===If a Provincial Court proceeding involves spousal support or child support, each party must prepare and file a Financial Statement. A Financial Statement sets out a party's income, expenses, assets and liabilities, and is sworn on oath or affirmation, just like an affidavit, before a lawyer, notary public, or registry clerk. Each party must attach to their Financial Statements the following documents:* the last three years' worth of tax returns (what's required is the complete income tax and benefit return, not tax return summaries or informations),* all notices of assessment and reassessment received for the last three tax years,* the party's most recent paystub, showing their earnings to date, or if the party isn't working, then their most recent WCB statement, social assistance statement, or EI statement, and* business records like financial statements and corporate income tax returns, if the party has a company. The form you must use is Form 4, set out in the [http://canlii.ca/t/85pb Provincial Court (Family) Rules]. The Financial Statement should be filed at the same time as the application or the reply. You will need to file the original (which the registry will keep for its file) and 3 copies (including all of the attachments), and then provide one copy to the other party. Financial Statements are very important in family law proceedings. The portions about income are critical for determining child support and spousal support, and the expenses portion must be carefully completed. Since Financial Statements are sworn statements, someone making a Financial Statement can find their credibility being challenged if the numbers don't make sense, if they are overblown or understated, if they omit critical information, or if they are outright fabrications.
== The Supreme Court ==