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|ChapterEditors = [[Shannon Aldinger]] and [[Julie Brown]]
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|resourcetype = fact sheets sheet for|link = [http://www.clicklaw.bc.ca/resource/1636 JCCs in Supreme Court] '''and '''<br/> [http://www.clicklaw.bc.ca/resource/1627 FCCs Family Management Conferences in Provincial Court]''' plus<br/> a checklist for '''[http://www.clicklaw.bc.ca/resource/1626 Family Case Conferences]
}}Case conferences are meetings between the parties to a court proceeding, their lawyers (if they have them), and a judge, usually for purposes relating to the management or settlement of the court proceeding.
This section discusses ''judicial case conferences'', ''family case management conferences'', and ''settlement conferences'' — the most common kinds of conferences held in the Provincial Court and the Supreme Court — and their uses and limitations. It also talks about trial management and trial preparation conferences, and provides tips about how you can get the most out of your time and the judge's time at case conferences.
==Introduction==
Case conferences are meetings between the parties to a court proceeding, their lawyers, if they have them, and a judge. They are held to either move a court proceeding toward trial or to explore options for settlement. Case conferences are usually held in courtrooms or in special courthouse meeting rooms set aside for the purpose. The judge may be sitting at the head of the courtroom on the bench or at a table with the parties and their lawyers. Although case conferences are a little less formal than hearings and trials, they still need to be taken seriously and the judge needs to be treated with the same respect.
''Family case management conferences'' in the Provincial Court and ''judicial case conferences'' in the Supreme Court are held early in a court proceeding and are focussed on settling any of the legal issues that can be agreed to, getting short-term arrangements for the support and parenting of children set up, and planning the next few steps in the proceeding.
''Trial preparation conferences'' in the Provincial Court and ''trial management conferences'' in the Supreme Court and are all about getting the court proceeding ready for trial. They are held towards the end of a proceeding and are focussed focused on making sure that all of the parties are ready to go.
''Settlement conferences'' in the Supreme Court are aimed at trying to settle the legal issues in the court proceeding so that trial can be avoided.
==Conferences in the Provincial Court==
The two types of case conferences held in the Provincial Court are ''family case management conferences'' and ''trial preparation conferences''.
The information in this section ''does not'' apply to family law cases in the Victoria registry or Surrey registries of the Provincial Court. Those cases are managed following under the Early Resolution and Case Management Model, a new project being tested in that registry. The project which is governed by its own special rules and uses its own forms. For more information about the pilot projectEarly Resolution Model, read the resources published by the [[Provincial Court Early Resolution and Case Management Pilot Project]https://www.clicklaw.bc.ca/resource/4844 BC Government] section in this chapter.
===Family case management conferences===
Family case management conferences are available under Rule 7 of the [http://canlii.ca/t/85pb Provincial Court Family Rules]. That rule says that when "guardianship, parenting arrangements or contact with a child are contested," a judge may order everyone to attend a case conference. This is important. Unlike judicial case conferences in the Supreme Court, family case conferences are discretionary and are not available in cases that don't involve claims about the guardianship and parenting of children. Rule 7 probably limits the availability of family case conferences because of how busy provincial court judges are. There probably aren't enough judges to manage applications and trials as well as all of the family case conferences that would be now routinely required if family case conferences were mandatory. That's too bad, really, because judicial case conferences — which serve pretty much the same purpose as family case conferences — are helpful in almost all most types of the family law cases the Supreme Court deals with. ====The purposes of family case conferences==== The main purpose of family case conferences is to try to reach a settlement of claims about parenting issues. Although Rule 7 limits the availability of family case conferences to court proceedings involving parenting issues, the rule doesn't say that nothing else can be discussed. The judge may be prepared to deal with issues about child support, spousal support and protection orders matters at a family case conference as well. Family case conferences are relatively informal affairs, and most registries of the time everyone sits at a large table with the judge who is hearing the case conferences. Family case conferences are private. Under Rule 7(3), the judge may give permission for other people, including a child, to attend. Family case conferences are held on an off-the-record basis, so that nothing said in the case conference can be used against anyone later on. Although different judges will handle family case conferences in different ways, most of the time the judge will <span class="noglossary">act</span> like a mediator. Some judges handle family case conferences in a very reserved, formal manner. Others are more hands-on and like to roll up their sleeves to see what can be done to help the parties settle their court proceedingProvincial Court. This might include: #scheduling a series of family case conferences;#speaking directly to the children;#ordering or recommending that a views of the child report be prepared;#ordering or recommending that a parenting assessment be prepared;#ordering support be paid on a temporary, or ''interim'' basis, until the trial is heard;#ordering a party to produce important documents that are relevant to the issues in the court proceeding, such as income tax returns or bank records; and,#asking that important third parties, like a new spouse or a half-sibling, attend a future family case conference. At the case conference, each side will have the opportunity to tell their story and explain what they're asking for an why they're asking for it. Most of the time, the lawyers for each party will summarize their understanding of the facts and say why their clients should have improvement over what they're looking for, and happened before the clients will be asked if they have anything to add. new Provincial Court Family case conferences often work best when the parties are able to freely express themselves. Sometimes it's best if the lawyers keep a sock Rules took effect in itMay 2021. Cases often settle at family case conferences. If you don't have a lawyer, it is critical that you get proper legal advice about your situation and options before you go to the case conference in order to maximize the chances of settlement. If you do have a lawyer, you should speak to them about the range of potential results, areas where you might want to compromise your position, options for settlement, and the likely cost of resolving the court proceeding through trial. ====Potential outcomes==== Some or all of the legal issues in a court proceeding may settle at a family case conference. Where there are areas of agreement, the judge will make For an order on those issues with the consent explanation of the parties, called a ''consent order''. Issues that can't be agreed what to will be left for further negotiation and, probably, further litigation. Rule 7 lists the things a judge can do expect at a family case management conference: <blockquote><tt>(4) The judge at the family case conference may do one or more of the following:</tt></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(a)mediate any of the issues in dispute;</tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(b) decide any issues that do not require evidence;</tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(c) make a conduct order under Division 5 of Part 10 of the Family Law Act, including an order</tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(i) requiring see the parties to participate in family dispute resolution within the meaning Provincial Court of the Family Law Act, or</tt></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(ii) requiring one or more parties or, with or without the consent of the childBC's guardian, a child, to attend counselling, specified services or programs;</tt></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(d) if the regional manager has advised the court in writing that the person or program is readily available to the parties, refer the parties to a family justice counsellor or to a person designated by the Attorney General to provide specialized support assistance;</tt></blockquote><own [https:/blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(e) adjourn the case for the purposes of paragraph (c) or a referral under paragraph (d);</tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(f) make an order to which all of the parties consent;</tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(g) direct that any or all applications must be made within a set time;</tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(h) direct the parties to attend a further family case conference, setting a date for that conference;</tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(i) set a date for a trial preparation conference under rule 8;</tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(j) make any order that may be made at a trial preparation conference under rule 8 (4);</tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(k) if the judge does not set a date for a further 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><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(l) make an interim or final order requested in an application, reply or notice of motion;</tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(m) without hearing witnesses, give a non-binding opinion on the probable outcome of a hearing or trial;</tt></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(n) make any other order or give any direction that the judge considers appropriatewww.</tt></blockquote></blockquote> Although that last item, "make any other order or give any direction that the judge considers appropriate," sounds pretty all-encompassing and all-powerful, in practice the court rarely makes orders that one or more parties opposeclicklaw. ====Asking for a family case conference==== Under Rule 7(1) of the [http://canliibc.ca/tresource/85pb Provincial Court Family Rules], a judge may order the parties to attend a family case conference where the case involves contested claims about guardianship or for parental responsibilities, parenting time, or contact. An application for a family case conference can be made at a first appearance or at any subsequent appearance, or by a Notice of Motion in Form 16 like any other interim application. It is fairly easy to get an order that a family case conference be heard, as the court will usually agree that a family case conference is a good idea. The court will ''not'' be interested in setting a date for a family case conference if: #it's obvious that you've asked for the family case conference to delay or obstruct the hearing or trial or an interim application;#there's already been a family case conference in your case and there's nothing to suggest that a new case conference will have a better chance of success; or,#there is an urgent reason for the court proceeding to head to trial without further delay. Interim applications are discussed in the suitably-named [[Interim Applications in Family Matters|Interim Applications]] section of this chapter. ====Scheduling a family case conference==== Family case conferences are booked by the judicial case manager, and if you get an order for a family case conference, the judge will adjourn your case to the judicial case manager to get a date set up. It's a good idea to pick a date when everyone is available to attend. The judicial case manager will fix the date for the family case conference 4904 article on the spot and give you a slip with the date and time on ittopic. For a summary of how to schedule a case conference, see [[How Do I Schedule a Family Case Conference for Hearing?]]. It's located in the Helpful Guides & Common Questions part of this resource.
===Trial preparation conferences===
Under Rule 8 of the [http://canlii.ca/t/85pb b8rn Provincial Court Family Rules], a judge who sets a court proceeding for trial may also set a date for a trial preparation conference. The parties to the court proceeding are usually required to attend this conference, unless a party has a lawyer and they're available to speak with their lawyer by telephone if the lawyer needs to get instructions during the conference.
Trial preparation conferences are short hearings before a judge in court to discuss how the trial will proceed and what, if any, additional steps must be taken to get the court proceeding ready for trial, such as exchanging documents and information, organizing experts' reports, or requiring that a views of the child report be prepared.