- 1. What is the role/mandate of the Supreme Court of Canada?
-
The Supreme Court of Canada is the court of last resort (or the highest
court) in Canada. As the final general court of appeal it is the last judicial
resort of all litigants. Its jurisdiction embraces both the civil law of
the province of Quebec and the common law of the other nine provinces and
three territories. As it is a general court of appeal, the Supreme Court
of Canada can hear cases in all areas of the law.
- 2. What is the Court’s address?
-
Supreme Court of Canada
301 Wellington Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0J1
Telephone: (613) 995-4330
Fax: (613) 996-9138
E-mail: reception@scc-csc.gc.ca
- 3. Can we visit the Supreme Court Building?
-
From May 1 to August 31, the building is open to the public from 9 a.m.
to 5 p.m. daily, including weekends, and guided tours are conducted on a
continuing basis.
From September 1 to April 30, the building is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
from Monday to Friday and guided tours are available by pre-arrangement.
RECOMMENDED AGE GROUP: all ages
DURATION: 30 minutes
GROUP SIZE: maximum 60
FEE: none
For reservations, please contact the following:
Telephone: (613) 995-5361 or 1-866-360-1522
Fax: (613) 941-5817
E-mail: tour@scc-csc.gc.ca
Wheelchair
Accessibility
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4.
During our visit to the Supreme Court, would it be possible to take pictures
of various parts of the Court building?
-
Yes, it is possible to take pictures of the public areas such as the main
lobby and the courtroom when the Court is not sitting.
-
5.
What are the Court’s opening hours?
-
The Court is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Friday.
-
6.
Are hearings open to the public?
-
The public may attend the Court’s hearings. To find out when the
Court will be sitting, check the Court’s list of scheduled hearings
under "
Information on Cases
". Hearings normally begin at 9:30 a.m.
- 7. Are Supreme Court proceedings televised and how can
I obtain a copy of a hearing transcript and/or video?
-
Most courtroom proceedings are televised by the Canadian Parliamentary
Affairs Channel (CPAC). CPAC posts its schedule at its site: http://www.cpac.ca.
To obtain a copy of a transcript, please call the Registry at (613) 996-8666.
To obtain a copy of a video for personal use, call International Duplication
Services Inc. at (613) 761-7777. If wanted for commercial or educational
purposes, you must send a request to the Registrar with the following information:
case number and the intended purpose for which a copy of the video is wanted.
- 8. How many judges sit on the Supreme Court of Canada?
What are their names?
-
The Court is composed of 9 judges: the Chief Justice and eight puisne judges.
Their names are:
-
9.
How many judges are assigned to hear a case?
-
On appeals, the minimum number of judges is five though more often seven
or nine judges hear a case. For applications for leave to appeal, three
judges review the written application and render a decision.
- 10. How does one address a judge?
-
At the hearing, counsel may use either "Justice", "Mr. Justice"
or "Madam Justice," when addressing the members of the panel hearing
the appeal. Counsel are asked to refrain from addressing the judges as "My
Lord", "My Lady", "Your Lordship," or "Your
Ladyship."
In writing, the Chief Justice is addressed as "The Right Honourable"
and the other judges are addressed as "The Honourable Madam Justice"
or as "The Honourable Mr. Justice".
- 11. What is the annual salary of a Supreme Court Judge?
-
Chief Justice: $323,000
Puisne Judges: $299,800
-
12.
How are judges chosen for the Supreme Court of Canada?
-
The Supreme Court consists of the Chief Justice of Canada and eight puisne
Judges appointed by the Governor in Council from among superior court judges
or from among barristers of at least ten years' standing at the Bar of a
province or territory. A Judge holds office during good behaviour, until
he or she retires or attains the age of 75 years, but is removable for incapacity
or misconduct in office before that time by the Governor General on address
of the Senate and House of Commons. Of the nine, the Supreme Court Act
requires that three be appointed from Quebec. Traditionally, the federal
government appoints three Judges from Ontario, two from the West, and one
from Atlantic Canada.
- 13. How do I file a complaint against a judge?
-
You must first determine whether your complaint is about a decision of
a judge or the conduct of a judge. If it is about the decision of a judge,
contact a lawyer, legal aid office or community legal clinic to determine
whether or not you might be able to appeal the decision. A Faculty of Law
at a nearby University may also have a program to provide legal assistance.
If you have a complaint about the conduct of a Supreme Court of Canada
judge, you should write to the Canadian Judicial Council, Suite 450, 112
Kent Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0W8, fax (613) 998-8889 providing the details
of the conduct which is of concern to you. For additional information on
the Canadian Judicial Council, visit its site at: http://www.cjc-ccm.gc.ca/article.asp?id=5.
-
If the complaint is about the conduct (but not a decision) of a judge from
another court, contact the court staff, where the judge sits, in order to
determine whether you should bring your complaint to the Canadian Judicial
Council or to provincial or territorial officials.
-
14.
How is a case brought before the Supreme Court of Canada?
-
In most cases, appeals are heard by the Court only if leave to appeal is
given. Such leave, or permission, will be given by the Court when a case
involves a question of public importance.
There are cases, however, where leave is not required. In criminal cases,
there is an automatic right of appeal where an acquittal has been set aside
in the provincial court of appeal or where one judge in the provincial court
of appeal dissents on a question of law. In addition, the Supreme Court
of Canada has a special kind of "Reference" jurisdiction, original
in character, given by s. 53 of the Supreme Court Act. The Governor
in Council (federal government) may refer to the Court, for its opinion,
constitutional or other questions.
- 15. I have a legal concern and I need to know what I should
do. Can you assist me?
-
Our office is not allowed to provide legal advice. You should contact a
lawyer, a Legal Aid Office in your area or a community legal clinic for
advice.
- 16. What do these expressions mean?
-
Affidavit: A written document of a statement of facts, confirmed by oath
or affirmation of the party making it.
Appeal: This includes any proceeding to set aside or vary any judgment
of the court appealed from.
Appeal allowed: The Court has decided in favour of the Appellant (party
bringing the appeal).
Appeal dismissed: The Court has decided in favour of the Respondent (party
against whom the appeal is brought) and against the Appellant.
Application for leave to appeal: The procedure for requesting the Court's
permission to hear the appeal.
Factum: The name of the document filed by the parties and Interveners.
It is in seven parts containing a concise overview of their position and
a statement of facts, questions in issue, argument, submissions (if any)
in support of the order sought concerning costs, the order or orders sought,
a table of authorities and provisions of any statute, regulation, rule,
ordinance or by-law relied on.
Judgment: The decision of the Court.
Judgment reserved: The decision of the Court has not been given at the
hearing, but is postponed until a future date.
Motion: An application before the Court, a Judge or the Registrar brought
by notice and supported by an affidavit.
Puisne judge: A judge other than the Chief Justice.
Transcript: A written copy of the oral proceedings of the Court.
- 17. Do I need a lawyer to prepare and file documents in
the Supreme Court of Canada?
-
Although you may represent yourself at the Supreme Court of Canada, we
recommend that you retain a lawyer because the procedures are complex. If
you are not a lawyer, you may only represent yourself.
If several persons, who are unrepresented by a lawyer, want to apply for
leave to appeal of the same court of appeal judgment, one application may
be filed, but the application must be signed by all the individual applicants.
A corporation, in most cases, must be represented by a lawyer before the
Supreme Court. The Rules of the Supreme Court of Canada provide that
a corporation must be represented by a lawyer before the Supreme Court unless
the corporation was permitted to be represented by a person other than a
lawyer in the court appealed from, and it chooses to continue to be represented
by that person in the Supreme Court; or on motion, a judge grants the corporation
leave to be represented by a person other than a lawyer in accordance with
the applicable federal or provincial legislative enactment.
- 18. Do I have to pay a fee?
-
A fee of $75 is payable when you file an application for leave to appeal.
Your cheque or money order must be made payable to the "Receiver General
for Canada".
You must pay a fee of $75 for filing any motion that is not included in
your application for leave book.
- 19. What are the deadlines for filing documents?
-
APPLICATION FOR LEAVE STAGE:
| From |
To the Filing of |
Deadline |
Legislation
Supreme Court Act and Current Rules |
Court of appeal judgment |
application for leave to appeal |
60 days |
S. 58(1)(a) Act |
Filing of leave application |
respondent's response |
30 days |
Rule 27(1) |
Service of respondent's response |
applicant's reply |
10 days |
Rule 28(1) |
Service of application for leave |
application for leave to cross-appeal (when leave is required) |
30 days |
Rule 29(1) |
APPEAL STAGE:
| From |
To the Filing of |
Deadline |
Legislation
Supreme Court Act and Current Rules |
Court of appeal judgment |
notice of appeal (in case of an appeal as of right) |
30 days |
S. 58(1)(b) Act |
| Decision granting leave |
notice of appeal |
30 days |
S. 58(1)(b) Act |
| Filing of notice of appeal |
application for leave to cross-appeal (in the case of an appeal
as of right) |
30 days |
Rule 29(1) |
Decision granting leave or filing of notice of appeal
in the case of an appeal as of right |
motion to state constitutional question |
30 days |
Rule 60(1) |
Filing of the notice of appeal |
appellant's factum, record and authorities |
12 weeks |
Rule 35(1) |
Service of appellant's factum |
respondent's factum and authorities |
8 weeks |
Rule 36(2) |
Service of appellant's record |
respondent's record |
8 weeks |
Rule 36(1) |
Filing of appellant's factum |
motion for intervention |
4 weeks |
Rule 56(b) |
Order granting intervention |
intervener's factum |
8 weeks
(or 20 weeks of notice of intervention made under Rule 61(4)) |
Rule 37 |
MOTIONS TO A JUDGE OR THE REGISTRAR:
| From |
To the Filing of |
Deadline |
Legislation
Supreme Court Act and Current Rules |
| Service of motion |
response to motion |
10 days |
Rule 49(1) |
| Service of response to motion |
reply to motion |
5 days |
Rule 50(1) |
- 20. How can I find out if a judgment from a Court of Appeal
is being challenged?
-
You may contact the Registry office by phone at (613) 996-8666 or by e-mail
at registry-greffe@scc-csc.gc.ca.
Please provide the Registry Officer with either the names of the parties
or the file number from the Court of Appeal. You can also search our SCC
Case Information database using various criteria under Information
on Cases.
- 21. How do I find out the status of a case?
-
You can search our SCC Case Information database using various criteria
under Information on Cases or call
a Registry Officer at (613) 996-8666.
-
22.
When can I expect to learn of the Court’s decision in a leave application
or an appeal?
-
Decisions on leave applications are rendered on average 6 months after
the leave application is filed. Judgments on appeals are rendered on average
6 months after the hearing of the appeal.
- 23. Do I have to be present at the Court when it renders
a decision in my case?
-
Since decisions are not rendered in open court, but by deposit with the
Registrar, you do not have to come to the Court. You will receive a call
from the Registry informing you of the date that a decision will be rendered.
Decisions are normally released at 9:45 a.m. on a Thursday. To find out
the decision, call the Registry at (613) 996-8666 after 9:45 a.m. on that
date or check the Current News Release under News
Releases. The decisions will also be available the next day under Information
on Cases.
- 24. I know people who receive an E-Mail when an SCC decision
is rendered. Can I obtain the same service?
-
You may subscribe to the News Release mailing list under News
Releases to receive notices of the release of judgments in appeals and
in applications for leave to appeal. You will also receive the list of appeals
that will be heard.
- 25. How do I obtain a copy of a judgment of the Supreme
Court of Canada, a subscription to the Bulletin of Proceedings or issues of
the Supreme Court Reports?
-
An individual judgment costs $15. A subscription to the
Bulletin costs $300 + GST. You can send your request and your cheque payable
to the Receiver General for Canada to:
Finance and Materiel Management Branch
Corporate Services Sector
Supreme Court of Canada
301 Wellington Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0J1
Issues of the Supreme Court Reports may be obtained from:
Canadian Government Publishing
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0S9
Telephone: 1-800-635-7943 (North America only) or
(819) 956-4800 from Monday to Friday between 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. eastern
standard time.
The price for each individual part varies.
You may also obtain a free copy of judgments and the Bulletin on the Internet
under Judgments.
- 26. Who do I contact for information on the publication
of judgments, news releases and bulletins by the Université de Montréal
team?
-
The Supreme Court of Canada collaborates with the Université de
Montréal’s research team LexUM to make judgments, news releases
and bulletins available on the Internet free of charge. LexUM is responsible
for the technical preparation of these documents for posting on the Internet.
In the event of problems or errors found in these resources, you should
contact LexUM staff directly by e-mail at the following address: csc-admin@lexum.umontreal.ca.
The professor in charge of LexUM is Daniel Poulin. If the problem persists,
Daniel Poulin can be reached at:
E-mail: poulind@droit.umontreal.ca
Telephone: (514) 343-2139
Fax: (514) 343-7508
Please note that the LexUM team does not provide legal advice, nor does
it have the necessary resources to assist you with your research.
- 27. How reliable are the decisions on the Université
de Montréal’s site?
-
All efforts are made both by the Court and by the Université de
Montréal team to ensure that the documents posted on the Université
de Montréal’s Internet site are as accurate as possible. Nevertheless,
certain observations should be made.
A. Recent judgments
Judgments rendered by the Court are posted immediately. However, these judgments
may undergo revisions before being published in the Supreme Court Reports
(S.C.R.). On-line texts are thus considered the most accurate version available.
B. Judgments from 1994 to present
These judgments include the text as published in the S.C.R. Over the years,
there has been no indication of content errors. We consider them reliable.
C. Judgments from 1989 to 1993
Judgments from 1989 to 1993 may not include all revisions made before their
publication. Corrections may have been made at the time of publication in
the S.C.R.
D. Judgments prior to 1989
All judgments prior to 1989 have been assembled from magnetic tapes kept
by the printer of the S.C.R. These files had to be partially reconstructed
before they could be posted on the Internet. As a result, it is possible
that errors slipped into the files while they were being processed. As well,
certain judments may be missing and in some cases, some of these judgments
may be available in one of the official languages only.
Conclusion:
In short, we consider the Reports collection to be reliable from 1994 onward.
Judgments prior to this date seem to be accurate enough to be posted. We
believe that their publication promotes accessibility of the law and research.
DISCLAIMER
When using these resources professionally, full discretion should be exercised.
The decisions of the Supreme Court of Canada on this Internet site have
been prepared for convenience of reference only. The official versions of
decisions of the Supreme Court of Canada remain those published in the S.C.R.
Also, please note that the Supreme Court of Canada and the Université
de Montréal’s LexUM team cannot guarantee the accuracy of the
resources made available.
- 28. Can I find a bilingual copy of an SCC decision?
-
Since 1970 the Supreme Court’s judgments have been published in both
official languages in the Supreme Court Reports. Prior to 1977 not all decisions
were published in the Reports.
Since 1983 the Court’s judgments have been released in both official
languages. At the time of release, the English and French versions are sold
as one copy. Judgments from 1986 to the present are also available in both
official languages under Judgments.
- 29. Can I access your court records on line?
-
We do not currently provide access to individual court records online.
Our Court Records Office strives to make our services as accessible as possible.
Copies of documents can be obtained by contacting the Court Records office
at (613) 996-7933 or by e-mail at: records-dossiers@scc-csc.gc.ca.
The fee for obtaining copies of documents is $1 per page. Copies of documents
are mailed or sent electronically within 48 hours of the receipt of the
cheque.
- 30. Could you send us a photograph of the Supreme Court
of Canada Judges or of the Supreme Court Building for the purposes of publication?
-
Your request should be forwarded to the Court to the following address: reception@scc-csc.gc.ca.
- 31. How can I obtain a copy of a Judge’s speech?
-
Copies of some Judges’ speeches are available in the library. Please
contact: library@scc-csc.gc.ca or
phone (613) 996-8120.
Selected speeches of the judges are also available under About
the Court - Speeches.
- 32. I would like to make my opinion known on a pending
case. How can I participate?
-
You cannot. Only parties to a case or people who have been granted official
intervener status in a case are permitted to present documents or arguments
to the Court.
- 33. Why can’t I connect to the Supreme Court’s
library catalogue?
-
The catalogue server may occasionally go down unexpectedly. When this occurs
we try to bring it back up as quickly as possible. The catalogue is not
available on a daily basis between 4:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. (Eastern time)
during the backup process. To allow you to connect to our catalogue from
behind your firewall or proxy server, the security firewall or proxy server
on your network must be configured to allow access to port 80, a standard
internet port.
- 34. Is your library's catalogue Z39.50 compliant? How
can I connect to it?
-
The Court's catalogue is Z39.50 compliant. Libraries wishing to configure
Z39.50 clients to connect to our catalogue can obtain connection parameters
and confirm search attributes by e-mailing a request to library@scc-csc.gc.ca.
Note that port 2200 must be open to allow you to connect to our catalogue
from behind your firewall or proxy server.
- 35. I am looking for employment opportunities with the
Supreme Court of Canada. Who can I contact?
-
You can call (613) 943-1558 or contact the following email address:
vallancel@scc-csc.gc.ca.
- 36. How can a person be considered for a position as a
law clerk/student articling position?
-
Every September an announcement is sent by the Supreme Court of Canada
to each law faculty in Canada outlining the criteria required when applying
for the positions. The deadline is in February.
Other information is also available under About the Court, Law
Clerk Program.
- 37. Where can I obtain information on a divorce granted
in Canada?
-
Information on divorces can be located through the Central Divorce Registry
maintained by the federal Department of Justice. Only parties to a divorce
or their legal representatives may request divorce information. The Registry
can be reached at:
-
Central Registry of Divorce Proceedings
Department of Justice Canada
284 Wellington Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0H8
or by phone at (613) 957-4519.
- 38. I was born in Canada. How can I get a copy of my birth
certificate?
-
The registration of births is a provincial matter. You should contact provincial
or territorial authorities in the province or territory of birth for a certificate.
This service is often provided by the department of health, consumer affairs
or vital statistics.
- 39. Is the Supreme Court of Canada web site designed to
apply Common Look and Feel standards?
-
This web site has been designed with a view to making the information accessible
to all users, including persons with disabilities who use adaptive technologies
to receive and disseminate information. Our site has been designed to the
W3C Priority 1 and 2 Checkpoints and CLF (Common Look and Feel for the Internet),
and our pages have been validated to HTML 4.01 Transitional.*
We encourage accessible Internet site development and maintenance and
invite your comments and suggestions for improvement of the accessibility
of this site. If you require help in accessing the content of this site
for reasons related to accessibility, and for comments or suggestions, please
contact information@scc-csc.gc.ca.
- 40. Is it possible to create a hyperlink to and from the
Supreme Court of Canada web sites?
-
Yes, under certain conditions. For more information, please consult the
Criteria for Hyperlinking
to and from the Supreme Court of Canada's Web Sites.
- 41. Where may I obtain information about the Supreme Court
of Canada in a language other than English or French?
-
The Supreme Court of Canada is pleased to offer its pamphlet
in PDF format in twelve different languages in addition to English and French.
The languages were selected according to statistics provided by Statistics
Canada and complement the pamphlets available in Canada’s two official
languages. The pamphlet contains information about the history and role
of the Supreme Court of Canada, as well as other general information.
- 42. Where may I obtain information about the Supreme Court
of Canada in brail?
-
The Supreme Court of Canada is pleased to offer its English and French
pamphlets in brail. The pamphlet contains information about the history
and role of the Supreme Court of Canada, as well as other general information.
If you would like to receive a copy of the pamphlet in brail please contact
us by email at tour@scc-csc.gc.ca,
by phone at (613) 995-5361 or by regular mail at the following address:
Supreme Court of Canada
Attn: Tour Programs
301 Wellington Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0J1
* HTML 4.01 Transitional may not be supported by certain older versions of
browsers.
