Difference between revisions of "Family Law Trials in Supreme Court"

#* Read Rule 14-7 carefully, and especially subsections (19) to (39) when it comes to witnesses.  

#* Are you certain your witnesses will show up? Should you be delivering a subpoena (in Form F23) by personal service more than 7 days in advance of when you want them to give testimony?

# '''Consider preparing a chronology:''' Each party should also consider preparing a chronology of important events such as the birth dates of each party and child, the date of cohabitation, the date of marriage, the date of separation, the date of divorce (if applicable), and the dates of any other significant events such as moves, job changes, promotions, inheritances, gifts, diagnoses, etc. for easy reference by the judge at trial.  If you do prepare a chronology, be sure to bring copies for the judge, the other party (or their lawyer), and yourself.

# '''Consider preparing a Scott Schedule:'''  If either party has a lawyer and division of property and debt is in dispute, then the lawyer will also prepare a ''Scott Schedule''.  A Scott Schedule is a spreadsheet that lists all of the property and debt in issue, the value of each at various dates, and other useful information such as whether there are excluded property claims, that party’s position about what should happen with each property and debt, and the like.  There is no requirement in the Supreme Court Family Rules that a Scott Schedule be prepared, but it is a useful reference tool at trial.  If one party has a lawyer who prepares a Scott Schedule, the other party can review it carefully and make note of where that party disagrees with the information provided.  If neither party have a lawyer and neither party prepares a Scott Schedule, the judge will likely use the parties’ financial statements as the main reference for financial information about property and debts.

#**Consider watching a trial, as observation of the real thing is often the best education.  Trials are open to the public and are generally in session from 10:00am–12:30pm and from 2:00pm–4:00pm each day.

#*Engage in self-care leading up to trial, including ensuring that you get enough sleep, that you are eating healthily and getting regular exercise, and that you have the emotional support that you need to help you through this process (i.e. from family, a friend, or a counsellor).

== Conducting the trial in Supreme Court ==

* Always arrive early for court (15 minutes early is a good guideline) and return to the courtroom on time after breaks.

* Stand up when the judge enters or leaves the courtroom and when you are speaking to the judge.

* Always be respectful to the judge and to everyone else in the courtroom, including the court clerk, the sheriff (if any), and the other party and counsel.

* When speaking to a witness, use Mr., Ms., or Dr., followed by their surname, rather than the witness' first name (which is too casual).

=== Costs and disbursements ===

A party can ask the judge for a ruling on costs after the judge has delivered the decision.

==Resources and links==

* [https://www.bccourts.ca/supreme_court Supreme Court website]

* [http://www.clicklaw.bc.ca/resource/2268 Justice Education Society website for BC Supreme Court]

** Under the section "Trials in Supreme Court" see "Coping with the court process", and "Preparing to attend a Supreme Court trial", and the information pages on sample questions to ask your own witnesses and on cross-examination of other witnesses