Difference between revisions of "How Do I Conduct Myself in Court at an Application?"

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[[File:CourtroomSeatingChart.png||left|link=|Layout and seating arrangements in typical courtroom]]

The drawing below shows how most courtrooms are laid out. In some courtrooms the witness box <span class="noglossary">will</span> be on the right rather than the left. Other courtrooms may have seating for a jury; others may have a separate entrance and seating for criminally accused; others may have a very small or a very large area for the gallery.  

Get to the courthouse about 20 minutes ahead of the time shown on your Notice of Application or Notice of Hearing. In the Provincial Court, hearings generally start at 9:30. In the Supreme Court, the court day starts at 10:00.

After you've checked in, take a seat in the gallery. Lawyers <span class="noglossary">will</span> sit in the row of chairs just beyond the gallery, past the bar, although in some busy courtrooms like the chambers courtrooms in Vancouver and New Westminster, all of the seating is considered past the bar. In a case like that, where there is no obvious gallery, sit wherever you find a seat.

The court day starts when the judge enters the courtroom. The clerk <span class="noglossary">will</span> make an announcement when the judge is entering the room. Stand up when the judge enters the room, and sit down only when the judge sits down.

The clerk <span class="noglossary">will</span> then start calling the day's cases, one by one. In the Supreme Court, the clerk calls the cases in order from the shortest cases to the longest cases. In the Provincial Court, the clerk <span class="noglossary">will</span> call the cases where one or both parties are represented by lawyers before moving on to the cases where neither party has a lawyer.

Walk up to the long table in front of the clerk, and take a position to the right or left. It usually doesn't matter which side you choose.