Family Matters in Supreme Court: Judicial Case Conferences and Chambers Hearings
(Transcript of video)
Note: This video was made before the new Supreme Court Family Rules came into effect on July 1, 2010. The video is still legally accurate, but it does refer to some forms and processes that are no longer in effect.
Scene 2: What the Issues Are and Where to Go
Scene 3: Arranging a Judicial Case Conference
Scene 4: Judicial Case Conference — Payor
Scene 5: Judicial Case Conference — Recipient
Scene 8: Preparing for Chambers Hearing
Scene 10: Attending Chambers Hearing
Scene 1: Introduction
Captions and voice-overs: This video is for people going to Supreme Court without a lawyer on a family matter. The following fictional scenario shows two aspects of the process — the Judicial Case Conference and the hearing that can follow in Supreme Court Chambers.
For specific legal advice about your individual case, contact a lawyer or the Legal Services Society LawLINE.
Caption: Family Matters in Supreme Court: Judicial Case Conferences & Chambers Hearings
[Front yard of house. Tracy raking leaves. Mark arrives.]
Mark: Hey.
Tracy: Hey.
Tracy [calling inside house]: Ben, your dad's here! [turns back to Mark] How are you?
Mark: I'm fine, fine.
Tracy: Good…
Mark: ...And you?
Tracy: …oh, good.
[Ben comes out of house with knapsack.]
Mark: Hey, Sport.
Ben: Hi Dad.
Mark: How's it going?
Ben: Good.
Tracy: Ben, do you have everything?
Ben: Yeah, I think so.
Tracy: Do you have the present for Jason's party?
Ben: Oh yeah!
[Runs back inside house.]
Mark: Tracy, I need to talk to you about the support money this month. I just don't think I'm gonna be able to pay. I'm already behind on my car payment, I have my rent and the line of credit is due on the 15th…
Tracy: Mark, I don't want to hear it. I'm sick of your excuses…
[Mark and Tracy continue talking in the background, muted.]
Voice-over: When Mark and Tracy split up four years ago, Tracy got an order in the Supreme Court of British Columbia requiring Mark to pay support for their son, Ben. This payment was based on the federal child support guidelines and Mark's income at the time.
[Ben comes back out.]
Mark: Hey.
Ben: Hey.
Mark: [to Tracy] Anyways, I'll call you.
Tracy: OK. [hugs Ben] Bye-bye, Sweetie.
Ben: Bye Mom.
Tracy: [to Mark] Don't forget to drop him off at the party tomorrow at four.
Mark: Ok. [to Ben] Oh, whatcha got here?
Ben: It's a present.
Mark: Oh! [to Tracy] See ya.
Tracy: Bye.
Scene 2: What the Issues Are and Where to Go
[Mark getting into his car.]
Voice-over: Mark has been having trouble keeping his payments up to date. He wants to lower his child support order and have some of what he owes — called the “arrears” — cancelled. Tracy doesn't agree and they haven't been able to settle the matter on their own. Mark is thinking about going back to court to change his order.
[Car backing out of driveway. Cut to courthouse exterior.]
Voice-over: There are two levels of trial court in British Columbia. Most family matters, such as child and spousal support, custody and access, and guardianship can be handled in Provincial Family Court, where the procedure is less costly and complicated.
Caption: Provincial Family Court
Child Support
Spousal Support
Custody & Access
Guardianship
Voice-over: The Supreme Court can also handle these matters but has additional powers over property division and divorce. Because Tracy got her child support order in Supreme Court, Mark must now return to that court to vary it.
Caption: Supreme Court
Child Support
Spousal Support
Custody & Access
Guardianship
Property Division
Divorce
[Mark sitting in front of a computer, looking at the family law website.]
Voice-over: Before taking any legal action, Mark needs to do some research. The Legal Services Society website provides information about family law, and step-by-step instructions for people going to court without a lawyer. It also provides sample forms and documents. Mark must fill these out correctly and file them at the court registry.
Caption: Legal Services Society www.familylaw.lss.bc.ca
[Ben enters.]
Mark: Hey Ben.
Ben: Hey Dad, can we play our game now?
Mark: Yeah, just about done. Give me two more minutes.
Ben: OK.
Mark: I promise I'll be out in two.
Ben: OK.
[Cut to forms being printed out.]
Scene 3: Arranging a Judicial Case Conference
[Mark standing in front of a desk with a woman behind it. Sign over desk: Civil Document Filing Office.]
Voice-over: After checking to see when Tracy is available, Mark arranges a time for a judicial case conference. Usually these conferences must happen before your case can go to court.
Caption: Arranging a Judicial Case Conference
Clerk [Hands stamped forms back to Mark.]: Here you go.
Mark: Thank you. Bye.
Clerk: Bye.
[Front yard of Tracy's house. Process server rings door bell and hands documents to Tracy.]
Caption: Serving the Documents
Voice-over: After filing his documents, Mark arranges to have copies served on, or officially delivered, to Tracy. The exchange and service of documents can happen several times during this process.
Tracy: Thank-you.
Process server: You're welcome. Have a good day.
Scene 4: Judicial Case Conference — Payor
[Tracy, in a courthouse corridor. She checks a schedule posted on the wall, then sits down and waits. Mark enters, checks the same schedule, and waits.]
Caption: Attending a Judicial Case Conference
Voice-over: Judicial case conferences are held in regular courtrooms or conference rooms. These are informal meetings in front of either a Supreme Court judge or a master. A master is a judicial officer who has many of the same powers as a judge.
[Court clerk arrives and leads them both into a conference room.]
Tracy [to court clerk]: What do we call the judge?
Clerk: Today it will be Master McCallum and you will call him Your Honour or Sir.
Tracy: Thank-you.
Voice-over: A Judicial Case Conference is a confidential chance to settle your dispute. A judge or master can make procedural orders or an order about your dispute if both sides consent. A court clerk takes notes, records new dates and writes down any orders that are agreed upon. If you can't resolve matters that day, another conference may be arranged if the judge or master thinks it's worthwhile.
[During the voice-over, the master enters and sits down.]
Master: Good afternoon.
Master: I understand neither of you are represented by a lawyer, is that correct? All right, we're here to try and find out which issues are in dispute and whether it's possible to make a settlement. Are you both willing to discuss how a settlement might be reached today?
Tracy: Yes, Your Honour.
Mark: Well, yeah, I'd like to settle things.
Master: And hopefully we can find a way to come to an agreement. If we can't, then I can help you with some other options that are available for you to settle things without having to go to court. I want to make sure to start that you've shared the information that you need to, so that this matter can be settled in an appropriate way.
If you come to an agreement, then I can make a consent order today. If you can't come to an agreement, then I can organize a court date so this matter can be heard appropriately. Mr. Carter, you're the applicant, can you tell me what this is all about, what you are here for today, and what you hope to achieve?
Mark: Yeah, thank you, Your Honour. Well, there are two things. I'd like to change my child support order, and I've gotten behind on my payments and I'd like to have my arrears cancelled.
Master: All right, well, let's see if we can deal with this order first. Do you have a copy of that order with you?
Mark: Uh, yeah. There. My son, Ben, is ten now and the order has been the same since we split up three years ago at $311 a month.
Master: Where are you working right now?
Mark: Well, normally I work as a roofer, but six months ago I hurt my back on the job and I had to go on worker's compensation. I have the benefit statements right here. My income is less now, and I just can't afford to pay as much for Ben anymore. They're thinking about cutting me off at the end of this month. And I'm still waiting to find out if I'm accepted for rehab so I can get training for another kind of work.
Master: Do you have a copy of your Form 89 Financial Statement with you?
Mark: Yes.
Master: You have that with you?
Mark: Yes. There it is, and I have my pay stubs and tax assessment from the last three years, and I've already given copies to Tracy.
Master: Thank you. So as I understand it, you'd like to go back and apply the child support guidelines to reflect your lower income?
Mark: Yeah, that's right
Master: All right. Mrs. Carter, do you have a financial statement with you today?
Voice-over: The child support guidelines are a way of calculating the basic amount a parent pays based on income. The master spends some time reviewing the financial information.
Scene 5: Judicial Case Conference — Recipient
[Same scene]
Master: Mrs. Carter, would you like to say anything more about this issue?
Tracy: Yes, Your Honour. Well, I'm sorry, Mark, but Ben is your son too and his expenses aren't exactly going down. You can see there's not much left over from my paycheque.
Mark: What about the inheritance from your aunt? You're not exactly suffering.
Tracy: Oh come on, Mark, $1,800? Fixing the car took up most of that and I really think you could be working right now. I don't think he should be allowed to pay less just because he's temporarily out of work. I mean, he's trained as a cook, he doesn't have to do this other stuff…
Scene 6: Master's Decision
[Same scene]
Caption: After further discussion…
Master: Thank you both. Based on your current circumstances, Mr. Carter, and how much you make per month today, I think you're entitled to a reduction from $311 per month to $258 per month. Mrs Carter, that's the amount that is clearly set out in the child support guidelines. He should be paying less, and if the matter came before me in court, then that would likely be my decision.
Tracy: OK, I guess I can live with that.
Master: You can always come back when circumstances change. The matter can be reviewed again.
Voice-over: If an agreement is reached, the master can summarize the terms of the order. The successful party later types up the order and files it with the registry.
Scene 7: Unresolved Issues
[Same scene]
Master: Now, let's look at this issue of arrears. How much child support is outstanding?
Mark: Including this month, it's $4,300.
Master: And why should this debt be cancelled?
Mark: Because I don't have the money. I'm still paying off her debts from when we together. That's not really fair. Tracy told me just to pay less and not to worry about the arrears. At the time she seemed understanding, and that's why I didn't come back to court.
Tracy: I never said you didn't have to pay, just that you could have time to get back on your feet. I have debts, too, you know. We needed that money.
Mark: Tracy, you're not listening. I told you, if I had the money I want to …
[Fade out and back in again.]
Master: Clearly, you're not going to be able to agree on this issue today. Mr. Carter, you need to provide better information about your job history, your work prospect, your income over the past few years. I suggest we fix a hearing date in Supreme Court Chambers. It could come on three weeks from today, if that date suited you. I don't expect the matter to take longer than 30 minutes. Now that means, Mr. Carter, you'll have to deliver your Affidavit to Mrs. Carter by the 5th of next month. Mrs. Carter, you'll have to reply with your own Affidavit one week later.
Tracy: OK.
Voice-over: Just because you have a court date doesn't mean you have to use it. You can always stop the court proceedings by settling. If you do go on to a Chambers hearing, you won't necessarily appear before the same master or judge who attended your judicial case conference.
Scene 8: Preparing for Chambers Hearing
[Mark, sitting at a desk in front of a computer.]
Caption: Preparing for Court
Voice-over: It's important to be well prepared. When you go to a Chambers hearing, you provide written evidence to support your application. There are very specific rules and deadlines about how you file and present this evidence.
[Screen shot of documents on a computer screen. Cut to an office, with Mark talking to a lawyer.]
Voice-over: Even if you are planning to present your own case in court, you might find it helpful to consult a lawyer ahead of time to help you define the issues and prepare the documents you need. Check with your community legal aid office to find out about available lawyer referral services or free legal advice options.
Scene 9: Filing Documents
[Mark, standing in front of a desk with a woman behind it. Sign over desk: Civil Document Filing Office.]
Caption: Filing Documents for a Supreme Court Chambers Hearing
Voice-over: When you start your action by filing documents at the registry, you pay a filing fee. If you can't pay the fee, you can apply to court for an indigency order, that exempts you from payments.
Scene 10: Attending Chambers Hearing
[People walking into a courtroom.]
Caption: Attending a Chambers Hearing
[Close-up of a sign on the courtroom door that reads “Cell phones and pagers must be turned off before entering the courtroom. No food or drink allowed in the courtroom.”]
Voice-over: A Chambers hearing is different from a trial. Judges, masters, and lawyers don't wear gowns, and you don't go into the witness box and testify. Only written evidence is accepted. Chambers is held in public, so your hearing won't be private. You can bring a friend for support, but normally that person won't be allowed to speak or represent you.
[Inside the courtroom.]
Voice-over: When you enter the courtroom, let the court clerk know you are present and estimate the time required to present your application. There are usually several different kinds of cases on the court list. Their order can change; shorter matters usually go first.
Clerk: Order in the Chambers.
[Everyone stands up when the judge comes in, and sits down when the judge sits.]
Clerk: In the Supreme Court of British Columbia, this 25th day of March 2004, calling number 2 on the list, Ferguson and Bank of Commerce.
[Fade out and back in again.]
Clerk: Calling number 12 on the list, Carter v. Carter.
Voice-over: When your name is called, walk up to the front and remain standing while speaking to the judge. Explain that you are not being represented by a lawyer.
Judge: Ms. Carter, will you have a seat until Mr. Carter makes his presentation, please? Thank-you, ma'am.
Mark: I'm applying for an order to have some arrears, $4,300 for child support, cancelled. You should have copies of the original child support order, the new support order I got three weeks ago, my Financial Statements and my Affidavit with all reports and letters attached.
Scene 11: Presenting Evidence
[Mark, sitting at a table with a lawyer.]
Caption: Swearing an Affidavit
Voice-over: The documents you prepare ahead of time are critical to your case. Before he applied to Supreme Court Chambers, Mark filed a document called an Affidavit. This is a sworn statement in numbered paragraphs about the truth of important facts.
[Close-up of Affidavit and Mark signing it.]
Caption: Affidavit: A sworn statement about the truth of important facts.
Voice-over: Affidavits must be sworn before a lawyer, notary public, or a court clerk at the registry. You pay a fee for this service. In Chambers, you are only allowed to talk about the facts in an Affidavit; you can't add anything.
[Judge in the courtroom, reviewing Mark's Affidavit.]
Judge: All right, Mr. Carter, that's a very good introduction. I compliment you on it, but now I'd like you to start with taking me through your Affidavit evidence as it relates to the issues.
Mark: Yes, thank you, Ma'am. In my Affidavit, paragraph 4, I talk about how my financial circumstances have changed since my accident. I went from $2,416 a month to $2,174 a month. Then in paragraph 5, I bring you the amount I'm still paying every month for our marriage debts, which works out to an additional $376 a month.
[Fade out and back in again.]
In paragraph 6, I have my living expenses, which…
[Fade out and back in again.]
Judge: All right, Mr. Carter. Now would you please take me through the medical evidence that supports your claim?
Mark: Yes, Ma'am. Exhibit C is the letter from Dr. Johnson. His letter states that I may never be able to work as a roofer again. Then exhibit D, the WCB doctor's report, which states pretty much the same thing. And I just got my letter from Workers' Compensation, Exhibit B, approving me for rehab. But that's only three months. After that, who knows? I just don't know how I'm gonna be able to catch up.
Judge: Are you finished, Mr. Carter?
Mark: Yes, I am.
Judge: All right, thank you very much. Please have a seat. Ms. Carter, this is your opportunity now to respond.
Scene 12: Responding to Evidence
[Same scene]
Tracy: Ma'am, I think I've been very patient. I'm self-supported but my son needs this money. In my Affidavit, paragraph 2, I explain that I never said that he didn't have to pay, just that I could wait a bit longer. Really, Mark could be working right now, and in paragraph 5, you will note that despite his back injury he was still able to play soccer on the weekend. He also is trained as a cook, and I don't understand why he cannot do that to make a living right now. Also, if you'll notice in paragraph 7, his living…
Voice-over: Even if Mark disagrees with Tracy, he must not interrupt. He makes notes and will ask the judge if he can reply when Tracy is finished.
Scene 13: Final Decision
[Same scene]
Judge: Mr. Carter, I understand that you felt that it was unnecessary to make a formal application to court sooner than this in order to vary the child support order to reflect your smaller income, but according to the case law, and I can cite that for you if you like, it's Earl v. Earl, I can only cancel or reduce your child support arrears if I find it would be grossly unfair not to do so. That language tells me that the burden is on you to show that it would be grossly unfair not to cancel or reduce….
Voice-over: The judge gives her reasons and makes an order based on the relevant law.
Judge: Now I understand that your back injury has been a significant change in your life. But from the evidence, how long lasting that injury is going to be is unclear, and I'm not convinced, again, from the evidence that I have, that that injury will permanently disable you from making enough money to pay the arrears in full. As a consequence, I cannot find that it would be grossly unfair to require you to pay the arrears.
You may have to re-arrange your financial affairs, for the time being, and I accept that, from all of the evidence, it's apparent that you do not have the funds to pay this debt now, right away. I fixed the arrears at $4,300 as of today and I'm going to order you to pay $50 per month toward those arrears commencing the first of next month and increasing to $100 per month at the end of six months.
Mrs. Carter, you, of course, will have leave to have to apply to increase the amount of this payment toward arrears should Mr. Carter's income increase, and in that case…
Voice-over: After the hearing, Mark will type up the order and payment schedule, get Tracy's approval and then file it with the court registry. Of course, this is not the end of the story. Mark's financial future is uncertain. Circumstances will likely change. Mark or Tracy may find a way to settle things on their own. Or, they may return to change their order.
Scene 14: Conclusion
[Collage of scenes from the video.]
Voice-over: By using the resources available, people like Mark and Tracy can effectively present their own case at a Judicial Case Conference and at Chambers hearings.
Credits
Principal Cast
Tracy: Elizabeth Lorraine
Master: Master William McCallum
Ben: Cade Pringle
Judge: Madam Justice Georgina Quijano
Mark: Jeffery Stephens
Clerk: Janice Valdez
Narrator: Sandy Mayzell
Advisory Group Members
Glenn Gallins
Carol McEown
Sherry MacLennan
Executive Producer: Hilary Pryor
Producers: Judith Blackwell
Sandy Mayzell
Director: Hilary Pryor
Writers: Judith Blackwell
Michelle Harris
Director of Photography: David Malysheff
Project Consultant: Glenn Gallins
Researcher: Judith Blackwell
Production Coordinator: Garfield L. Miller
Production Manager: Sandy Mayzell
Sound Recordist: Barton Hewitt
Grip: Cameron Davies
Set Decoration/Props: Trevor Belcourt
Make-up/Costume: Calla Dool
Production Assistants: Raji Basi
Robin Miller
Josh Newman
Editor: Garfield L. Miller
Post Video & Sound: Tony Moskal
Digiheadz
Special Thanks
The Law Centre, Victoria B.C.
University of Victoria Faculty of Law
Rosemary Armour
Master William McCallum
Madam Justice Georgina Quijano
For more information, contact:
- your family lawyer
- your local Supreme Court Registry
Legal Services Society, BC websites and information services:
www.lss.bc.ca
www.familylaw.lss.bc.ca
Funding provided by Legal Services Society, British Columbia www.lss.bc.ca
Produced by
E.T.C.
Educating Toward Change Society
Production Facilities provided by The May Street Group, Film, Video & Animation Ltd.
© Legal Services Society, BC, 2004
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