CLEBC Update
CBA Section Members Win $3,000 of CLE Courses
The Continuing Legal Education Society of BC offered CBABC members an extra incentive to join Sections this year. In addition to the educational and social benefits of Sections, members who registered for three or more Sections were eligible to win one of four CLE prizes – complementary registration in a CLE course. The winners’ names were drawn from a pool of 1,450 eligible Section members. The four winners and their prizes were:

• Terry S Gill of Thorsteinssons won complimentary registration to a CLE Family Mediation course (approximate value $1,200);
• Claudia L Losie of Page Fraser & Associates won complimentary registration to a CLE Civil Mediation & Advanced Civil Mediation course (approximate value $1,300);
• Alan W Dabb of Fraser Milner Casgrain won complimentary registration to a regular one-day CLE course (approximate value $325); and
• Leanne H Berry won complimentary registration to a regular one-day CLE course (approx. value $325).

The CBABC extends its thanks to CLE for donating more than $3,000 in prizes to CBABC Section members.

CLE Conferences
Litigation
Roger Oatley will share his winning ways at Jury Trials on May 3 in Vancouver. Mr. Oatley has won more than $17 milllion for his clients in the past two years. The Fourth Annual Personal Injury Conference on May 4 will offer a wider scope of the latest issues. Faculty from ICBC, plaintiff and defence will sharpen your practice skills in a feature session on evidence presentation. Combination pricing for both courses is available.

Changes to chambers practice in BC take effect July 1, 2001 with the introduction of Rule 51A. Between April and June CLE will conduct 12 live courses on this new legislation. More details are in the mail, but you can also visit www.cle.bc.ca for free resources and course schedules in your region.

Employment
The Second Annual Employment Law Conference on May 10-11 covers emerging issues in case law. Topics covered include conflict of interest policies, administrative tribunals, adjudicative policies, termination for disability and more.

Real Estate
Commercial Leasing II on May 11 will follow a transactional approach to the thorniest issues in this area of practice. Topics covered include tenant and landlord covenants, the Waste Management Act, securities issues, and formation of the relationship.

For more information, to register for a course or purchase a publication, visit www.cle.bc.ca or call 604.893.2162 or 1.800.663.0437.


The Law Foundation of British Columbia
Grants Approved
The Board of Governors of the Law Foundation of BC met on March 10, 2001.

Funding totaling $3,166,400 has been approved for the following 18 continuing grantees:

• Battered Women’s Support Services, (Legal Advocacy Program 2001/2002) - $46,800
• BC Branch, Canadian Bar Association, (Law Week 2001) - $5,500
• BC Civil Liberties Association, (Operating 2001/2002) - $134,300
• British Columbia Law Institute, (Operating 2001/2002) - $140,300
• Community Legal Assistance Society, (Operating 2001/2002) - $654,500
• Continuing Legal Education Society, (Professional Legal Training Course 2001/2002) - $233,800
• End Legislated Poverty, (FLAWline Public Legal Education Newsletter and Working Group 2001/2002) - $19,500
• Law Foundation Graduate Fellowships, (2001/2002) - $55,000
• Nelson District Community Resources Society, (Legal Advocacy Project 2001/2002) - $105,400
• North Island Advocacy Coalition Society (Campbell River), (Legal Advocacy Program 2001/2002) - $84,600
• People’s Law School Society, (Operating 2001/2002) - $262,400
• Separation and Divorce Resource Centre (Victoria), (Volunteer and Legal Support Services Program 2001/2002) - $40,600
• Tenants’ Rights Action Coalition, (Legal Advocacy Project 2001/2002) - $218,600
• University of Saskatchewan, (Native Law Centre – Program of Legal Studies and Operating 2001/2002) - $10,300
• University of Victoria, Faculty of Law, (Law Centre Clinical Program 2001/2002) - $203,400
• West Coast Domestic Workers’ Association, (Legal Advocacy Project 2001/2002) - $133,800
• West Coast Environmental Law Association, (Operating 2001/2002 and Environmental Dispute Resolution Fund) - $705,900
• West Coast Legal Education and Action Fund Association, (Operating 2001/2002) - $111,700

Provincial Court of British Columbia
Criminal Caseflow Management Rules
A message from the Honourable Chief Judge Carol Baird Ellan

The Notice to Profession, Criminal Caseflow Management Rules: Review Phase, was issued on February 12, 2001, to signal the April 1, 2001 commencement of the formal review phase for the Criminal Caseflow Management Rules in Provincial Court. Associate Chief Judge A.J. Spence will oversee this review. Chief Judge Baird Ellan and Judge Spence both spoke briefly about the review at the March 10 Provincial Council meeting.

As outlined in the notice, the review will entail a series of meetings of interested parties in the provincial administrative districts, in order of their Rules implementation dates. This will enable districts with recent implementation dates to operate under the Rules for a time, before undergoing review. In addition to the meeting schedule, interested parties may file written submissions.

The purpose of Caseflow Management is not to coerce guilty pleas but rather encourage earlier resolution of matters that would have resolved in any event. Experience shows that this encouragement is more effective if driven by Court involvement, and law dictates that the Court has a duty to effectively administer its process.

Monitoring results gathered by the Office of the Chief Judge and the Ministry of the Attorney General since Rules implementation indicate a remarkable reduction in the number of cases that are set for trial unnecessarily, up to 50 per cent in some places. Backlogs in some regions have declined. Many judges report more orderly trial dates, with fewer matters collapsing unexpectedly. At the same time, the overall numbers for guilty pleas and trials proceeding have remained relatively constant.

These gains cannot be expected to happen in the absence of some upheaval. It is important to the Court that they not occur at the expense of fairness to defendants, or to their counsel. The Court recognizes the need to assess these apparent gains to the system and measure them against losses, if any. The review process is intended to identify, first, adjustments or scheduling changes that need to be made, and then, ways in which the Rules or process can be substantively improved upon.

The Court acknowledges the cooperative and communicative approach to the Rules taken by bar members through the implementation phase. We are hopeful that this spirit of cooperation and communication will continue throughout the review, with a view to a realistic assessment of the process over the next year.

Rules Online
The Criminal Caseflow Management Rules are available for viewing at www.provincialcourt.bc.ca. Select “Rules of Court” and then select the “Criminal Rules of Court” to view the Rules.

This article was published in the April 2001 issue of BarTalk. © 2001 The Canadian Bar Association. All rights reserved.