Notice to the Profession – Central South Region Re: Civil, Family, Criminal Expansion

From: Harrison S. Arrell

Regional Senior Justice – Superior Court of Justice

Central South Region

Issued: June 26, 2020

By Notice to the Profession dated March 15, 2020, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (SCJ) advised the profession, the media and the public that, while the SCJ was suspending court operations, it would continue to hear urgent matters in criminal, family and civil.

During the intervening period the SCJ has continuously explored all avenues to expand the services it provides to the public.  As set out in the Province-Wide April 2, 2020 Notice to the Profession issued by Geoffrey B. Morawetz, Chief Justice, Ontario Superior Court of Justice, each Region expanded the scope of matters it heard effective April 6, 2020, with a further expansion April 28, 2020.

The following SCJ Courtrooms will open within the Central South Region on July 6, 2020;

  • John Sopinka – Hamilton – Courtroom # 600
  • Hamilton Family Court – Courtroom #3
  • Waterloo Region Courthouse – Courtrooms # 201 and # 601
  • St. Catharines Courthouse – Courtroom # 10
  • Welland Courthouse – Courtroom #1
  • Brantford – Courtroom # 200

Having considered the various resources and technological constraints to hearing matters during the suspension of court operations, the Central South Region, effective July 6, 2020, will continue to hear matters as noted below.

This NOTICE supersedes and replaces the NOTICES of April 2, April 28, April 30, May 19, and May 26, 2020 issued in Central South. However, the protocol of April 7, 2020 regarding Family and Child Protection matters remains in place and should be followed regarding documentary and filing requirements for conferences and motions;

ALL FAMILY COUNSEL MUST REVIEW THE FOLLOWING SITE-SPECIFIC PROCEDURES FOR FAMILY AND CHILD PROTECTION MATTERS:

CRIMINAL MATTERS:

The Chief Justice has issued orders adjourning criminal matters to specified dates and extending bench warrants accordingly. He has also issued an order adjourning matters and extending certain orders in child protection cases. These and other orders of the Chief Justice can be found at: https://www.ontariocourts.ca/scj/notices-and-orders-covid-19/

The July 6, 7, 8, 9, 2020 TBST Dates will not require an in-court appearance if defence counsel have a designation and a future date has been rescheduled. Crown and Defence counsel must make contact with the TC immediately, if they have not already done so, to reschedule their matter.

Any self-represented accused person must attend in person in court on the following dates, unless another date has been arranged in advance with the trial coordinator:

  • Any matters that were to be heard in March 2020 (after March 17) that had been adjourned to June 2, 2020 are further adjourned to July 6, 2020 at 10:00 a.m.
  • Any matters that were to be heard in April 2020 that had been adjourned to June 3rd, 2020 are further adjourned to July 7, 2020 at 10:00 a.m.
  • Any matters that were to be heard in May 2020 that had been adjourned to June 4, 2020 are further adjourned to July 8, 2020 at 10:00 a.m.
  • Any matters that were to be heard in June 2020 and July 2 and 3, 2020 are adjourned to July 9, 2020 at 10:00 a.m.

The following criminal matters will be heard either virtually or in person depending on availability of courtroom allocations:

  • All bail issues including detention reviews, bail reviews and initial hearings on S. 469 offences;
  • Extending stays of driving prohibitions, fine payment, and bail pending appeal orders for Summary Conviction Appeals that have a sunset clause before July 7, 2020; and
  • Habeas corpus applications;
  • Trials that were scheduled for March, April, May and June 2020 must be scheduled for a further judicial pretrial to discuss resolution, re-election and/or re-scheduling. Counsel must contact the Trial Coordinators who will provide a date for the pretrial and the coordinates to connect to the pretrial;
  • All guilty pleas;
  • Pre-trial motions will be heard. The motions judge will decide as to the methodology of the hearing, after consultation with counsel.
  • Criminal Judicial Pre-Trials for all parties may only be obtained by contacting the trial coordinator at the court site where the matter is filed. The judicial pretrial will be arranged as per the already established Central South protocol prior to COVID-19.
  • Summary Conviction Appeals.

A reminder to counsel that there are currently no jury trials being conducted until September 2020 at the earliest.  If there is a change to your client’s current election, please make contact with the Trial Coordinator.

Non-Jury Trials that are currently scheduled to proceed prior to September 2020, must be confirmed by counsel by email with the TC.

FAMILY MATTERS:

Parties are reminded that matters previously scheduled prior to the suspension of the Superior Court will be spoken to as follows:

CYFSA matters originally scheduled for appearances in:

  • March 2020 (after March 17) that had been adjourned to June 2, 2020 are further adjourned to July 6, 2020. Existing orders to continue.
  • April 2020 that had been adjourned to June 3, 2020 are further adjourned to July 7, 2020. Existing orders to continue.
  • May 2020 that had been adjourned to June 4, 2020 are further adjourned to July 8, 2020. Existing orders to continue.
  • June 2020 and July 2 and 3, 2020 are adjourned to July 9, 2020. Existing orders to continue.

FLA matters originally scheduled for appearances in:

  • March 2020 (after March 17) that had been adjourned to June 9, 2020 are further adjourned to July 14, 2020.
  • April 2020 that had been adjourned to June 10, 2020 are further adjourned to July 15, 2020.
  • May 2020 that had been adjourned to June 11, 2020 are further adjourned to July 16, 2020.
  • June 2020 and July 2 and 3, 2020 are adjourned to July 17, 2020.

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY THE FOLLOWING SITE-SPECIFIC PROCEDURES FOR FAMILY AND CHILD PROTECTION MATTERS:

URGENT MATTERS 

All urgent requests for long motions of one hour or more in family matters (as described in the May 13, 2020 Notice to the Profession) shall continue to be sent to the trial coordinator by email at the court site where the file is located. The urgent request will be forwarded to the triage judge, and the triage judge will determine whether the matter is urgent.  If the matter is not deemed urgent, the party requesting the hearing will be advised by an endorsement in a return email.

If the triage judge determines that the matter is urgent, the judge will issue an endorsement by email setting out the terms for the filing, service, and any other directions for the hearing of the application.

Electronic materials from each party are limited to 10MB unless the judge hearing the matter expressly grants an order permitting the materials to be sent in multiple emails.

The parties must undertake to file all materials and any fee payable upon resumption of normal court operations.

NON-URGENT MATTERS

A)    RULE 39 FIRST APPEARANCE

Please DO NOT attend at the courthouse.

Due to the large amount of family matters, a notice will go out during the week of July 20th, 2020 regarding First Appearance dates.

Any new applications issued as of July 6, 2020 and into the future, will be given a First Appearance date after September 14, 2020.

B)    MANDATORY INFORMATION PROGRAMS (MIPS)

Until further notice, all Mandatory Information Programs (MIPs) in the Central South Region may now be completed on-line, without prior Judicial approval. Please contact AXIS Family Mediation Inc., for instructions on how to register. MIP@axisfamilymediation.com, toll free at 1-888-988-AXIS (2947) or via the courthouse Information and Referral Coordinators (IRCs).

C)    APPLICATIONS, MOTIONS TO CHANGE

Applications, motions to change, and answers will be accepted electronically or filed at the court. The parties must contact Axis Mediation for their MIP date. MIP@axisfamilymediation.com, toll free at 1-888-988-AXIS (2947) or via the courthouse Information and Referral Coordinators (IRCs).

D)    FAMILY RESPONSIBILITY OFFICE (FRO)

Due to the very high volume of family cases in the Central South Region, the court will assign new dates for family law matters through a written assignment court process on or before August 31st, 2020.

E)    CONSENT AND OTHER BASKET MOTIONS

All consent motions and other basket motions must be delivered electronically to the court office at the court site where the file is located, as listed below:

In order to ensure your request is received and processed by the appropriate court office, the subject line should include the following information:

  • LEVEL OF COURT (SCJ)
  • TYPE OF MATTER (Criminal, Family, Civil, Civil Enforcement, Small Claims, Estates)
  • FILE NUMBER (if applicable)
  • TYPE OF DOCUMENT (e.g., Motion, Conference Brief, Other Request)

AND:

The body of the email should include the following information if applicable:

  1. Short title of proceeding
  2. List of documents attached
  3. Order requested
  4. Name, role (i.e. lawyer, representative, party, etc.,) and contact information of person submitting the request (email and phone number)

The electronic material must include the motion material, consent by all parties if applicable, email addresses for all parties, and a draft order.

The parties must follow the limits of size of material as set out in the protocol of April 7th, 2020 unless the judge hearing the matter expressly allows additional material to be filed. All material must be in at least 12-point font.

A judge will review the materials and, if appropriate, issue an order as requested or amended.

In the event a judge has issues or concerns with the materials or the proposed order, the judge will provide the parties with an endorsement by email setting out the deficiencies or reasons for denial of the order.

The parties must undertake to file all materials and any fee payable upon resumption of normal court operations.

F)     MOTIONS IN WRITING

Where all the parties agree that the motion can proceed based on written material only, without a conference hearing, the parties must deliver the motion material electronically to the court office at the court site where the file is located, as listed below:

In order to ensure your request is received and processed by the appropriate court office, the subject line should include the following information:

  • LEVEL OF COURT (SCJ)
  • TYPE OF MATTER (Criminal, Family, Civil, Civil Enforcement, Small Claims, Estates)
  • FILE NUMBER (if applicable)
  • TYPE OF DOCUMENT (e.g., Motion, Conference Brief, Other Request)

AND:

The body of the email should include the following information if applicable:

  1. Short title of proceeding
  2. List of documents attached
  3. Order requested
  4. Name, role (i.e. lawyer, representative, party, etc.,) and contact information of person submitting the request (email and phone number)

The electronic material must include the motion material from both parties; factums, draft orders, email addresses for all parties, and written confirmation by all parties that the motion will proceed by written submissions only.

The electronic material from each party must be in PDF with hyperlinks to tabs and exhibits, Factums must be in WORD as must the draft order. All material must be in at least 12-point font. The parties must follow the limits of size of material as set out in the protocol of April 7th, 2020 unless the judge hearing the matter expressly allows additional material to be filed.

PROTOCOL REGARDING FAMILY AND CHILD PROTECTION MATTERS IN CENTRAL SOUTH JUDICIAL REGION

A judge will consider the material and, in due course, issue an endorsement/order on the motion. The judge may reserve the issue of costs and give directions for written costs submissions.

The parties must undertake to file all material and any fee payable upon resumption of normal court operations.

G)   CASE CONFERENCES and SETTLEMENT CONFERENCES

Unless otherwise ordered by a judge, effective July 6, 2020, all Case and Settlement Conferences will be heard virtually.  To arrange a date and time for the conference, counsel must contact their respective Trial Coordinator with 3 agreed upon dates by email. The Trial Coordinator will respond with the conference date set and coordinates to connect to the conference.

Once booked, the parties may send their concise conference materials to the trial coordinator at the court site where the file is located.

The material must include concise conference briefs, proof of service, identification of the issues to be canvassed, and draft orders.  Attachments and exhibits are not to be included unless requested. Details regarding the conference call and hearing date will be provided to counsel by email from the trial coordinator.

Requirements regarding materials to be filed for case and settlements conferences as set out in paragraph 13 of the Protocol released April 7, 2020 continue to apply.

PROTOCOL REGARDING FAMILY AND CHILD PROTECTION MATTERS IN CENTRAL SOUTH JUDICIAL REGION

The parties must undertake to file all materials and any fee payable upon resumption of normal court operations.

H)   DIVORCES AND ADOPTIONS

The Court will deal with Divorces and Adoptions. Materials for consideration by the court should follow the directives set out in the paragraph 31 of the Protocol released April 7, 2020 and should be sent by email to:

I)      CONTESTED MOTIONS (SHORT MOTIONS)

The court will hear contested motions or applications which can be argued in less than 45 minutes by zoom or conference call. The motion material shall indicate any Wednesday for the motion hearing date.

Concise material shall be filed with Court Services, in PDF with hyperlinks to tabs and exhibits; while draft orders are to be filed in WORD. The material shall be filed by email to Court Services at:

The moving party must then complete service at least 7 days prior to the date the motion is to be heard. If responding material is filed 4 days prior to the motion date, a confirmation must be filed by the moving party stating that responding material has been filed. Confirmations are to be sent by email to the Trial Coordinators at:

The Trial Coordinators will then provide a non-negotiated date for the motion to be heard, and the original motion date will be vacated.

If no responding material is filed 3 days prior to the original motion date then the moving party must file a confirmation to that effect, and the motion will proceed as an unopposed basket motion, and the original motion hearing date will be vacated.

Parties must undertake to file all materials and any fee payable upon resumption of normal court operations.

CIVIL MATTERS:

Parties are advised that matters previously scheduled prior to the suspension of the Superior Court will be spoken to as follows:

  • March 2020 (after March 17) that had been adjourned to June 2, 2020 and further adjourned to July 6, 2020 are further adjourned to September 15, 2020 at 10:00 a.m.
  • April 2020 that had been adjourned to June 3, 2020 and further adjourned to July 7, 2020 are further adjourned to September 16, 2020 at 10:00 a.m.
  • May 2020 that had been adjourned to June 4, 2020 and further adjourned to July 8, 2020 are further adjourned to September 17, 2020 at 10:00 a.m.
  • June 2020 and July 2 to July 17, 2020 matters that had been adjourned to July 9, 2020 are further adjourned to September 18, 2020 at 10:00 am.

** NOTE: Counsel who have matters on these speak-to lists, must contact the Trial Coordinators AFTER July 25, 2020 to reschedule their motions, civil pretrials, etc.  For any trials that are on these lists, counsel are to file a joint consent with the new trial sittings and trial time requested, over the next 12 months starting with the sittings not earlier than November 15 2020.   Filing a consent with the Trial Coordinators in advance, will remove your matter from the above noted the September speak-to dates, and counsel need not attend. The record will be endorsed with the new trial date consented to.

A)    CONSENT, COURT APPROVALS, BASKET MOTIONS AND ANY OTHER EX PARTE MOTIONS

All consent motions, basket motions, court approval motions, and other ex parte motions in civil matters can be heard and must be delivered electronically to the court office at the court site where the file is located, as listed below:

The electronic material must include the motion material, consent by all parties if applicable, email addresses for all parties, and a draft order(s).

The electronic material from each party must be in PDF with hyperlinks to tabs and exhibits, Factums must be in WORD as must the draft order. All materials must be limited to 10MB unless the judge hearing the matter expressly grants an order permitting the material to be sent in multiple emails.

A judge will review the material and, if appropriate, issue the draft order as requested or amended.

In the event the judge has issues with the material or the proposed order, the judge will provide the parties with an endorsement regarding the deficiencies or reasons for denial of the order.

The parties must undertake to file all material and any fee payable upon resumption of normal court operations.

NOTE: Any hard copy basket motions which were filed with the court prior to March 16, 2020, for which counsel have had no response, should be re-submitted in electronic format as set out above.

B)    MOTIONS IN WRITING

Where all the parties agree that the motion can proceed based on written material only, the parties must deliver the motion material electronically to the court office at the court site where the file is located, as listed below:

The electronic material must be concise and include the motion material from both parties; factums, draft orders, email addresses for all parties, and written confirmation by all parties that the motion will proceed by written submissions only.

The electronic material from each party must be in PDF with hyperlinks to tabs and exhibits, factums and draft orders must be on WORD. All the material must be limited to 10MB unless the judge hearing the matter expressly grants an order permitting the materials to be sent in multiple emails.

The judge will consider the material, and in due course, will issue an endorsement/order. The judge may reserve on the issue of costs and give directions for written costs submissions.

The parties must undertake to file all material and any fee payable upon resumption of normal court operations.

C)    CIVIL PRETRIALS

The court will hear civil pre-trials by conference call or zoom, as directed by the judge. Counsel are to contact the trial coordinator after agreeing to 3 dates with the opposing parties for the hearing date. The trial coordinator will respond with the hearing date assigned and the details to connect to the hearing. Pretrial briefs shall be no more than 10 pages double spaced and in WORD format with minimum 12-point font. Briefs shall be filed by email with the trial coordinator who will provide details regarding the hearing:

Counsel who had civil pretrials scheduled to be heard in March, April, or May 2020, that did not get heard should contact opposing parties to confirm the pretrial could go forward by zoom or conference call. The court will also hear any pre-trial not previously scheduled. If the parties agree that they wish the pretrial to be heard, they should contact the Trial Coordinator who will provide a non-negotiable date for the pretrial and the coordinates to connect to the pretrial.

Counsel must have access to the instructing party at all times during the hearing. Pretrial briefs must be concise, in WORD format with a minimum 12-point font and should be emailed to the Trial Coordinator for distribution to the judge 3 days before the hearing.

NOTE: Civil pretrials currently scheduled for July 6th, 2020 and thereafter will proceed as scheduled and the parties will be advised as to the details of the hearing.

D)    CONTESTED MOTIONS/APPLICATIONS

The court will hear contested motions or applications which can be argued in less than 45 minutes by zoom or conference call. The motion material shall indicate any Wednesday for the motion hearing date.

Concise material shall be filed with Court Services, in PDF with hyperlinks to tabs and exhibits; while draft orders are to be filed in WORD. The material shall be filed by email to Court Services at:

The moving party must then complete service at least 7 days prior to the date the motion is to be heard. If responding material is filed 4 days prior to the motion date, a confirmation must be filed by the moving party stating that responding material has been filed. Confirmations are to be sent by email to the Trial Coordinators at:

The Trial Coordinators will then provide a non-negotiated date for the motion to be heard, and the previous motion date will be vacated.

If no responding material is filed 3 days prior to the original motion date then the moving party must file a confirmation to that effect, and the motion will proceed as an unopposed basket motion and the original motion hearing date will be vacated.

Parties must undertake to file all materials and any fee payable upon resumption of normal court operations.

E)    LONG MOTIONS, SUMMARY JUDGMENT MOTIONS & APPLICATIONS

The court will hear long motions, summary judgment motions and applications of 3 hours or less.

The motion material shall indicate any Wednesday for the motion hearing date.

Concise material shall be filed with Court Services, in PDF with hyperlinks to tabs and exhibits; while draft orders are to be filed in WORD. The material shall be filed by email to Court Services at:

Counsel must then complete service at least 7 days prior to the motion hearing date. If responding material is filed 4 days prior to the original motion date, a confirmation must be filed by the moving party stating that responding material has been filed. Confirmations are to be sent by email to the Trial Coordinators at:

The Trial Coordinators will then provide a non-negotiated date for the motion to be heard, and the previous motion date will be vacated.

If no responding material is filed 3 days prior to the original motion date then the moving party must file a confirmation to that effect, and the motion will proceed as an unopposed basket motion and the original motion hearing date will be vacated.

Parties must undertake to file all materials and any fee payable upon resumption of normal court operations.

F)     CASE MANAGEMENT & CLASS PROCEEDING FILES

The court will hear any conferences required on case managed matters as well as civil case conferences if required. The parties shall contact their respective trial coordinator by email to arrange a conference call with the judge.

The court will hear class action case management matters and the parties shall contact their respective trial coordinator to arrange the conference call with the judge.

G)   SMALL CLAIMS COURT

The Court Office will contact parties to reschedule their Small Claims Court dates that were missed due to the court suspension. Please review the following notice for more information:

NOTICE REGARDING THE SUSPENSION OF SMALL CLAIMS COURT OPERATIONS (JUNE 2, 2020)

MATTERS HEARD BY THE REGISTRAR IN BANKRUPTCY:

The original content of this section is superseded by the Notice to the Profession Regarding Matters Heard by Registrars in Bankruptcy (Hamilton) – February 4, 2021

MATTERS PREVIOUSLY FILED:

If a party has previously submitted or filed matters of the nature that will be heard as outlined in this notice, the party must resubmit these matters by email, in accordance with the procedure outlined in this notice.  Where possible, the party is requested to identify that such matter was previously filed and the filing fee paid, as appropriate.

Harrison S. Arrell
Regional Senior Justice – Superior Court of Justice
Central South Region

Issued: June 26, 2020