The provincial government announced today that new Supreme Court family law rules will come into effect on 1 July 2010.
The new rules for family law matters are one of the recommendations flowing from the Family Justice Reform Working Group's 2005 report, A New Justice System for Children and Families (PDF). A draft of the new rules was posted on the website of the Justice Review Task Force in 2008 for comment and consultation.
The new rules are intended to reduce expense by gearing the complexity of the litigation to the complexity of the case, limiting rights of discovery and requiring experts to serve the court rather than the parties. Family law cases will be more tightly managed and mediation will be mandatory on the request of a party. A completely new set of court forms will standardize family law pleadings and make them more accessible. A summary of other highlights (PDF) is available from the JRTF.
Update
The new rules (PDF) have now been published. Be careful about printing them, they run to some 382 pages.
This blog provides updates on important developments in family law in British Columbia and news about changes to the legislation, court procedures and court rules applicable to family law cases and is curated by Collaborative Divorce Vancouver
