Important Changes to Court of Appeal Rules (Civil and Criminal)

August 16, 2022

From Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan

The Court of Appeal Rules [Rules] and The Court of Appeal Criminal Appeal Rules (Saskatchewan) [Criminal Rules] are being amended, with most changes coming into effect on October 3, 2022.  The Rules apply to all appeals, except as modified by the Criminal Rules in relation to criminal appeals.  In addition to amending the Rules and the Criminal Rules, the Court of Appeal has repealed and replaced all Forms and two practice directives.

Links to the amendments can be found on the Court of Appeal’s website. The following are the principal changes.

Amendments to the Rules

Stays of judgments under appeal:  The most significant change is with respect to Rule 15.

Under the existing Rule 15, filing a notice of appeal stays the execution of a judgment pending the appeal, except where the judgment awards mandamus, an injunction or maintenance.   A party seeking to enforce most judgments pending an appeal must apply to lift the stay of execution.  The new Rule 15 reverses this procedure for all appeals filed after December 31, 2022.

Effective January 1, 2023, filing a notice of appeal will not result in an automatic stay of execution or stay of proceedings.  Instead, under the new Rule 15 a party seeking a stay must apply either to the judge who made the order or judgment or to a judge of the Court of Appeal for that relief.

The change to Rule 15 brings Saskatchewan into line with most other Canadian provinces and more properly reflects the notion that a trial-level judgment should be seen as presumptively correct.

Appeal settlement conferences: The Rules will allow the registrar or a judge to suggest that an appeal settlement conference be convened to facilitate confidential mediated settlement discussions (Rule 41.1).  This new Rule incorporates the provisions contained in Civil Practice Directive No. 8, which will be repealed.

Vexatious litigants: The Rules concerning an application to have a party declared a vexatious litigant have been updated to authorize the registrar to initiate vexatious litigant proceedings (Rules 46.2 and 46.3).

Other changes to the Rules:

• clarify existing practices and procedures, such as the filing of the issued judgment or order appealed against as well as the reasons for decision (Rule 10.1);
• treat self-represented and represented parties similarly with respect to the right to file a factum or written argument (Rule 35);
• remove the requirement to estimate the time for hearing (repealing Rule 37);
• speak to the filing of a compendium to facilitate oral argument (Rule 37.1);
• clarify the procedure regarding the scheduling and hearing of chambers matters, including providing more specific timelines for filing briefs (Rules 48, 48.1 and 49);
• confirm the principles regarding applications to adduce evidence that was not part of the record of the court or tribunal from which the appeal is taken (Rule 59);
• require an address for service on every document filed with the Court and clarify what service information must be provided, including requiring that a party include an email address (Rule 65); and
• confirm that all documents must be filed electronically through the Court’s electronic filing system and in accordance with the practices and procedures established by the Court from time to time.

Other amendments have been made in order to parallel the language used in the Court of Queen’s Bench. For example, applications will be brought by notice of application rather than by notice of motion.

Amendments to the Criminal Rules

The modifications to the Criminal Rules have been made to reflect changes in the Rules, The Queen’s Bench Rules or the Criminal Code.  The adoption of a new Part III.1, concerning appeals under s. 839 of the Criminal Code, brings within the Rules procedures that had formerly been contained in Criminal Practice Directive No. 8, which will be repealed.

Other changes to the Criminal Rules:

• prescribe the number of factums to be filed (Rule 13);
• provide the procedure for an offender to apply for court-appointed counsel (Rule 37);
• stipulate appropriate conditions for judicial interim release (Rule 39).