IT’S THE COURTS’ TURN TO FEEL THE EFFECTS OF COVID-19

On March 13, 2020, the Quebec government declared a state of health emergency. In doing so, the Chief Justice of Quebec and the Minister of Justice were granted new powers to suspend or extend certain deadlines.

On March 15, 2020, the Chief Justice of Quebec and the Minister of Justice issued an order, effective immediately, to suspend the time limits for civil proceedings for as long as the government maintains the state of health emergency.

On March 20, 2020, the government therefore extended the state of emergency until March 29, 2020, and extended it again until April 7.

During this period, prescription and procedural deadlines, particularly extinctive prescription, forfeiture and procedural deadlines in civil matters, are suspended. It will therefore be important to follow the prolongation of the state of health emergency closely, in order to properly calculate the time limits for forfeiture of rights, so as to avoid losing them.

Meanwhile, a series of measures have been put in place in the province’s courts to ensure the health and safety of both litigants and justice system personnel. Here’s a summary:

Quebec Court of Appeal :

  • hearings scheduled between now and May1 postponed indefinitely
  • the parties may, however, jointly request that their case be decided without a hearing on the basis of written documents
  • in urgent cases, hearings may be held on terms to be agreed on a case-by-case basis

Superior Court of Quebec and Court of Quebec :

  • hearings scheduled between now and May1 postponed indefinitely
  • some courtrooms remain open to handle urgent matters, such as interlocutory injunctions, safeguard orders, oppositions to seizures or any other request considered urgent by the court

As for bailiffs, they can still serve documents in urgent situations.

Lastly, although judicial activities are limited, the courts encourage the parties’ lawyers to discuss matters with each other and to make use of the technological means available to advance their case. On March 26, a hearing with witnesses was held at the Trois-Rivières courthouse. We can only hope that other courthouses will follow suit, to help improve access to justice in this time of crisis.

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