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Canada's Court System
FURTHER INFORMATION
If you are interested in learning more about Canada's court system, the following publications and Web sites are well worth consulting.
The Courts
Full information on the Supreme Court of Canada and the federal courts can be found on their Web sites:
- Supreme Court of Canada : www.scc-csc.gc.ca
- Federal Court of Appeal: www.fca-caf.gc.ca
- Federal Court of Canada: www.fct-cf.gc.ca
- Tax Court of Canada: www.tcc-cci.gc.ca
- Court Martial Appeal Court: www.cmac-cacm.ca
The Courts Administration Service, established in 2003, provides support to the federal courts and is responsible for, among other things, ensuring public access to the courts and their records. Its Web site is: www.cas-satj.gc.ca.
As well, all 13 provinces and territories maintain Web sites for their courts.
- Alberta : www.albertacourts.ab.ca
- British Columbia : www.courts.gov.bc.ca
- Manitoba : www.manitobacourts.mb.ca
- New Brunswick : www.gnb.ca/cour/index-e.asp
- Newfoundland : www.gov.nf.ca/Services/legal.stm#Courts
- Northwest Territories : www.nwtcourts.ca/
- Nova Scotia : www.courts.ns.ca/
- Nunavut : www.nunavutcourtofjustice.ca/
- Ontario : www.ontariocourts.on.ca
- Prince Edward Island : www.gov.pe.ca/courts/supreme/index.php3
- Quebec : www.tribunaux.qc.ca/mjq_en/
- Saskatchewan : www.sasklawcourts.ca/
- Yukon : www.justice.gov.yk.ca
For further information on domestic violence courts, please see the March 2003 report of the Ad Hoc Federal-Provincial-Territorial Working Group Reviewing Spousal Abuse Policies and Legislation, available on the Department of Justice Canada Web site (http://canada.justice.gc.ca/eng/pi/fv-vf/index.html), under Programs and Initiatives – Family Violence.
Judges and the Law
Two pieces of federal legislation are especially important to judges and their role in Canadian society: the Judges Act and the Constitution Acts 1867 to 1982, Part VII. The Canadian Legislation Web site – www.legis.ca – provides the texts of these acts, as well as the provincial and territorial statutes and regulations.
For a detailed discussion on the subject of judicial independence, see M. L. Friedland, A Place Apart: Judicial Independence and Accountability in Canada. (Ottawa: Canada Communication Group, 1995).
The following organizations and associations support and oversee judges in Canada:
- The Canadian Judicial Council
- Office of the Commissioner for Federal Judicial Affairs
- The National Judicial Institute
- The Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice
- The Canadian Association of Provincial Court Judges
- The Canadian Legal Information Institute
