Court hearings
Information on how to attend a hearing or how to prepare yourself if you are appearing before the Supreme Court of Canada.
Schedule
View scheduled hearings to find information about each upcoming case, including the start time of the hearing and the lawyers who will be appearing. Past hearings can be found in Archived webcasts.
Watch online
Supreme Court of Canada hearings are recorded and most are webcast live unless there is a publication ban. You can watch an archived webcasts of a hearing at any time, unless there is a limitation on access by court order or law.
You can order a DVD of a hearing by completing a Request to use Court photographs, webcasts or recordings.
You can also watch the Court’s hearings on the Cable Public Affairs Channel (CPAC).
Getting authorization to use recordings
The Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada is responsible for authorizing the copying, use and distribution of recorded proceedings. To request permission to use a recording, fill out and submit a Request to use Court photographs, webcasts or recordings.
Publication bans
The Supreme Court or lower courts sometime impose a publication ban or other restrictions on a case. A publication ban can be imposed to:
- protect the privacy of victims and witnesses
- ensure the names of young offenders are not disclosed, as required by legislation
A publication ban or restriction applies to everyone.
To check whether there is a publication ban in effect in a particular case, search the case information by entering the case name or docket number. If there is a publication ban in place, it will be indicated on the “Docket” page. You can get more information from the Records centre: records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca.
There are serious consequences for breaching a publication ban. When reporting decisions of the Court, writing about the Court or posting on social media, you are responsible for ensuring that you respect the terms of any publication ban. Consider getting legal advice to determine if publication is permitted.
Attend in person
You need to reserve a seat in the courtroom in advance because public seating is limited. To reserve a seat, email the Registry at bookingregistry-reservationgreffe@scc-csc.ca with the date and file number of the appeal hearing you want to attend. Responses to seating requests are sent 1 week before the hearing date. If we cannot reserve a space for you in the courtroom, we will let you know.
If a space cannot be reserved for you in the courtroom, you can watch the hearing in the Court building’s grand entrance hall.
Members of the media should send their request to media@scc-csc.ca.
Note: You cannot submit a request on behalf of someone else.
Preparing for a Court hearing
If you are appearing before the Court, the information in this section will help you prepare for your hearing. If you are representing yourself at a hearing, the Registry will send you a checklist and provide personalized information.
Filing condensed books
Parties must file an electronic version and 14 printed versions of the condensed book with the Court at least 2 business days before the hearing of the appeal. File your condensed book using the Court’s Electronic Filing Portal.
Rule 45 of the Rules of the Supreme Court of Canada sets out that a condensed book must be bound and should contain the excerpts from the record and the book of authorities that you will refer to in your oral argument. The condensed book must contain an outline of the oral argument, that cannot be longer than 2 pages, must relate to the contents of the condensed book and cannot be a supplementary factum.
Courtroom decorum
Counsel representing the appellant and the respondent are expected to remain in the courtroom or on the videoconference for the duration of the hearing.
Anyone attending a hearing in person at the Supreme Court of Canada building must stand if they are able when the judges enter and exit the courtroom.
All counsel participating in the hearing must be robed. Court attire can be modified as needed by counsel who are pregnant or have a medical condition or disability.
Judges must be addressed as “Justice”, “Mr. Justice”, “Madam Justice” or “Mr. Chief Justice”. In writing, the Chief Justice is addressed as “The Right Honourable” and the other judges are addressed as “The Honourable Justice”, “The Honourable Madam Justice” or “The Honourable Mr. Justice”.
Appearances and counsel sheets
The counsel sheet is a list of all the lawyers who are appearing at an appeal hearing. The counsel sheet allocates the time for oral argument as follows:
- Each side gets 1 hour for oral argument unless otherwise directed
- If there is more than 1 appellant or respondent, all the appellants or respondents share the hour allotted to the appellant or respondent for oral argument [Rule 71(5)]
- In an appeal as of right, the time allotted for oral argument may be reduced to 30 minutes
- Counsel will be advised by email approximately 1 month in advance of the hearing if the time is reduced [Rule 71(5.1)]
- No more than 2 counsel for each appellant or respondent and 1 counsel for each intervener can present oral argument
- If there are 2 counsel for a party, the time allotted to that party must be shared [Rules 71(1)(a) and 71(5)]
- You must advise the Registrar of the names of the parties who will be appearing before the Court at least 1 month before the appeal is scheduled to be heard as part of your filing [Rule 71(4)]
- Up to 4 counsel can appear for a party
- The Registrar can limit the number of counsel who appear before the Court to ensure the proper conduct of an appeal hearing
- A counsel sheet listing the names of the parties appearing before the Court is prepared for each hearing
- A draft version of the counsel sheet is sent to the parties in advance of the appeal hearing
- The final counsel sheet is made available in the courtroom the morning of the hearing and circulated via email to counsel appearing virtually, if applicable
- Once the times for oral argument have been settled, the Court will expect counsel to keep within their allotted time
- Articling students who want to sit at the counsel table during a hearing need permission from the Court. Therefore, a written request must be filed with the Registry ahead of the appeal hearing
- On the day of the hearing, counsel will be asked to verify the publication of their names and information about their law firm or organization as well as the order in which counsel names should appear in the judgment
- It is counsel’s responsibility to advise the Court of any changes to this information prior to the release of the judgment
Appearing by videoconference (Zoom)
The Court may direct counsel to appear by videoconference. Currently, videoconferences are conducted on Zoom. If you are appearing remotely before the Court, you will need:
- a Zoom account
- a desktop or notebook computer
- a hard-wired, high-speed Internet connection (broadband wired, 3G or 4G/LTE)
- a webcam (built-in or USB plug-in) or an HD camera or HD camcorder with video capture card
- for counsel providing oral submissions: a headset with a microphone provided by the Court
- the Registry will contact counsel to provide the headset
- the headset must be connected directly to your device
Counsel appearing remotely before the Court must be robed and observe the same decorum as they would if they were appearing in person.
Before the hearing, the Registry will contact counsel with more details, including an invitation to attend a mandatory pre-hearing testing session. The technical requirements listed above are also needed for the testing session.
Internet access and technology in the courtroom
Counsel can bring their own tablets or laptops, which can be connected to the courtroom’s free wireless Internet service.
Pre-hearing tours of the courtroom
Counsel can visit the Court in advance of the hearing day. Contact the Registry by email at registry-greffe@scc-csc.ca or by phone at 1-844-365-9662 to arrange a tour.
Accessibility
To request hearing assistive devices, contact the Registry at least 48 hours before the day of the hearing.
The day of the hearing
Hearings generally begin at 9:30 am, however, the Court may occasionally start at 9 am. The Court will notify parties in advance of the hearing start time.
A least 5 judges will be assigned to hear an appeal, though more often 7 or 9 judges hear a case.
Checking in with the Registry
Counsel for both the morning and afternoon hearings must check in with the Registry by:
- 8 am if the day’s hearings start at 9 am
- 8:30 am if the hearings are scheduled to begin later
If you are appearing in person, enter the Supreme Court of Canada building through the east entrance.
You will be assigned a locker in the barrister’s robing room for your personal items. You will be asked in advance whether you want to use the women’s, men’s or universal robing room.
Only counsel listed on the counsel sheet may enter through the east entrance on the day of the hearing. Other individuals can enter the building through the main doors at the front of the building.
Counsel will have access to the courtroom 1 hour before the hearing to set up. Counsel can also use the library on the third floor. Counsel must be in the courtroom at least 30 minutes before the hearing is scheduled to begin.
Oral argument
To assist counsel in keeping their oral argument within the allotted time, the lectern is equipped with a digital clock:
- 5 minutes before your allotted time is over, the clock will turn green
- 2 minutes before your allotted time is over, the clock will turn yellow
- Once your time is over, the clock will turn red
Simultaneous interpretation
Simultaneous interpretation services are provided at all appeal hearings. To assist the interpreters, counsel should speak slowly and loudly when providing their oral arguments.
Reserved seating for your guests
If you have requested reserved seating for a guest, you may want to advise them that:
- the hearing will be recorded
- most proceedings will be webcast or broadcast
- all persons in the courtroom may appear on camera
Photographs
You cannot take photographs when the Court is in session. Counsel appearing before the Court can take pictures at the podium and in the counsel area after the hearing. Members of the public, including counsel’s guests can only take pictures from the public gallery.
Parking and accessibility
Persons attending a hearing in person should consider the following information:
- No parking is available at the Court on the day of the hearing
- The Court is wheelchair accessible
- The cafeteria located near the east entrance is available for counsel
After the hearing
Once the hearing is over, counsel are asked to:
- gather their personal belongings and remove them from the courtroom
- return to the east entrance to drop off any locker keys
You do not need to return to the Registry to sign out. Any condensed books or other documents can be brought to the Registry for recycling unless they contain sensitive information.
Questionnaire following the hearing
After the hearing, a Registry officer will ask counsel to fill out a short questionnaire to determine whether any information subject to a publication ban or sealing order was disclosed.
Judgments
The Court may pronounce judgment on the appeal immediately after the hearing, but usually, judgment is reserved.
Approximately 1 week before the judgment is to be rendered, your agent, if you have one, or you will be informed by telephone of the date of its release. Counsel can subscribe to the Court’s mailing list to receive notice of the release of judgments in appeals and in applications for leave to appeal or consult the Court’s social media accounts.
Judgments are generally rendered at 9:45 am on Thursday or Friday and are available on the Court’s website shortly after. A copy of the formal judgment will be sent by email to each party.
Only counsel listed on the counsel sheet will be listed in the published reasons for judgment. The purpose of the list in the reasons for judgment is to provide a record of counsel who officially appeared before the Court at the hearing, not to list everyone who contributed to the file for each party.
Lock-ups
The Court may, at its discretion, hold lock-ups for media and counsel immediately prior to the release of its judgments. The purpose of a lock-up is to ensure accurate and informed reporting of the Court’s judgments. For more information, consult the Court’s judgment lock-up procedure and the related Notice to the profession.