Applying for leave to appeal

Unlike other courts, the Supreme Court chooses which appeals it will hear for most cases.

In all civil cases and in most criminal cases, you must ask the Court for leave or permission to have your appeal heard. Your appeal will only be heard if the Supreme Court of Canada gives leave or permission to appeal.

The Supreme Court of Canada will only hear an appeal if the case raises a question of public importance. You must convince the Court that your case should be heard. A case that raises an issue of public importance could be a case that:

• involves the interpretation of the Constitution or constitutional rights
• requires the Court to resolve conflicting decisions from courts of appeal
• raises a new issue of law

Seeking legal advice

Even if you plan to represent yourself before the Court, you should get legal advice as your first step. A lawyer can give you legal advice, tell you whether your case raises an issue of public importance and help you understand your chances for success.

Helpful resources:

• Pro Bono Ontario’s Supreme Court of Canada Leave to Appeal Assistance Project
  • Available to residents of any province or territory
• Organizations that make legal information available to the general public

Many of these sources also provide information on finding a lawyer and getting free or low-cost legal services. Use the tool below to find out if the Supreme Court of Canada is the right place to file your application and which document you can file.

Filing an application for leave to appeal

The Court will decide whether to give leave or permission to appeal once it has read the documents filed by the parties to the case. All leave applications are submitted in writing and you won’t need to appear in person.

If the judgment you are appealing was made by 1 judge of the Court of Appeal, contact the Court of Appeal to ask if that decision can be appealed in that court. If there is a right to appeal to 3 judges of the Court of Appeal, the decision of the 1 judge is not a final decision. In this case, the Supreme Court of Canada may dismiss your application because it does not have jurisdiction.

What to include in your application

Your written application for leave to appeal must include all of the following documents:

1. A notice of application for leave to appeal
   • This notice must include the following information about the judgment you want to appeal:
     • The name of the court appealed from
     • The file number from that court and the date of the judgment
     • Whether the application for leave to appeal is made under section 40 of the Supreme Court Act or section 691 of the Criminal Code
2. A full copy of the reasons for judgment and order you are appealing from
   • If there were no reasons for judgment, indicate this when filing your application for leave to appeal
3. A copy of the trial court reasons for judgment and order
   • If there were no trial court reasons for judgment, indicate this when filing your application for leave to appeal
4. A memorandum of argument that includes the facts, questions in issue and legal arguments
5. An affidavit of service that complies with rule 20(8)(d) of the Rules of the Supreme Court of Canada
6. If you serve and file your application more than 60 days after the date of the judgment you want to appeal, a motion for extension of time

Note: A file number will not be assigned to you until the Registry has received your complete and compliant application for leave to appeal.

Instructions and forms

You are encouraged to use the forms provided on the Court’s website when preparing your application. Using the forms will ensure that your application is compliant with the Rules of the Supreme Court of Canada or the Guidelines for Preparing Documents to be filed with the Supreme Court of Canada (Print and Electronic). When completing the forms, type or write clearly and legibly.

You can choose to put together your own application for leave to appeal instead of using the Supreme Court of Canada’s forms. If you choose this option, refer to the following documents for information on how to file:

• Rules of the Supreme Court of Canada and Forms to the Rules
• Guidelines for Preparing Documents to be filed with the Supreme Court of Canada (Print and Electronic)

Deadlines

Applications for leave to appeal are due within 60 days of the date of the Court of Appeal judgment. Consult How to calculate deadlines for serving and filing documents for information on deadlines.

Within the deadline, you must:

• file your notice of application for leave to appeal and the other documents listed above with the Registry
• serve a copy of your application for leave to appeal and other documents on all parties to the appeal who were named in the Court of Appeal judgment
• send a copy of your notice of application for leave to appeal to any of the parties who were before the Court of Appeal but who are not named in your notice of application

After you file your application

Once you have filed your application for leave to appeal, and it has been submitted to the Court, you cannot file any more documents unless you get permission from the Registrar, as laid out in Rule 32 of the Rules of the Supreme Court of Canada.

Replying to responses

The other party (the respondent) can file a response and serve it on all other parties within 30 days after the day that a file is opened for your application for leave to appeal. The Registry will send a letter to all parties when a file is opened.

You can file a reply to the respondent’s response using the reply form. Your reply can be a maximum of 5 pages. It must be served on all other parties within 10 days of receiving the response and filed with the Registry.

Delivering your application for leave to appeal to the judges

Once all the documents are filed or all deadlines for filing have expired, your application for leave to appeal and any response and reply filed will be sent to the judges of the Court by the Registrar.

Once the application for leave to appeal has been submitted, no further documents can be filed unless permission is given by the Registrar (Rule 32 of the Rules of the Supreme Court of Canada).

The Court’s makes its decision

Decisions of the Court are rendered in writing.

In general, a decision in your case will be released between 1 and 3 months after your application for leave to appeal has been sent to the judges.

You will receive an email from the Registry a few days before the decision will be released to advise you of the date your judgment will be rendered. On the date the judgment on your application for leave to appeal is rendered, we will send the judgment by email to all parties.

If you want to be informed of the Court’s decision on the day of the judgment, you can contact the Registry after 9:45 am.

Decisions are posted on the Court’s Case information page at 12 pm on the day they are rendered.

Costs

If the Court dismisses your application for leave to appeal in a civil case, you may be ordered to pay costs claimed by the respondent. Costs are generally not ordered in criminal cases.

Costs for applications for leave to appeal range from $800 to over $2000. We encourage you to consult a lawyer before submitting your leave application to avoid unnecessary expenses.

Filing your documents

Filing through the electronic filing portal

You can file your application using the Supreme Court of Canada’s Electronic Filing Portal.

If you are unable to use the Portal, you can file your documents in paper form.

Filing print copies

To file your application in print, send the original and 2 copies of your application for leave to appeal and other documents to the Registry. You can send documents by courier, registered mail, regular mail, or you can bring your documents to the Court in person.

Send your documents to the address below:

If you are bringing your documents in person, go to the east entrance of the Supreme Court of Canada building. You will file your documents using the e-filing lockers located at the East entrance.

If necessary, you can book an appointment with the Registry by sending an email to bookingregistry-reservationgreffe@scc-csc.ca.

Still have questions?

The Registry is open Monday to Friday from 8 am to 5 pm (Eastern Time), excluding holidays.