Q&A — Provincial Court

You can file the following signed documents without first swearing or affirming them if it's possible to meet with a commissioner of oaths to do so:

• Affidavit — General (Form 45)
• Financial Statement (Form 4)
• Guardianship Affidavit (Form 5)
• Application About a Protection Order (Form 12) if you're attaching Schedule 1

You must still take care to ensure your affidavit is accurate and true. During your next court appearance, the judge will likely require you to swear that the contents of your affidavit are true.

To file sworn or unsworn affidavits and financial statements online or by email, sign the document by hand (electronic signatures aren't acceptable). Then scan the document to a PDF — most smartphones have an app to do this. You must keep the original document in case a judge orders you to file it later on. Next, fill out and attach an Electronic Filing Statement (Form 51), which you can sign using an electronic signature. 

At this time, wearing face masks in Provincial Court buildings is recommended but not required. However, a judge, judicial justice, or justice of the peace may require masks to be worn within their courtroom. Face masks and hand sanitizer will be available.

There are no requirements for health screening, physical distancing, or capacity limits at courthouses. All courtrooms continue to have plexiglass barriers.

At this time, all family hearings (short appearances), family management conferences, family settlement conferences, and family case conferences (CFCSA) are going ahead by audioconference or videoconference as scheduled. Family trials and trial continuations in BC Provincial Court are proceeding in person as scheduled unless one of the people involved isn't available, or if not enough judges or court staff are available.

The Provincial Court registries are now open for in-person filing of documents, although the court still prefers alternate methods of filing if possible. Send your documents by email or mail to your local court registry, by fax to a fax filing registry, or by using Court Services Online where available.

For full information, please see our Provincial Court during COVID-19 page.

All deadlines for filing court documents were temporarily suspended but began running again on March 25, 2021.

If you’re unsure of any time periods related to your family law matter, contact your court registry. It's important to file documents on time and to appear in court when required.

You may take advantage of a new early resolution/expedited Provincial Court process, if you need to suspend or change a Provincial Court child or spousal support filed agreement or order because of a change in income related to COVID-19. The first step in the new process is for you to have a needs assessment interview by phone or videoconference. If you can both agree to change your existing agreement or order, you can get help with preparing an amended written agreement or applying to the court to change your existing order by consent. If you can’t agree, you and the other person may be referred to mediation (if it's appropriate in your situation). You must also fill out some forms for the court (and serve them) so they can arrange a hearing by telephone or videoconference, more quickly than usual.

To apply for this process, contact Family Justice Services to schedule a needs assessment interview at 1-844-747-3963 or 250-356-7012 (Victoria). You can also send an email to CSVariation@gov.bc.ca or JSBVictoriaJACEarlyResolution@gov.bc.ca (Victoria). Note that there are some differences in the process in Victoria. See the Provincial Court website for more details about the new process, and the BC government website Q and A page about support.

If you want changes to child or spousal support for reasons not related to COVID-19, you can't use this process. Instead, make an application through your local Provincial Court registry.

If you both agree, you can now change a first appearance date or a trial date without having to go to court. Contact the court registry and ask for an available date that is good for both you and the other person(s). Then, complete a Consent to Court Date form. After everyone has signed it, file it at your local court registry. Note that to change a trial date, you must file the form at least forty-five days before the original trial date.

COVID-19 has affected many stages in the child protection process for those working with the ministry on the child's plan of care. For full information about hearings, conferences, and trials, see Child protection during COVID-19.