Proceeding Concurrently In Multi-Jurisdictional Hearings: Form Or Substance?

When parallel class actions in multiple provinces are resolved by one settlement agreement, procedural and jurisdictional issues may arise regarding the conduct of the settlement approval hearings.  Recent decisions have suggested that the most efficient solution was for concurrent hearings to be held in one site whereby at least one presiding judge sat outside his or her home province.  However, the Court of Appeal for British Columbia has recently ruled that any hearing on a matter commenced in British Columbia must proceed in a British Columbia court, even if the judge is not present in that courtroom.

In recent years, there have been various arrangements to address multijurisdictional hearings in class actions.  The Court of Appeal for British Columbia refers to the Indian Residential Schools class actions settlement where judges of the Superior Courts of Ontario, British Columbia, Quebec, Alberta and Saskatchewan sat in Alberta to hear a motion for approval