The Federal and Provincial Courts across the country have taken unprecedented measures to help stop the spread of the coronavirus. Below is a list of Court closures and Related Services that may impact your claim. Rest assured, at Gluckstein Lawyers we're staying on top of the developments to continue to service our clients as best as we possibly can during these challenging times.

Superior Court of Justice

The Superior Court of Justice has suspended all Regular Operations. All family and civil matters scheduled on or after Tuesday, March 17, 2020 are adjourned until further notice. Urgent matters will be heard during the suspension. For more information, please visit: https://www.ontariocourts.ca/scj/covid-19-suspension-fam/

Ontario Superior Court of Justice

All sittings of the Small Claims Court in Ontario are cancelled effective March 16, 2020 until further notice. If this impacts your case, your lawyer will reach out to you to advise on next steps.

Ontario Court of Justice

The Ontario Court of Justice has suspended its regular operations effective Tuesday, March 17, 2020. All civil and family matters scheduled have been adjourned. The court will hear only urgent matters. For more information: https://www.ontariocourts.ca/ocj/ or https://www.ontariocourts.ca/ocj/covid-19/

Court of Appeal for Ontario

Effective, Tuesday March 17, 2020 the Court of Appeal will suspend all scheduled appeals until April 3, 2020. Effective March 23, 2020 until further notice, public counter services will be closed. All filing can be mailed, sent via email or dropped off outside the Intake Office.

Examinations for Discovery & Mediations

During the shutdown of services, we will make every effort to have Examinations for Discovery and Mediations that have previously been arranged, proceed as scheduled, using video-conferencing technology if possible. This will, of course, require the cooperation of the other parties involved. You will be informed about any changes. We will also continue to arrange Discoveries and Mediations for the future.

Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act

Pursuant to the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act, the Ontario government has suspended limitation and procedural times periods. This suspension is retroactive to March 16, 2020. The order-in-council can be viewed here: https://www.oba.org/getmedia/31b388c7-2b5b-4193-b338-52d573c0c2aa/EMCPA-Order-eng-fr

Medical Records and Release of Information

At Gluckstein Lawyers, we are committed to moving your case forward. However, we want to update you with regard to the release of medical records and other information which we may have requisitioned in order to further your case. Due to COVID-19, we have been informed that there may be delays in our receipt of medical records and other information. Rest assured we are continuing to follow up as necessary.

Tribunals Ontario

Effective March 13, 2020, all in-person hearings have been postponed and will be rescheduled at a later date. Alternative hearing options will be considered. If your case has been impacted by this delay, Gluckstein Lawyers will make reasonable efforts to encourage alternative hearing formats. For more information: https://slasto-tsapno.gov.on.ca/en/news/tribunals-ontarios-new-policy-for-hearings/

Canadian Process Serving

Process serving and other legal support services are considered an essential service and will remain operational. There will be disruptions in the delivery of documents by courier and post. As such, at Gluckstein Lawyers we will be emailing all documents to ensure we facilitate this process in a timely matter.

Our Full Circle Care Commitment

Trying to make sense of these unprecedented times can be overwhelming. As a firm dedicated to providing full-circle care to our clients, Gluckstein Lawyers is ready to offer you any help we can to make both the legal process and these challenging times a little easier. We want to become an important part of your community and network of support.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.