After a kickoff at the Diversity Breakfast, CBA IP Day continued with the Federal Court’s Town Hall focused on the imminent overhaul to pharmaceutical litigation in Canada, including two years to trial, focused discovery, changes to costs regime and efficient trial management. Bill C-30, the CETA implementation legislation cleared the senate this afternoon.
Agenda items raised for the round table discussions included:
- In anticipation of the PM(NOC) CETA implementation (see post), how the bench and bar will navigate complex pharmaceutical actions in (possibly) two years;
- Feedback on the Federal Court’s New Trial Management Guidelines (see post)
- Feedback on the Case Management: Increased Proportionality in Complex Litigation Practice Notice from 2015 (see post)
- Protective Orders: Should parties work out their own agreements and operate under the implied undertaking rule? (see my recent article on this topic)
- Expert blinding;
- Costs;
- Summary trials and summary judgment;
- The “no underadvisement” rule for discovery;
In closing remarks for the Town Hall, Chief Justice Crampton discussed:
- Budget 2017
- Scheduling of proceedings in the Federal Court (T- files)
- Judicial Complement
- Prothonotary Selection Process
- Case Management Working Group
- Draft Notices
- Technology Initiatives: e-trials, e-scheduling, e-filing;
- Rules Committee;
- Twitter;
- Records retention;
I will circulate any details of the CETA implementation process when available. Yesterday, the implementation legislation, Bill C-30, finished the senate committee stage and today passed third reading in the Senate so is only awaiting royal assent. It was indicated today that the implementing regulations for the court were basically done and awaiting government release.