News and Views Issue 1: Winter 1998-1999
Will-Say Report
The Canadian Bar Association's Will-Say Working Group was struck under the auspices of the Systems of Civil Justice Implementation Committee. Their mandate, which is set out in Recommendation 15 of the Systems of Civil Justice Task Force Report, states that:
- The CBA work with selected jurisdictions to establish pilot projects using "will-say" procedures, so as to determine whether it is useful and fair to require will-say documents in civil cases to compel early disclosure of anticipated evidence, and to assess the impact of such a requirement on delay, costs and discovery.
The Working Group has been actively researching the utility of will-say statements
in Canada and, to that end, commissioned Professor Lee Stuesser to prepare a report
to the CBA Systems of Civil Justice Implementation Committee's Working Group on
Will-Say Statements. This report provides a thorough review of the experiences
in other jurisdictions and identifies the strengths and weaknesses of Will-Say
Statements, as well as a possible framework for will-say procedures in Canada.
The Working Group is of the view that the use of will-say statements in civil
cases will provide a means by which to reduce cost and delay. In their final report,
they propose to conduct a pilot project on the use of will-say statements in one
jurisdiction. The resulting data will then be made available to the courts, governments
and the profession. The Working
Group's final report is available here (requires Adobe Acrobat).
The Working Group is soliciting feedback on their report and, more specifically,
on the proposed procedural rules contained therein. Jurisdictions are also invited
to contact the Working Group, should there be an interest in being considered
as a possible site for a pilot project.
Members of the Working Group:
- David Tavender, Q.C., Chair (AB)
- Thomas Macdonald (NS)
- A.C.J. Jeffrey Oliphant (MB)
- Justice Bob Blair (ON)
- Carl Baar (ON)
- Lee Stuesser (MB)
For additional information on the Will-Say Project, please contact Heather
Nowlan of the CBA, (613) 237-2925 ext. 112, or call 1-800-267-8860.
Watch for an article on potential section 96 limits to Court annexed mediation,
in our next newsletter.