Changes to the Rules of Civil Procedure - Part 1

Substantial changes to the Rules of Civil Procedure come into effect January 1, 2010. This is part 1 of our review of the amendments.

A brand new rule has been created which introduces a “discovery plan”. This is a document created by the parties which will set out things such as the scope of discovery, timelines for service of Affidavits of Documents and names of persons to be examined. There is no prescribed form for the discovery plan, so precedents will have to be developed. This rule presumes a level of cooperation between counsel which may or may not exist. The aim of the rule is to make the process of documentary and oral discovery more streamlined and efficient; however, it could result in a new area of dispute between parties. It could be especially difficult in cases involving self-represented litigants to come to agreement on the elements of the discovery plan. If there is no discovery plan, a judge on a motion can refuse to grant the relief sought; for example, on an undertakings motion, the court could refuse to order the undertakings be complied with if there is no discovery plan. It would seem prudent to “paper the file” if counsel is unable to come to an agreement on the discovery plan, so that at least there is proof that an attempt at complying with the rule was made.

Although the discovery plan aims to make discovery more efficient, it is possible that it increases cost, at least in the short term, as counsel develop a standard practice for the discovery plan.