Interpretation

1In this regulation:

"Act" means the Court Rules Act;

"authorized reporter" means an official reporter who

(a)is employed by the government as an official reporter, or

(b)qualifies as an authorized reporter under section 2.3;

"daily transcript" means a transcript required to be prepared and made available to the party ordering it on the juridical day following the proceedings transcribed or on the juridical day following the date it is ordered;

"expedited transcript" means a transcript required to be prepared and made available to the party ordering it by the third juridical day following the proceedings transcribed or by the third juridical day following the date it is ordered;

"recording" means, in respect of a proceeding, the recording made of the proceeding, whether that recording is a sound recording or a recording incorporating both sound and video.

[am. B.C. Regs. 2/86, s. 2; 248/97, s. 1.]

Qualifications

2(1)  The Attorney General may designate as an official reporter for the Supreme Court a person who qualifies under subsection (2), and may in the designation specify terms, conditions and restrictions.

(2)  The qualifications for an official reporter are

(a)current membership in the British Columbia Shorthand Reporters Association, or

(b)the ability to write shorthand manually or by stenotype at a speed of not less than 200 words a minute as attested to by a certificate from

(i)Vancouver Community College Verbatim Reporting School,

(ii)Pacific Vocational Institute Verbatim Reporting School, or

(iii)any other association or institution for the training or testing of shorthand reporters that is approved by the Attorney General.

[am. B.C. Regs. 2/86, s. 3; 380/90, s. 1.]

Reporter's oath

2.1Each official reporter is an officer of the court, and shall take, and shall file a record of the taking in the court of, the following oath:

I shall faithfully and accurately, and to the best of my skill and ability, report in shorthand or by stenotype or by sound recording apparatus evidence given on examination and at a proceeding and everything said by counsel and the judge, master or registrar during a proceeding in which it is my duty to act as a reporter, and I shall transcribe or have transcribed my notes, should that be required, so help me God.

[en. B.C. Reg. 380/90, s. 2; am. B.C. Reg. 420/97, s. 1.]

When official reporters may attend

2.11(1)  An authorized reporter may be retained to attend some or all of a proceeding

(a)if the proceeding is a civil proceeding, by any party to the proceeding to make a record of some or all of that proceeding, or

(b)if the proceeding is a criminal proceeding, by any party to the proceeding to make a record of any portion of the proceeding occurring after December 31, 1997.

(2)  If the parties to a proceeding referred to in subsection (1) are not able to agree on an authorized reporter to attend and record the proceeding, one or more of the parties may retain an authorized reporter who, on the terms the court may impose, may attend and record the portion or portions of the proceeding the court may order.

(3)  If the judge, master or registrar requests that an authorized reporter attend some or all of a civil proceeding and the proceeding or portion of the proceeding that the authorized reporter is to attend occurs after July 6, 1997, the attendance fees of the authorized reporter must, unless the judge, master or registrar orders otherwise, be paid by the plaintiff, and the party who is required to pay those fees must choose, from the list of authorized reporters retained by the minister, the authorized reporter who is to attend.

(4)  The attendance fee of an authorized reporter referred to in subsection (3) forms part of the costs of the proceeding.

[en. B.C. Reg. 248/97, s. 2; am. B.C. Reg. 420/97, ss. 2 and 3.]

Duties of reporters

2.2(1)  An official reporter, or a person appointed a reporter to the court, is required to report accurately in shorthand, by stenotype or by sound recording apparatus evidence given on examination and at any proceeding and everything said by counsel and the judge, master or registrar during a proceeding except the addresses of counsel to the judge, master or registrar or jury.

(2)  At the request of the judge, master or registrar or of any counsel the reporter shall also report the addresses of counsel to the judge, master or registrar or jury.

(3)  Whether or not an official reporter attended a proceeding of which a recording is made, an official reporter may be retained by any party to transcribe some or all of the recording made of the proceeding if that official reporter is an authorized reporter.

[en. B.C. Reg. 380/90, s. 2; am. B.C. Regs. 248/97, s. 3; 420/97, s. 1.]

Authorized reporters

2.3(1)  Despite sections 2 and 2.2, an official reporter is qualified to attend at court to make a record of some or all of a proceeding if the official reporter is an authorized reporter.

(2)  An official reporter is qualified to become an authorized reporter under this section if

(a)the official reporter

(i)was designated as an official reporter under section 2 (1) within 3 years before the date of the application for authorization under this section,

(ii)was designated as an official reporter under section 2 (1) more than 3 years before the date of the application for authorization under this section and satisfies the minister that the official reporter had been employed as an official reporter for at least 2 years within that 3 year period, or

(iii)was designated as an official reporter under section 2 (1) more than 3 years before the date of the application for authorization under this section and within one year before the date of the application for authorization under this section successfully completed a qualification examination approved by the minister,

(b)the official reporter has no criminal record or any criminal record that the official reporter has is in respect of offences that do not render the official reporter unfit for acting as an authorized reporter, and

(c)the official reporter was not discharged from employment as an official reporter in British Columbia or any other jurisdiction for a cause that would render the official reporter unfit for acting as an authorized reporter.

(3)  An official reporter who qualifies under subsection (2) is entitled to enter into a written agreement with the minister by which the person's rights and obligations as an authorized reporter are set out and on entering into that agreement, the official reporter becomes an authorized reporter.

(4)  Each agreement referred to in subsection (3) must be substantially similar to every other agreement entered into under that subsection.

(5)  The minister is to retain a list of authorized reporters.

(6)  An official reporter included on the list retained under subsection (5) ceases to be an authorized reporter and must be removed from that list if the official reporter breaches the agreement referred to in subsection (3).

[en. B.C. Reg. 248/97, s. 4.]

Format and delivery of transcripts

3If an official reporter is retained to transcribe proceedings, the official reporter must

(a)subject to the Rules of Court, transcribe proceedings in a format that complies with the standards set out in Schedule 1, and

(b)complete the transcript as soon as reasonably possible and no later than,

(i)if it is a transcript of oral reasons for judgment, an oral ruling or a charge to the jury, 5 business days after the transcript is ordered,

(ii)if it is a transcript or a transcript extract for appeal purposes, 60 days after bringing the appeal, unless further extensions are granted by the Court of Appeal,

(iii)if it is a transcript of reciprocal maintenance hearings, 14 business days after the transcript is ordered,

(iv)if it is a transcript of a preliminary inquiry, 22 business days after the transcript is ordered, or

(v)in any other case, 22 business days after the transcript is ordered.

[am. B.C. Regs. 149/91; 248/97, s. 5; 245/2001, s. 1.]

Official transcript

3.01(1)  An authorized reporter who prepares a transcript of all or any portion of a proceeding must promptly make available to each party to the proceeding who requests it a copy of the whole or any part of the transcript at a cost not greater than the lesser of

(a)the fee payable for the copy under section 4, and,

(b)whichever of the following applies:

(i)if the whole of the transcript is requested, one half of the cost at which the transcript was provided to the person who first ordered it;

(ii)if only a part of the transcript is requested, one half of the portion of the cost referred to in subparagraph (i) that is attributable to the portion of the transcript requested.

(1.1)  If a transcript is prepared by an authorized reporter or by any other person who, in the opinion of the minister, is qualified to do so, the person must, before delivering the transcript to the registrar for filing, include in the transcript a certificate by which the person certifies that each person who prepared a portion of the transcript certified that that portion of the transcript is complete and accurate.

(2)  After a transcript is certified in accordance with subsection (1.1), the person who prepared the transcript must, without charge, provide the original certified transcript to the registrar for filing.

(3)  After receipt of the original certified transcript under subsection (2), the registrar or any person who is authorized to do so by the registrar must certify the filed transcript as the original transcript if

(a)the transcript complies with the standards set out in Schedule 1,

(b)the transcript is certified in accordance with subsection (1.1),

(c)the registrar has no record of any other transcript being ordered in respect of the portion of the proceedings transcribed, and

(d)the person certifying the transcript is not aware of any failure by the person who prepared the transcript to comply with subsection (1) in respect of the transcript.

(4)  A transcript certified under subsection (3) is evidence of the official record.

[en. B.C. Reg. 248/97, s. 6; am. B.C. Reg. 420/97, s. 4.]

Amendment of transcript

3.02(1)  Without limiting section 7 of the Sound Recording Regulation, B.C. Reg. 249/78, in the event of a dispute respecting the contents of a transcript, an application may be made to a judge, master or registrar.

(1.1)  If the judge, master or registrar orders that a transcript be amended, the person who prepared the transcript must promptly make the amendments required by the judge, master or registrar and must deliver to the registrar a certified copy of the revised transcript or the revised transcript pages, as the case may be.

(2)  Section 3.01 applies to the revised transcript or revised transcript pages referred to in subsection (1.1) of this section.

[en. B.C. Reg. 248/97, s. 6; am. B.C. Reg. 420/97, ss. 3 and 5.]

On appeal, notes deemed accurate

3.1(1)  On an appeal, rehearing, motion for new trial or a proceeding in review of any matter that has been reported by an official reporter, regard shall be had to the extension and transcription of the notes certified under this regulation.

(2)  For the appeal, rehearing, motion or proceeding in review, the notes are evidence of the proceeding purported to have been reported.

[en. B.C. Reg. 380/90, s. 3; am. B.C. Reg. 420/97, s. 6.]

Fees

4(1)  If an official reporter, on the request of any person, including the government, prepares a transcript from the notes taken by an official reporter of a proceeding that, or supplies a copy described in Schedule 2 in respect of a proceeding that, begins before July 6, 1997, the applicable fee set out in that schedule is payable to the official reporter by the person requesting the transcript or copy.

(2)  If an official reporter, on the request of the government or the Legal Services Society, prepares a transcript of a civil proceeding that, or supplies a copy described in Schedule 2 in respect of a civil proceeding that, begins before April 1, 1998, the applicable fee set out in that schedule is payable to the official reporter by the government or the Legal Services Society, as the case may be.

(3)  If an official reporter, at any person's request, prepares a transcript or supplies a copy described in Schedule 2 in respect of any criminal proceeding that begins before April 1, 1998, the applicable fee set out in that schedule is payable to the official reporter by the person requesting the transcript.

(4)  If the accuracy of a transcript prepared by an official reporter is challenged, the official reporter must not, if the challenge to the accuracy of the transcript is upheld, seek or accept any fee or charge for any action taken to verify the accuracy of the transcript or for any action taken to replace all or any part of the original version of the challenged transcript with the corrected version.

[en. B.C. Reg. 248/97, s. 7; am. B.C Reg. 420/97, s. 7.]

Fees for examination for discovery

5Where an official reporter, on the request of the Crown or of the Legal Services Society, attends an examination for discovery, prepares a transcript of an examination for discovery or supplies a copy described in Schedule 3, or where an appointment is cancelled in the circumstances described in that schedule, the applicable fee set out in that schedule is payable to the official reporter by the person requesting his attendance or the transcript or copy.

Expenses

6Where an official reporter, on the request of the Attorney General, performs his duties at a location other than the headquarters location specified in the contract pursuant to which he was appointed, travel and accommodation expenses are payable to the official reporter at the rate applicable to Group II public service employees under Treasury Board Order 88/81 as amended from time to time.

Accounts payable by the government and expense claims

7An official reporter shall

(a)submit to the Attorney General twice each month

(i)a bill for fees payable by the Crown to the official reporter under section 4 or 5 or pursuant to a contract, and

(ii)a claim for any expenses payable to the official reporter under section 6 together with receipts for expenditures, and

(b)specify

(i)where transcript fees are payable, the date and name of the case, the number of pages of transcript and the cost per page, and

(ii)where attendance fees are payable, the dates, court and location for each day billed.

[am. B.C. Reg. 2/86, s. 4.]

1  Each page of a transcript must be typed or reproduced on 8 1/2 by 11 inch paper of good quality, using only one side of the paper, and must be left justified unless otherwise provided in this Schedule.

2  All transcripts must be typed or reproduced using Courier New 12-point font type, or its equivalent.

3  There are to be no footers in a transcript, and the footer area must not be used to identify the authorized reporter who prepares the transcript.

4  A proceedings transcript must

(a)be prepared in paper format,

(b)be available in electronic format satisfactory to the registrar, and

(c)consist of the following:

(i)for the Supreme Court, a hard front cover;

(ii)a frontispiece;

(iii)an index of proceedings;

(iv)an index of exhibits;

(v)the text of the proceedings, including testimony and evidence;

(vi)the summation or submission of counsel, if required by the presiding judicial officer or if requested by counsel;

(vii)a hard back cover.

5  In a bound proceedings transcript

(a)the margins for all pages are to be 1 inch from the top, bottom and left edges of the paper and 1 1/2 inches from the right edge of the paper, and

(b)the left and right margins on the cover, frontispiece and index pages are to be reversed for binding.

6  A proceedings transcript must be bound with cerlox bindings with all pages except the cover, frontispiece and indexes bound to the left hand side.

7  The hard cover of a transcript for the Supreme Court must be of Exact Vellum Cover/Bristol Tan cover stock or its equivalent.

8  The front cover of a proceedings transcript for the Supreme Court must include the following information, with spacing adjusted to fit on one page:

(a)the court file number, right justified;

(b)the name of the registry of the court file, right justified, followed by two blank lines;

(c)the level of court, bold and centred;

(d)the title and surname of the presiding judicial officer, bold and centred, followed by two blank lines, and

(i)if there is more than one judicial officer with the same surname at the same level of court, the initials of the presiding judicial officer, and

(ii)if a jury is present, the words "and jury";

(e)the location where the court proceeding took place, right justified;

(f)the date of the court proceeding, or if the volume of transcript covers more than one continuous day, the dates of the court proceeding, in format mmm dd, yyyy, right justified, followed by two blank lines;

(g)the style of proceeding, shortened if necessary to permit the cover to fit on one page, followed by two blank lines;

(h)the type of transcript, centred;

(i)if the proceedings transcript is an excerpt, a short description of the contents of the excerpt, followed by two blank lines;

(j)the day number for multiple day hearings, and "original" or "copy" as applicable, bold and centred, followed by two blank lines;

(k)details of any ban or sealing order that applies at the time that the transcript is prepared, and "in private" if applicable, all highlighted in a box, bold and centred, followed by two blank lines;

(l)the name, address and telephone number of the authorized reporter who prepared the transcript, not including any logo;

(m)if applicable, the business name of the authorized reporter, not including any logo.

9  The front cover of a transcript of proceedings for the Supreme Court may include a facsimile number and an e-mail address of the authorized reporter.

10  The frontispiece may be more than one page if necessary and must include the following information:

(a)all the information contained on the front cover as required under section 8;

(b)the full style of proceeding in the place of a shortened style of proceeding;

(c)after the details of any ban or sealing order, the following information followed by two blank lines:

(i)the names of counsel appearing and the names of the persons they represent;

(ii)the names of unrepresented parties appearing;

(iii)the method of appearance if a party appeared by electronic means;

(iv)the name of the clerk or recorder who recorded the proceedings.

11  The index of proceedings must include the following:

(a)the names of witnesses called;

(b)whether the transcript is of examination in chief, cross-examination or re-examination and by whom;

(c)if a portion of the proceedings is not transcribed or is excerpted, an indication to that effect;

(d)all submissions by counsel, if transcribed;

(e)charges to the jury;

(f)any other significant happenings in the court proceedings;

(g)the page number of the transcript where each event starts.

12  The index of exhibits must follow immediately after the index of proceedings, starting on the same page if space is available, and the index of exhibits must include the following:

(a)the exhibit numbers, including letters, if applicable;

(b)a description of the exhibits;

(c)the page number of each portion of the transcript at which the text indicates that an exhibit is entered into evidence.

13  If the index of proceedings and the index of exhibits together exceed one page, the pages must be numbered with small Roman numerals in the first line of the header, centred.

14  An excerpt of proceedings transcript that is less than 11 pages in length

(a)must be prepared in paper format,

(b)need not be bound,

(c)if unbound, must be prepared so that the margins are 1 inch from the top, bottom and right edges of the paper and 1 1/2 inches from the left edge of the paper for all pages, with the pages stapled in the top left hand corner,

(d)if bound, must be prepared as described in section 4,

(e)must be available in electronic format satisfactory to the registrar,

(f)must be prepared so that the text of the transcript follows immediately after the frontispiece and two blank lines, and

(g)must consist of the following:

(i)a frontispiece as described in section 8 except for paragraphs (l) and (m) of that section;

(ii)the text of the proceedings, including testimony and evidence;

(iii)the summation or submission of counsel, if required by the presiding judicial officer or if requested by counsel;

(iv)a hard back cover.

15  A proceedings transcript must have a shoulder note in the header on each page of the transcript and the shoulder note must include the following, all left justified:

(a)on the first line, the page number in Arabic numerals, beginning at page 1 on the first page of each volume;

(b)on the next line, "voir dire", if applicable;

(c)on the next one or two lines, a description of the court proceedings which are transcribed at the top of that page, including but not restricted to

(i)the name of the witness, the party on whose behalf the witness was tendered, the status of the examination and the name of counsel conducting the examination,

(ii)the opening statements of counsel,

(iii)the charge to the jury,

(iv)submissions of counsel, and

(v)read in discovery or deposition testimony;

(d)on the next line, any ban on publication or disclosure that applies at the time the transcript is prepared, including the section numbers, and "in private" if applicable.

16  For an unbound excerpt of proceedings transcript that is less than 11 pages in length

(a)the shoulder notes must start on the page of the transcript after the page on which the frontispiece ends,

(b)the numbering of the pages must be sequential from the first page of the transcript, and

(c)the actual page numbering must begin on the first full page of text.

17  Each page of a proceedings transcript must have 47 lines of text in the body of the transcript and each line in the body of the transcript must be consecutively numbered at the left margin.

18  If an unbound excerpt of proceedings transcript is less than 11 pages in length, the line numbering must start at the first line in the body of the transcript wherever the first line of text is situated on the page.

19  A proceedings transcript must be single spaced except that a single blank line must be inserted before and after notations, quotations and the swearing of witnesses, and before the line identifying counsel at the start of the examination of a witness.

20  Other than line numbering, all lines in the body of a proceedings transcript must be indented as follows:

(a)at the 1/2 inch indent, the identification of speakers and the question and answer during testimony;

(b)at the 1 inch indent, the verbatim transcript of what was said in the proceedings;

(c)at the 1 1/2 inches indent, all notations, quotations and marking of exhibits;

(d)at 3 spaces to the left of the centre of the page, the introduction and swearing or affirming of witnesses, and the lines identifying the place and date at the beginning of the proceedings transcript.

21  The first line on the first page of a proceedings transcript must contain the place of the hearing and the second line must contain the date of the hearing, both lines indented 3 spaces to the left of the centre of the page, with the third line blank.

22  If the proceeding includes a jury, a proceedings transcript must contain as the fourth line a notation indented 1 1/2 inches indicating whether the jury is present or absent from the courtroom, followed by another blank line.

23  In a transcript of testimony each question must be preceded by the letter "Q", and, beginning on a new line, the answer must be preceded by the letter "A".

24  In the text of a proceedings transcript

(a)there must be at least 50 letter spaces in each full line,

(b)all letter spaces must be used unless a paragraph has been completed or filling all spaces involves improperly breaking a word, and

(c)the last line of every paragraph must contain only the number of letter spaces that are required for the completion of the paragraph.

25  The name or description of a person speaking, other than during examination of a witness, must be typed in capital letters at the 1/2 inch indent, followed by a colon and two spaces, and the statement or submission must start at the third letter space after the colon.

26  All notations in a transcript must be indented 1 1/2 inches, in capital letters and enclosed in parentheses, and must include, but are not restricted to, the following:

(a)adjournments;

(b)reconvening;

(c)proceedings not transcribed in the proceedings transcript;

(d)exhibits;

(e)the presence or absence of a jury in the courtroom at the beginning of the proceedings being transcribed, a change in that presence or absence, and all jury notations between the end of the charge to the jury and the time that the jury returns a verdict must include the time of day;

(f)when persons are participating in the proceedings by electronic means;

(g)when audio or video recordings were played but the verbatim recording is not included in the proceedings transcript;

(h)whenever audio recorded proceedings are played back or a reporter reads back from their notes, with an indication of what was played or read back.

27  A proceedings transcript must be certified, in a form acceptable to the registrar, in each volume of the proceedings transcript by the reporter who prepared that volume.

28  If more than one reporter prepares the contents of a volume of a proceedings transcript, the certification of each reporter must appear at the end of the portion of the transcript which each reporter prepared.

29  If the last line of the verbatim text extends beyond line 37 on the last page of a proceedings transcript, and the closing notations and certification of the reporter cannot all fit on that page, the last line of the verbatim text must be typed or reproduced on the next page, followed by the closing notations and the certification of the reporter.

1  Where a transcript of a judgment of a court, other than the Court of Appeal, is ordered in 27 line format, the transcript fee is

(a)for each ordinary transcript

(i)from the first party ordering the transcript, $2.45 a page for the original filed in the appropriate registry, or given to counsel as required by the Rules of Court, and 30¢ a page for each copy, and

(ii)from each other party, $1.00 a page for the first copy and 30¢ a page for each additional copy,

(b)for each expedited transcript,

(i)from the party ordering the transcript, $3.30 a page for the original filed in the appropriate registry, or given to counsel as required by the Rules of Court, and 30¢ a page for each copy, or

(ii)in the case of a second or subsequent order, the fee provided in paragraph (a) (ii) unless the order is specified expedited, then the fee is $1.80 a page, and

(c)for each daily transcript,

(i)from the first party ordering the transcript, $3.75 a page for the original filed in the appropriate registry, or given to counsel as required by the Rules of Court, and 30¢ a page for each copy, or

(ii)in the case of a second or subsequent order, the fee provided in paragraph (a) (ii) unless the order is specified expedited, then the fee is $1.80 a page.

2  Where a transcript of a proceeding is ordered in 47 line format, the transcript fee is

(a)for each ordinary transcript

(i)from the first party ordering the transcript, $4.00 a page for the original filed in the appropriate registry, or given to counsel as required by the Rules of Court, and 50¢ a page for each copy, and

(ii)from each other party, $1.50 a page for the first copy and 50¢ a page for each additional copy,

(b)for each expedited transcript,

(i)from the party ordering the transcript, $5.00 a page for the original filed in the appropriate registry, or given to counsel as required by the Rules of Court, and 50¢ a page for each copy, or

(ii)in the case of a second or subsequent order, the fee provided in section 1 (a) (ii) unless the order is specified expedited, then the fee is $2.70 a page, and

(c)for each daily transcript,

(i)from the first party ordering the transcript, $5.75 a page for the original filed in the appropriate registry, or given to counsel as required by the Rules of Court, and 50¢ a page for each copy, or

(ii)in the case of a second or subsequent order, the fee provided in section 1 (a) (ii) unless the order is specified expedited, then the fee is $2.70 a page.

3  Where a transcript is prepared of a judgment of the Court of Appeal, the fee for the original only, which is to be delivered to the court forthwith, is $7.00 a page. No other fees for Court of Appeal judgments are payable by any party to the appeal.

4  Where additional copies of a transcript are required for submission of an appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, the fee for the additional copies is 15¢ a page.

1  The fee for attendance at an examination for discovery is $25 for each hour or part of an hour of the official reporter's attendance required.

2  Where an appointment for attendance at an examination for discovery is cancelled and less than 2 days notice is given by the Crown or the Legal Services Society to the official reporter, the cancellation fee is $100.

3  Where a transcript is ordered in 27 line format, the transcript fee is

(a)for each ordinary transcript

(i)where the Crown or the Legal Services Society is the first party ordering the transcript, $2.45 a page for the original filed in the appropriate registry, or given to counsel as required by the Rules of Court, and 30¢ a page for each copy, or

(ii)in any other case, $1.00 a page for the first copy and 30¢ a page for each additional copy,

(b)for each expedited transcript

(i)where the Crown or the Legal Services Society is the first party ordering the transcript, $3.30 a page for the original filed in the appropriate registry, or given to counsel as required by the Rules of Court, and 30¢ a page for each copy, or

(ii)in any other case, the fee provided in paragraph (a) (ii) unless the order is specified expedited, then the fee is $1.80 a page, and

(c)for each daily transcript

(i)where the Crown or the Legal Services Society is the first party ordering the transcript, $3.75 a page for the original filed in the appropriate registry, or given to counsel as required by the Rules of Court, and 30¢ a page for each copy, or

(ii)in any other case, the fee provided in paragraph (a) (ii) unless the order is specified expedited, then the fee is $1.80 a page.