Amendments to Probate Rules Coming Into Effect

On October 1, 2022, amendments to King’s Bench Rules 74 and 75, regarding Probate, come into effect. The primary objective of the new rules is to eliminate jargon and use plain language to make the rules easier to understand.

Along with new rules, come new forms. There will be a little leeway to allow the profession to get used to the new forms, but members could face the risk of having their documents rejected for lack of compliance.

Make sure you and your team are using the correct forms.

M.R. 68/2002

M.R. 69/2002

M.R. 70/2002

All Court Forms

New King’s Bench Notice and Practice Direction

September 23, 2022 – Motion to Withdraw As Counsel To An Accused In A Criminal Case – effective immediately.

“Where counsel to an accused in a criminal case is moving to withdraw as counsel, the motion to withdraw is returnable before the pre-trial conference judge (and is not returnable on the Criminal Motions and Bails List).

To obtain a date before the pre-trial conference judge, counsel may contact the trial coordinator by email. This approach permits the pre-trial conference judge (who has background regarding the case) to canvass with counsel and the accused how to mitigate the effect a potential withdrawal by counsel may have on the previously scheduled trial which is otherwise required to promptly proceed forward absent exceptional circumstances. To similarly minimize the impact of a withdrawal by counsel (either on the trial or the accused’s desire to be represented by available counsel at trial), a motion to withdraw as counsel should be brought as soon as possible. In those situations where a motion to withdraw is filed within days of the scheduled trial date, it may be that the motion is heard by the trial judge.”


September 27, 2022 – Manitoba Court of King’s Bench – Masters – Re: Update To Child Protection Docket Practice Before The Masters Commencing Immediately.

“Further to the Notice issued on June 9, 2022 concerning the return to in-person proceedings effective September 6, 2022, the Masters have had some time to consider the issue of attendance of children aged 12 and over at the Masters’ Child Protection Dockets.”

“… [G]iven the very specific legislative requirement pursuant to section 33(2) of The Child and Family Services Act, C.C.S.M. c. C80, impacted children aged 12 and over need to be served, and brought to court to address their rights. This return to pre-pandemic practice will be effective immediately.”

The full notice regarding this update can be found here.

Click here to see all King’s Bench Notices and Practice Directions.

National Day of Truth and Reconciliation

September 30th will be the second National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, a day of reflection on the history and legacy of the residential school system, honouring the survivors, family members and communities affected. This year the Manitoba courts will not be sitting as per last year’s notice, and the courthouse will also be closed. The library will be open, providing service either by phone or email.

If you wish to learn more about Indigenous Laws and history, the Library has texts and resources available both in print and online.

Law Library Texts

Available in print.

Aboriginal law — 5th ed., Isaac. Thomson Reuters. 2016

Aboriginal and treaty rights practice, Macaulay. Thomson Reuters. (current to 2021)

Annotated Aboriginal Law: the Constitution, Legislation and Treaties. Imai. Thompson Reuters. 2017

Understanding treaties : a primer Education and Competence Department, Law Society of Manitoba. 2015.

Articles available online

These articles and others are also available in vLex through the Member’s Portal.

Volume 41-4: Aboriginal Children

Aboriginal Child Protection and Dual Citizenship: Membership has its Benefits
Troy Hunter
Aboriginal children often have dual citizenship in one or more Indian bands. This complicates things!

The Missing Children Project
Stephanie Jansen
Thousands of Aboriginal children are missing or unaccounted for. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission wants to know what happened to them.

The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal Decision and the Jordan Principle
Edward Apolonio
How long must Aboriginal Children wait to receive funding equal to other Canadian children?

Envisioning an Indigenous Jurisdictional Process
Janice Makokis
Onion Lake Cree Nation is undertaking an Indigenous law-making and governing process.

The “Sixties Scoop”: A Dark Chapter in Canadian History
Rachel Shabalin
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice has delivered a decision on the devastating effects of the ‘60s Scoop of Aboriginal children

Vol 40-4: Mar/Apr 2016 Special Report: The Truth and Reconciliation Commission

Era of Reconciliation: A Sacred Relationship
Troy Hunter
The Truth and Reconciliation Report stresses what we have long known: we are all in this together.

The Indian Residential Schools: A Chronology
John Edmond
The chronology of the residential schools spans centuries and generations.

Truth and Reconciliation is Canada’s Last Chance to Get it Right
John Ralston Saul
Canada’s Indigenous peoples have been patient: now we must act.

Calls to Action: The Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report
John Edmond
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report made 94 recommendations.  They will require action from multiple levels of government, institutions and even the Pope!


Other resources

For more information of the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day take a look at these sources.

The reports of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and other government reports, are freely available online.

https://nctr.ca/records/reports/

“The Indian Residential School Survivor Society (IRSSS) is a provincial organization with a twenty-year history of providing services to Indian Residential School Survivors. The Indian Residential School Survivors Society began in 1994 as a working committee of the First Nations Summit. We were known as the Residential School Project, housed out of and as a part of the BC First Nations Summit. Our work was primarily to assist Survivors with the litigation process pertaining to Residential School abuses. In more recent years our work has expanded to include assisting the descendants of Survivors and implementing Community education measures (Indigenous & Non-Indigenous).”

Orange Shirt Day is a legacy of the St. Joseph Mission (SJM) Residential School (1891-1981) Commemoration Project and Reunion events that took place in Williams Lake, BC, Canada, in May 2013. This project was the vision of Esketemc (Alkali Lake) Chief Fred Robbins, who is a former student himself.  It brought together former students and their families from the Secwepemc, Tsilhqot’in, Southern Dakelh and St’at’imc  Nations along with the Cariboo Regional District, the Mayors and municipalities, School Districts and civic organizations in the Cariboo Region. 
“The events were designed to commemorate the residential school experience, to witness and honour the healing journey of the survivors and their families, and to commit to the ongoing process of reconciliation.  Chief Justice Murray Sinclair challenged all of the participants to keep the reconciliation process alive, as a result of the realization that every former student had similar stories.”

A Court By Any Other Name, Would Be Just As Legal

A new King means a lot of change for the legal community. The names and titles of a monarch are ingrained in the statutes of Manitoba since it was established. They have been adapted as needed, starting with the Court of King’s Bench of Manitoba.

The History of the Court of Queen’s Bench act.

There are probably only a few people around today that remember when it used to be called the King’s Bench, but the court has seen its share of name changes in its history. When the courts were first established in Manitoba, Queen Victoria was sovereign.

Originally, in 1871, the court was actually to be the called “The Supreme Court”:

1871 34 Vict Cap. 2

But that didn’t last long. The very next year the court was changed to reflect the role of the Queen, and already there were provisions should a King ascended to the throne.

1872 35 Vict Cap 3

The 1880 consolidation Chapter 31 stayed that way –

until the reign of Edward VII substituted the new title in 1901.

The 1902 consolidation would add some clarification to ongoing cases still in the King’s, or Queen’s, name.

And with the rise of Queen Elizabeth II in 1952 the title would change again.

1952 S.M. Ch. 13

While it’s still called “The Queen’s Bench Act” (C.C.S.M. c. C280) today, the provision for naming remains. Maybe some extra paperwork could have been saved in the last 150 years had they just stuck with “Supreme Court.”

Queen’s Counsel to King’s Counsel

Another piece of legislation to be updated involves the practice of appointing Queen’s Counsel. The practice was enacted in Manitoba in 1909 with King Edward.

1909 SM C.28 (9 Ed. VII cap. 28)

The practice would continue with The Law society Act, 1954 RSM Ch. 139.

This was maintained with R.S.M. 1987, c. L100 The Law Society Act s. 45 until it was repealed by The Legal Profession Act, S.M. 2002, c. 44 which had no appointments to Queen’s Counsel but instead intended to change the designation to Senior Counsel. That was only until 2018 however, when C.C.S.M. c. Q5 The Queen’s Counsel Act was enacted, and once again continued the practice.

Neutral Citations

One last small change to keep in mind is the change in the neutral citations for decisions. The most recent decisions from the King’s Bench have already adopted the MBKB citation.

New Manitoba Court Notices and News

All Courts Notices

September 19

“The Prime Minister of Canada has announced that September 19, 2022 will be a federal holiday and a day of mourning for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.  The Province of Manitoba is recognizing September 19, 2022 as a day of mourning and has announced that all non-essential government services and offices will be closed for the day.

Mindful that the Courts provide an essential service, given access to justice challenges due to COVID-19, and in fairness to Court participants, the Courts have determined they cannot adjourn cases already booked and so will proceed as scheduled on September 19, 2022.  

However, in order to recognize the day of mourning, all trials and appeals will commence one hour later than scheduled.”

September 14, 2022 – References to the Crown in Court Documents

“Effective immediately, in new proceedings where the Crown is a party, the Crown should be described as “His Majesty the King” and not “Her Majesty the Queen”.” See the notice more more details.


For more information and notices see the Manitoba Courts webpage.

Please note: The library will be closing early on Friday, December 13th at 11:00AM for a special event.  Regular library service will resume Monday, December 16th at 8:30AM.

The Great Library will be closed from December 25, 2024 to January 1, 2025 for the winter holidays. Regular office hours will resume on Thursday, January 2, 2025.