Course description
This course introduces the student to the role and responsibilities of the Legal Administrative Assistant employed in the field of civil litigation in British Columbia. Students will gain knowledge and practical experience in topics such as Canadian law, Canadian court system, civil and criminal process, pleadings, default judgment, setting an action down for trial, discovery, trial, enforcement, settlement, and chambers applications. This is a “hands-on” course in which the students integrate keyboard, computer, document formatting, and transcription skills with knowledge of civil law.
Course content
- Principles of the Litigation System and Litigation Model
- The adversarial system
- Principles behind court procedures
- Stages of the litigation model
- Civil Versus Criminal Proceedings
- Courts of Canada
- Major differences between criminal and civil law
- Preliminary Matters
- Conflict of interest check
- Limitation dates and limitation calendars
- Bring Forward systems and deadline calendars
- Settlement prior to commencing a court proceeding
- Court Documents
- Rules of Court
- Style of Proceedings and parties to an action
- Parts of a supreme court documents
- Commencing an Action
- Personal versus ordinary service of documents
- Calculating time limits
- Commencement and notification documents and procedures
- Obtaining Default Judgment
- Default documents and procedures
- Bill of Costs for default
- Defending an Action
- Defence documents and procedures
- Counterclaims and third party claim documents and procedures
- Trial scheduling documents and procedures
- Bill of Costs items for commencing or defending claims
- Disclosure of Evidence
- Purpose of evidentiary disclosure
- Disclosure documents and procedures
- Trial scheduling procedures and documents
- Bill of Costs items for disclosing documents
- Settlement
- Consent documents and procedures
- Bill of Costs items for consent settlements
- Hearing and Trial
- Trial preparation documents and procedures
- Bill of Costs items for trials
- Collections
- Collection documents and procedures
- Interlocutory Applications
- Application of litigation model to applications
- Application documents and procedures
- Bill of Costs items for applications
- Transcription of Litigation Correspondence and Documents
- Transcribe legal material
Learning activities
A combination of lectures, guided practices, assignments and case studies will be used. Active learning is an integral part of this course, and emphasis will be placed on a “hands-on” environment to allow students to work both independently and collaboratively to learn and apply procedures and tasks carried on in a legal office. Both learning activities and evaluations will be structured to stress problem solving, accuracy, and working within time constraints.
Means of assessment
| Assignments |
5% - 11% |
| Simulations |
30% - 35% |
| Midterm and/or Test(s) |
25% - 35% |
| Final Exam |
20% - 25% |
| Keyboarding |
4-5% |
| Total |
100% |
A maximum of two evaluations worth up to 22.5% may be assigned and due in the last 14 days of class. (Some class time is provided to work on any evaluation due in the last 14 days of class)
THERE ARE NO ORAL PRESENTATIONS IN THIS COURSE.
Students may conduct research as part of their coursework in this class. Instructors for the course are responsible for ensuring that student research projects comply with College policies on ethical conduct for research involving humans, which can require obtaining Informed Consent from participants and getting the approval of the Douglas College Research Ethics Board prior to conducting the research.
Learning outcomes
The learner has reliably demonstrated the ability to:
- communicate effectively, using the language, theory and precedents of civil litigation;
- identify the Canadian courts and the sources of Canadian law;
- analyze the concepts of the Canadian legal system and the civil and criminal process
- apply the concepts of civil litigation to solve problems;
- prepare correspondence and documents to commence a Supreme Court action and to obtain default judgment;
- prepare correspondence and documents to defend a Supreme Court action, disclose evidence and to settle a lawsuit;
- prepare correspondence and documents in a Supreme Court action in preparation of trial;
- identify the purpose, documents and procedures for interlocutory applications;
- prepare bill of costs through the analysis of documentation within a court file;
- keyboard with accuracy; and
- demonstrate the ability to meet deadlines in a manner required to meet legal industry standards.
Textbook materials
Textbooks and Materials to be Purchased by Students:
Introduction to Litigation. DFC Publications. (Latest Edition) or other litigation textbook as approved by the department.
Department approved keyboarding material or software
Course packs as determined by the instructor.