Creating and Implementing Decision Templates

Transcription

1 Creating and Implementing Decision Templates A checklist for The Preparation, Citation and Distribution of Canadian Decisions (Canadian Citation Committee, 2009) This checklist is intended to assist court personnel in the creation and implementation of a decision template that complies with the Canadian Citation Committee 2009 guidelines adopted by the Canadian Judicial Council (CJC) for the preparation of decisions (the Preparation Guidelines ), available at The present document is not a restatement of the Preparation Guidelines but rather a quick reference tool that focuses on key aspects related to the creation and implementation of decision templates. It also provides a few tips for the proper formatting and handling of decision files. The checklist contains two types of statements illustrated by the following bullets: Recommended practice; Practice that should be avoided. General Notes and Tips Visual Layout The visual signature of decisions is left at the court s discretion. The examples provided in the Preparation guidelines are not meant to recommend specific visual layout. Labels Key elements of information in a decision are identified by consistent and meaningful labels ( Citation, Date, Counsel, etc.). These labels may differ from those recommended in the guidelines. Formatting techniques The template contains pre-defined styles for numbered paragraphs, headings, lists, citations and other elements that are often used when preparing a decision. Using styles is the most effective way to ensure proper and consistent formatting. Users of the template are trained to properly use features and tools of the word-processing application that will allow for the proper formatting of paragraphs, lists and tables. For instance, to keep headings on the same page as their first following paragraph, the keep with next paragraph attribute is used instead of typing multiple empty carriage returns until the heading appears on the next page. Proper formatting ensures stability when the document is converted in other formats such as PDF or HTML. When users of the template edit decision documents, the word-processing application is set to display formatting markup, a feature that is typically represented by the symbol in the software s menus. This markup allows users to see more precisely what formatting features are actually embedded in the text by the word-processing application. Manual formatting is avoided, including the use of multiple space or tab characters to align text, or the use of empty carriage returns to add space between paragraphs. Decision s Heading The decision s heading is the first page of the decision. No cover page, warning, notice or other information precedes the decision s heading. 1/3

2 Decision identifiers The first elements appearing at the very top of the decision are the name of court, citation, date of decision, docket and style of cause, in that order. Court Name The court name may contain related information such as the court s coat of arms, jurisdiction, judicial district or division, as local rules and practices may require. Citation This element is preceded by the label Citation:. Preparing a case name is recommended as it favors consistency between various publishers of the case. The Preparation Guidelines contains a quick summary of applicable case naming guidelines at section A new neutral citation is assigned to each new decision. More specifically: o Supplementary reasons such as addendums, endorsements or decisions on costs are considered to be new decisions and are assigned a new neutral citation number; o A corrected decision is assigned the same neutral citation number as the erroneous decision it replaces. o Different linguistic versions of a decision bear the same neutral citation number. The last element of the neutral citation is a number and as such is not to be preceded by zeros or contain nonnumerical characters. Date of Decision This element is preceded by the label Date:. The date is represented by eight digits in ISO format, preferably with separators between the year, month and day (yyyy-mm-dd). Docket Number This element is preceded by the label Docket:. Multiple docket numbers are separated by semi-colons (; ). The registry location is added after the docket number when the court s docket numbering system does not prevent two or more registry locations of this court from assigning the same docket number. This element is preceded by the label Registry:. Style of Cause This element is preceded by the label Between or In the matter of. Notices When applicable, translation, publication restriction or correction notices are inserted immediately after the style of cause. Translation Notice This element is placed between square brackets and contains a short phrase denoting that the document is a translation or alternative linguistic version. Publication Restriction Notice This element is preceded by the label Restriction on publication:. The notice provides information about the content, scope and duration of the publication ban so that it can be complied with without having to check the court record (see examples in CJC s Publication Restriction Notice available at The publication restriction notice does not simply refer to the applicable statutes or the existence of an order without providing details about the specific restriction. Correction Notice This element is preceded by the label Corrected decision: or Amended decision:. The notice informs readers that the current document is a new version of a previously distributed decision and that the erratum (or an explanation of the corrections made) is appended at the end of the decision. It also contains the correction s release date. Releasing a corrected version without any indication of the changes is avoided. 2/3

3 Other elements When a decision contain elements that are not described in the Preparation Guidelines, they can be placed anywhere in the decision, after the decision identifiers described above. Appendices, cover and backing sheets are located at the very end of the document. Name(s) of judge(s) This element is preceded by any consistent label such as Judge:, Before: or Coram:. Case Origin When applicable, this element is preceded by On appeal from, On judicial review from or Supplementary reasons to. A short statement is provided, which includes the name of the court or tribunal that rendered the appealed or reviewed decision, as the case may be, as well as the earlier decision s identification elements such as its neutral citation or date, docket number and parallel citations. Reasons This element is preceded by any consistent label such as Judgment, Reasons for Order or By the Court:. The reasons may include a table of contents, subtitles and notes. When the decision contains multiple opinions, the order of the opinions is at the court s discretion. Paragraphs Paragraphs are numbered in square brackets, with only one sequence of numbers from the beginning to the end of the reasons. When lists or other numbered components are found within paragraphs, they follow a different numbering scheme. Numbered paragraphs that are not part of the reasons such as those appearing in an appendix follow a numbering scheme that is different from the reasons. Citations to Authorities It is good practice to insert the citation to a legal authority within the body text, between parentheses, instead of using footnotes. When citing a case, its neutral citation immediately follows the case name, before any parallel citation (see also the CJC s Use of Neutral Citation for Case Law available at When referring to a legislative provision, its full citation is given when first citing it, including its title. When citing consolidated legislation, it is best practice to use the following format: [cited legislation] (as amended to [last amending statute]). File Handling Filename To ensure that the filename is unique for a decision, the file is named after its neutral citation, without spaces (e.g. 2008skqb24.doc). In the filename, the number can be zero-filled to facilitate sorting (e.g. 2008skqb0024.doc), but these preceding zeros are not part of the neutral citation itself. The suffix cor is added to the filename when the file contains a corrected decision (e.g. 2008skqb24cor.doc). Non-textual Content Multimedia files are inserted in the decision s file at the desired location, wherever possible. External objects such as spreadsheet extracts are not inserted with live links to the source file, in order to prevent unwanted dissemination of information that may be hidden in the source file. 3/3

4 Introductory Comment for Decision Templates These documents are primarily intended to illustrate how templates may look different while being fully compliant with the Preparation guidelines, available at They were prepared based on the visual signatures of two Canadian courts. They may be used directly but courts and tribunals are encouraged to adapt them and create templates designed for their specific needs.

5 IN THE [Full name of court] [Trial / Appeal] DIVISION JUDICIAL DISTRICT OF [Name of district] Citation: [Case Name], [Year] [Court ID] [Number] Date: [yyyy-mm-dd] Docket: [Court file number] Between: [Full Name], [Plaintiff / Petitioner / Appellant] - and - [Full Name], [Defendant / Respondent] [Translation notice] Restriction on Publication: [Publication ban notice] Corrected Decision: [Corrected decision notice] Before: Justice [Full name] On Appeal From / On Judicial Review From / Supplementary Reasons To: [Case origin] Date(s) of hearing: [Month Day, Year] Appearances: [Full Name] [Full Name] - for [Full Name] - for [Full Name]

6 1 [Judge's family name], J. [Subtitle] [1] [Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam] [Subtitle] [2] [Reasons] 1. [Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam]; 2. [Numbered list item]. [3] [Reasons]: [4] [Reasons] [Citation] (a) [Alphabetical list item]; (b) [Alphabetical list item]. [Subtitle] [5] [Reasons] [Full name of judge], [J.C.Q.B. / J.S.C.]

7 [FULL NAME OF COURT] Citation: [Case Name], [Year] [Court ID] [Number] Between: And [Full Name], Date: [yyyy-mm-dd] Docket: [Court file number] Registry : [Location] [Applicant / Plaintiff / Petitioner / Appellant] [Full Name], [Defendant / Respondent] Restriction on Publication [Publication ban notice] Corrected Decision [Corrected decision notice] [On Appeal From / On Judicial Review From / Supplementary Reasons] To: [Citation to related decision] Before: The Honourable Justice [Full Name] Appearances: [Full Name], solicitor for the [Applicant / Plaintiff / Petitioner / Crown] [Full Name], solicitor for the [Defendant / Respondent / Intervener / Accused] Place and date(s) of hearing: [City], [Province or territory] [Month Day, Year] Place and date of judgment: [City], [Province or territory] [Month Day, Year] [Keywords] Statutes Referred to: [Title], [Citation].

8 Page 2 Cases Referred to: [Case Name], [Neutral citation]; [Case Name], [Neutral citation]. [Judge's family name], J.: [Subtitle] [1] [Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam] [2] [Paragraph]: [Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam] [Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam] [3] [Paragraph] a) [Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam]; b) [List Alpha]. [4] [Paragraph] 1) [Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam]; 2) [List Num]. [5] [Paragraph] [[Judge's family name] J.