Proposed legislation to address legislative time limits in response to COVID-19

Infographic: Proposed legislation to address legislative time limits in response to the COVID-19 pandemic

On July 20, 2020, the Minister of Finance introduced Bill C-20: An Act respecting further COVID-19 measures. Part 3 of Bill C-20 would enact a new Act, the Time Limits and Other Periods Act (COVID-19),to address limitation periods in civil litigation and pressing regulatory time limits included in federal legislation.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created challenges on many fronts, both for individual Canadians and businesses. Access to justice and the effective functioning of our justice and court system are fundamental to a just and fair Canadian society. In these exceptional circumstances, many Canadians, businesses and other organizations may be unable to meet numerous time limits currently set out in federal legislation, including rules for court civil cases and some key regulatory matters.

The Time Limits and Other Periods Act (COVID-19) would allow the continued protection of Canadians’ rights in the context of civil legal proceedings, by ensuring that individuals are not prevented from asserting their rights because of the passage of a time limit. It would also better support Canadians, Canadian businesses, and the Government in making sure they are able to avoid irreversible legal consequences.

Extension or suspension of legislative time limits

The Time Limits and Other Periods Act (COVID-19) has two parts which respectively address time limits relating to civil litigation proceedings and other time limits and periods included in federal legislation.

More specifically:

Time limits in civil proceedings

In normal times, Canadians can rely on courts to deal with their legal problems within set time limits. These time limits allows Canadians to properly exercise their rights and puts a limit on when and how legal actions can be taken by or against them.

At the federal level, there are many litigation time limits involving courts that could be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, such as:

The existing time limitations for civil court proceedings can place significant pressure on individuals and organizations to take risks or not follow public health advice, for example by leaving their home and meeting with legal advisers.

The current timelines may also cause some individuals to lose their litigation rights because they are not able to meet certain deadlines for various reasons, such as rightly prioritizing their family’s health or because of difficulties in electronically filing materials with the courts.

This proposed legislation would allow the continued protection of Canadians’ rights in the context of civil legal proceedings, by ensuring that individuals are not prevented from asserting their rights because of the passage of a time limit.

Time limits and other periods in federal legislation

Many provisions in federal legislation require Canadians, businesses, and the Government to meet specific time limits. The COVID-19 pandemic poses a risk in that it may affect capacity to meet legislative time limits and prevent individuals and organizations to operate in accordance with the law.

Federal legislation include time limits for actions such as:

By allowing federal ministers to make temporary orders to extend of suspend time limits set in identified legislation, the Time Limits and Other Periods Act (COVID-19) would ensure that Canadians and the Government continue to be able to avoid irreversible legal consequences.

Legislation for which federal ministers could extend or suspend deadlines are identified in this proposed new Act. This list of legislation can be found in the proposed new Act’s Schedule.

Safeguards and parliamentary oversight

The Time Limits and Other Periods Act (COVID-19) includes safeguards and parliamentary oversight provisions to enhance transparency.

These safeguards include:

Once tabled in Parliament, all temporary orders made under this legislation would be referred to a committee of the Senate and of the House of Commons.