Legal Office Procedures - Litigation
Curriculum guideline
Effective Date:
Course
Discontinued
No
Course code
OADM 1326
Descriptive
Legal Office Procedures - Litigation
Department
Office Administration
Faculty
Commerce & Business Administration
Credits
3.00
Start date
End term
201420
PLAR
Yes
Semester length
15 weeks x 4 hours = 60 hours
Max class size
30
Contact hours
Lecture: 2 hours per week
Seminar: 2 hours per week
Method(s) of instruction
Lecture
Seminar
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.
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
- Expedited Trials
- Procedures and variations for expedited trials
- Transcription of Litigation Correspondence and Documents
- Transcribe legal material
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 independently and collaboratively;
- translate an understanding of the theory of civil litigation by creating accurate correspondence and documentation relating to a civil action in accordance with the British Columbia Supreme Court Rules;
- transcribe accurately litigation correspondence and documents by applying English, keyboarding and legal office procedure skills;
- keyboard with speed and accuracy from five-minute timed writings.
Means of assessment
| Assignments | 5% - 10% |
| Simulations | 30% - 35% |
| Midterm and/or Test(s) | 25% - 35% |
| Final Exam | 20% - 25% |
| Keyboard Speed Average of best three 5-minute timings |
5% |
| Total | 100% |
Textbook materials
Textbooks and Materials to be Purchased by Students:
Introduction to Litigation. DFC Publications. (Latest Edition) or other litigation textbook as determined by the instructor.
An instructor approved keyboarding timed writing textbook (used in OADM 1303).
Course packs as determined by the instructor.
Which prerequisite