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The Federal Court of Canada, more properly known as the Federal Court and the Federal Court of Appeal, is the court system set up by the Canadian national government to resolve disputes that arise under the national government's jurisdiction. The system has a trial court called, confusingly, the Federal Court and an appellate court called the Federal Court of Appeal.
Organization
Appeals from the Federal Court can be made to the Federal Court of Appeal and from the appeals court to the Supreme Court of Canada.
The court does not use juries so all matters are decided by judge alone - a single judge at the lower court level and by a panel of 3 judges at the appeal level. Some pre-trial steps such as motions are decided by prothonotaries, a role similar to a master in other courts. The judges and prothonotaries are appointed by the Cabinet of the federal government.
Jurisdiction Unlike the general courts set up by each province, matters can only be brought before federal court if the law explicitly allows the action. The docket of the court primarily consists of judicial reviews of immigration, intellectual property, income tax and federal employment disputes. Appeals from some federal agencies and tribunals can be made to the Federal Court or the Federal Court of Appeal. The court can also deal with incidental aspects of a dispute that fall outside its jurisdiction if the primary dispute is within its jurisdiction.
The court is a national court so trials and hearings occur throughout Canada. Any orders rendered by the court are enforceable in all the provinces and territories. This contrasts with the general courts which are organized by each province and require additional steps to enforce decisions in other provinces.
History The federal government has the power to establish a court system under section 101 of the Constitution Act, 1867 which allows the government to create, "any additional Courts for the better Administration of the Laws of Canada." In 1875, the government established the Exchequer Court. This court, modelled on the court of the same name at the United Kingdom, primarily had jurisdiction over tax issues. Over time this court's jurisdiction expanded to other matters of federal jurisdiction.
In 1971, the Federal Court of Canada was established, inheriting much of the jurisdiction of the Exchequer Court. The Federal Court of Canada gained the jurisdiction to hear judicial reviews from federal agencies and tribunals. The Federal Court of Canada had two divisions, the Federal Court - Trial Division and Federal Court - Appeal Division.
On July 2, 2003 the court was again restructured. The most significant change was a renaming of the divisions of the former Federal Court of Canada with the trial level being named the Federal Court and the appeals level, the Federal Court of Appeal.
See Also
External links - Federal Court (http://www.fct-cf.gc.ca)
- Federal Court of Appeal (http://www.fca-caf.gc.ca)
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