1.2 Does the appellant have a right to appeal?
Most trial decisions from the BC Supreme Court can be automatically appealed to the BC Court of Appeal. (See s. 13 of the Court of Appeal Act.)
The Court of Appeal may hear an appeal from all BC Supreme Court decisions except for those orders listed in Rule 11 of the Court of Appeal Rules, which are known as limited appeal orders.
Examples of limited appeal orders include:
- Orders that grant or refuse extensions of time
- Interim orders under the Family Law Act
- An order as to costs only
- A foreclosure order
The appellant cannot appeal a decision from a Provincial court family or small claims matter directly to the Court of Appeal without filing an appeal to the Supreme Court first. Section 13 of the Small Claims Act prohibits an appeal to the Court of Appeal from an order made by the Supreme Court. The BC Supreme Court has final jurisdiction over small claims appeals and no further appeal lies to the BCCA.
The appellant may only appeal some decisions by BC administrative tribunals or others made by provincial or federal bodies. Usually, those decisions must first be reviewed by the BC Supreme Court, unless the statute that created the tribunal says otherwise. The applicable statutes explain how to appeal a decision and the procedural timelines that all parties must follow.
Read the Rules
Rule 16-1 Petitions, of the Supreme Court Civil Rules describes the procedure to be followed for judicial reviews from most BC administrative tribunals.
Learn More
Go to Judicial Review BC to learn more about the review process for administrative tribunals.
If the appellant does not have an automatic right to appeal, they must make an application to the court to obtain leave (permission) to appeal. Section 1.5 If the appellant applies for leave to appeal discusses how the appellant may obtain leave (permission) to appeal.
