Case Planning Conference 5 September 2017

I attended the Case Management Conference.  It was very stressful.

Although according to SCR 5-2(7) CPCs are designed to foster full and candid discussions about all aspects of the action in which the conference is held, this did not happen.  Although I had points I wanted to discuss, I was not allowed to. Points that came to mind in the middle of the night.  I had to force talk about a court order that VCHA was suppose to have forwarded to me two months ago which VCHA did not.  In fact today the lawyer said that it was not even sent to the court for signature by the judge.  I am getting stormed at by a judge for failure to do what I was suppose to do but he did not storm at the lawyer for failing to do what he was supposed to do so I would know what I was suppose to do as per the Order.  At the June 29 2017 CPC I asked that the Order be sent to me by email and also by Canada Post. The judge agreed.  Neither happened.

I personally do not trust Canada Post or email when something is important. Murphy's rule, when something might go wrong, it will.  But at least by using two methods a litigant has a better chance of getting important documents.

Over the past three months, I attended chambers as an observer and lawyers would get default judgment orders because a party did not show up at an application. If you give only one address and you miss reading an email or a letter sent by post is delayed then if a party does not show up at a hearing, he loses.  Costs are awarded. In one case, the plaintiff only issued the notice of civil claim and after that she abandoned it.  The judge dismissed the case and gave the corporate defendant $8,000 costs. The plaintiff was a before kindergarden teacher at $15.00 an hour.  None of the lawyers ever said that they did anything extraordinary to contact the party like phone him to remind him of an upcoming application.  Winning by default, is not winning.  It only brings anger and distrust of the legal system.  How can you win or not win at litigation.  Everyone loses nor matter who wins.

Some of the same happened to me on March 12 2017.  I had to go to chambers on an application the next day.  I was stressed and I was fearful that I would sleep in.  So I decided that since this was VCHA's application that he could phone me and make sure I was coming.  I reasoned that it would be in the best interest of all parties that I attend at the hearing.  It was such an naive assumption.  After sending him an email to ask him to phone me at 8:00 am, he sent me a reply saying that he was not going to do that. This 28-year old lawyer was teaching me tough love.  I was born in 1945. So I had to force myself to stay awake all night.  Because I was tired and stressed, I came across at the hearing as incoherent and disorganized.  I lost.  I walked out of the hearing not knowing what was said. Subsequently, for another reason, the action became moot.  So it did not matter what happened in the March 13 2017 hearing.

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