Appeals to BC Supreme Court Basics

The British Columbia Supreme Court is not only a trial court. It also hears some appeals from Provincial Court and from Tribunals.

Appeals from certain other decision makers can be brought to the Supreme Court. However, you can appeal to the Supreme Court only if a statute gives you that right. For example, you can appeal decisions from the Provincial Court of BC and decisions made by some administrative bodies, like the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles, because that right is set out in legislation.

If a statute does not specifically give you the right to appeal to the Supreme Court of BC, you may be able to challenge the decision in a petition for judicial review. For more information on judicial review, see Judicial Review.

An appeal is not simply a new trial in the Supreme Court. Rather, the judge of the Supreme Court will review the decision to see if there was a serious error in the judge’s decision. Appeals tend to focus on law rather than facts. The Supreme Court judge will not find fault with the trial judge’s determination of the facts unless it was clearly wrong.