The Tribunals Committee of the Law Society of Upper Canada has recommended the adoption of a new Practice Direction and adjournments, which would substantially tighten the circumstances in which adjournments would be granted.
The new Direction, appearing as Appendix 1 of the Committee’s 27 October 2011 Report to Convocation would provide for adjournment requests to be heard 10 days in advance of scheduled motions, and while consent will be a factor it will not be determination. Late requests could be made at the hearing but granted in ‘exceptional’ circumstances. In neither case is the mere unavailability of the selected counsel a sufficient reason for granting an adjournment.