Interprovincial Subpoena Act, I-12.1

1 INTERPROVINCIAL SUBPOENA c I-12.1 The Interprovincial Subpoena Act being Chapter I-12.1 of The Revised Statutes of Saskatchewan, 1978 (Supplement)(effective January 12, 1978) as amended by the Statutes of Saskatchewan, 1979-80, c 92; 1992, c 70; 1994, c 27; 2018, c 42; 2019, c 25; and 2024, c 4. NOTE: This consolidation is not official. Amendments have been incorporated for convenience of reference and the original statutes and regulations should be consulted for all purposes of interpretation and application of the law. In order to preserve the integrity of the original statutes and regulations, errors that may have appeared are reproduced in this consolidation. 2 c I-12.1 INTERPROVINCIAL SUBPOENA Table of Contents 1 Short title 2 Interpretation 3 Adoption of interprovincial subpoena 4 Immunity by law of other province 5 Failure to comply with adopted subpoena 6 Proceedings in Saskatchewan 7 No submission to jurisdiction 8 Order for additional witness fees and expenses 9 Non-application of Act 10 Regulations 3 INTERPROVINCIAL SUBPOENA c I-12.1 CHAPTER I-12.1 An Act respecting the Interprovincial Adoption of Subpoenas Short title 1 This Act may be cited as The Interprovincial Subpoena Act. Interpretation 2 In this Act: (a) “court” means any court in a province and, where a board, commission, tribunal or other body or person in a province has the power to issue a subpoena, includes that board, commission, tribunal, body or person; (b) “province” means any province of Canada and includes the Yukon Territory, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut; (c) “subpoena” means a subpoena or other document issued by a court requiring a person within a province other than the province of the issuing court to attend as a witness before the issuing court. RSS 1978 (Supp.), c I-12.1, s 2; 1992, c 70, s 3; 2019, c 25, s 14. Adoption of interprovincial subpoena 3(1) The Court of Appeal, the Court of King’s Bench or the Provincial Court of Saskatchewan shall receive and adopt as an order of that court a subpoena from a court outside Saskatchewan if: (a) the subpoena is accompanied by a certificate signed by a judge of a superior, county or district court of the issuing province and impressed with the seal of that court, signifying that, upon hearing and examining the applicant, the judge is satisfied that the attendance, in the issuing province, of the person subpoenaed: (i) is necessary for the due adjudication of the proceeding in which the subpoena is issued; and (ii) in relation to the nature and importance of the cause or proceeding, is reasonable and essential to the due administration of justice in that province; and (b) the subpoena is accompanied by witness fees and travelling expenses in accordance with the regulations. (2) The certificate mentioned in clause (1)(a) shall be in the form set out in the regulations or in a form to the like effect. RSS 1978 (Supp.), c I-12.1, s 3; 1992, c 70, s 4; 1994, c 27, s 27; 2018, c 42, s 65; 2024, c 4, s 32. 4 c I-12.1 INTERPROVINCIAL SUBPOENA Immunity by law of other province 4 The Court of Appeal, the Court of King’s Bench and the Provincial Court of Saskatchewan shall not adopt a subpoena from another province under section 3 unless the law of that other province has a provision similar to section 7 providing, to a resident of Saskatchewan who is required to attend as a witness in the other province, immunity from all proceedings of the nature set out in section 7 that are within the jurisdiction of the Legislature of that other province except those proceedings grounded on events occurring during or after the required attendance of the person in the other province. RSS 1978 (Supp.), c I-12.1, s 4; 1992, c 70, s 5; 1994, c 27, s 27; 2018, c 42, s 65; 2024, c 4, s 32. Failure to comply with adopted subpoena 5 A person who: (a) has been served with a subpoena adopted under section 3; and (b) has been given the prescribed witness fees and travelling expenses not less than 10 days, or any shorter period that the judge of the court in the issuing province may indicate in his or her certificate, before the day on which the person is required to attend in the issuing court; and fails without lawful excuse to comply with that order shall be in contempt of the adopting court and subject to any penalty that court may impose. RSS 1978 (Supp.), c I-12.1, s 5; 1992, c 70, s 6. Proceedings in Saskatchewan 6(1) Where a party to a proceeding before any court in Saskatchewan causes a subpoena to be issued for service in another province, the party may attend upon a judge of the Court of King’s Bench who shall hear and examine the party or the party’s lawyer, if any, and, upon being satisfied that the attendance in Saskatchewan of the person required as a witness: (a) is necessary for the due adjudication of the proceeding in which the subpoena has been issued; and (b) in relation to the nature and importance of the cause or proceeding, is reasonable and essential to the due administration of justice in Saskatchewan; shall sign a certificate that is in the form set out in the regulations or in a form to the like effect, and shall cause the certificate to be impressed with the seal of the Court of King’s Bench. (2) The certificate shall be either attached to or endorsed on the subpoena. RSS 1978 (Supp.), c I-12.1, s 6; 1979-80, c 92, s 40; 1992, c 70, s 7; 2018, c 42, s 65; 2019, c 25, s 14; 2024, c 4, s 32. 5 INTERPROVINCIAL SUBPOENA c I-12.1 No submission to jurisdiction 7 A person required to attend before a court in Saskatchewan by a subpoena adopted by a court outside Saskatchewan shall be deemed, while within Saskatchewan in answer to the subpoena, not to have submitted to the jurisdiction of the courts of Saskatchewan other than as a witness in the proceeding in which the person is subpoenaed and shall be immune from seizure of goods, service of process, execution of judgment, garnishment, imprisonment or molestation of any kind relating to any legal or judicial right, cause, action, proceeding or process within the jurisdiction of the Legislature of Saskatchewan except those proceedings grounded on events occurring during or after the required attendance of the person in Saskatchewan. RSS 1978 (Supp.), c I-12.1, s 7; 2019, c 25, s 14. Order for additional witness fees and expenses 8(1) Where a person is required to attend before a court in Saskatchewan by a subpoena adopted by a court outside Saskatchewan, the person may request the court in Saskatchewan to order additional fees and expenses to be paid with respect to the person’s attendance as a witness. (2) The court, if it is satisfied that the amount of fees and expenses previously paid to the person with respect to the person’s attendance is insufficient, may order the party who obtained the subpoena to pay the person as soon as possible any additional fees and expenses that the court considers sufficient, and amounts paid pursuant to an order made under this section are disbursements in the cause. 2019, c 25, s 14. Non-application of Act 9 This Act does not apply to a subpoena that is issued with respect to a criminal offence pursuant to an Act of the Parliament of Canada. 1992, c 70, s 8. Regulations 10 For the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this Act according to their intent, the Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations that are ancillary to and are not inconsistent with this Act, and every regulation made under this section has the force of law and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations: (a) defining any word or expression used in this Act but not defined in this Act; (b) prescribing the amounts of witness fees and travelling expenses to be paid pursuant to clause 3(1)(b); (c) prescribing the form and content of the certificate for the purposes of sections 3 and 6. RSS 1978 (Supp.), c I-12.1, s 10. 6 c I-12.1 INTERPROVINCIAL SUBPOENA REGINA, SASKATCHEWAN Printed by the authority of THE KING’S PRINTER Copyright©2024