How long do Canadian courts keep reports/evidence?

March 25, 2019 1:42 PM

I'm in the process of requesting some records (economic reports) from various courts across Canada. A few of my requests have been rejected because the courts no longer have the reports that I've requested. I'm wondering how long courts hold on to evidence? Does it vary by type/location of the court?
posted by NoneOfTheAbove to Law & Government (2 answers total)

I am a records manager, I am not a Canadian records manager.

The phrase you want here is "records retention schedule" or "records control schedule or "records disposition schedule." Courts (or clerks of court) hang on to records for different time periods depending on the type of case, the legal statutes, jurisdiction, and other factors. These records are supposed to be retained for the period of time described in the records retention schedule. After that time period has elapsed, an agency is legally allowed to destroy the records.

For example, here is some information about Ontario court records.
posted by mostly vowels at 4:45 PM on March 25, 2019

I am not a records manager, but I did work in Canadian courts. mostly vowels is spot on about court records retention, with the caveat that some of the records retention schedules can be very long, on the order of decades, and a very few are indefinite. It really depends on the jurisdiction and the type of record.
posted by Mogur at 6:04 PM on March 25, 2019