The Saskatchewan Court of Queen’s Bench has extended it’s postponing of jury trials.
All jury trials at the Saskatchewan Court of Queen’s Bench that were set to begin before March 31st, 2021 will be postponed under the new rule. In total, nineteen of these trials were on the docket for the first three months of the new year.
Unless brought forward sooner by a judge’s order, postponed matters will be spoken to on the original date the trial was to start. At that time, people can re-elect to stand trial by judge only, with the trial moving ahead at its normal timeframe. Alternatively, people on trial will be able to opt to adjourn to a later date, and court officials say adjournments will receive re-scheduling priority.
Anyone summoned for jury attendance for before March 31st should not attend either.
“We will continue to adjust our response to the pandemic as necessary, while maintaining the public’s access to the essential services the court provides,” Martel D. Popescul, chief justice of the court, said Monday in a statement.
Jury trials were initially postponed in November due to a worsening COVID-19 situation. At that time, trials scheduled to begin by the end of the year were pushed ahead.