Search syntax for court websites
| FUNCTION | COURTS OF BRITISH COLUMBIA | SUPREME COURT OF CANADA | FEDERAL COURT OF CANADA |
|---|---|---|---|
| COVERAGE | BCSC and BCCA decisions since 1990 with many older decisions | SCC decisions since 1948 with many older decisions | Federal Trial Division and Court of Appeal decisions since 1993 |
| TEMPLATE AND FIELD SEARCHING | Can restrict search by court, date, judge and docket. Can search by neutral citation or case name. |
Simple search template permits search by keyword, name or citation. Cases can also be accessed using lists organized by date, name and subject. Advanced search template permits search by name of case, citation, parties, judges, date and subject classification. Advanced search template has options to search for all words, phrase, any words, or without certain words. |
Simple search template permits search by keyword, name or citation. Cases can also be accessed using lists organized by date and name. Advanced search template permits search by name of case, citation, and date. Advanced search template has options to search for all words, phrase, any words, or without certain words. |
| PHRASE | no quotations required unless phrase contains a connector | use template | use template |
| AND | AND | use template | use template |
| OR | OR | use template | use template |
| NOT | AND NOT | use template | use template |
| SPACE | defaults to phrase search | ||
| PROXIMITY | NEAR finds words within 50 | ||
| PLURALS | regular plurals searched for when using singular form and vice versa | regular plurals searched for when using singular form and vice versa | regular plurals searched for when using singular form and vice versa |
| TRUNCATION | * | ||
| WORD FORMS | ** searches for word variants | automatically searches for word variants | automatically searches for word variants |
| PARENTHESES | permitted | ||
| ORDER OF EVALUATION | phrase parentheses or and |