The International Cooperation Group
Publications
NATIONAL SURVEY OF LEGISLATIVE DRAFTING SERVICES
2002
WORK INSTRUMENTS
45 USE OF COMPUTERS AND INPUTTING
Do drafters compose legislative texts using computers
as word processors, or is inputting done by administrative staff?
The trend in this area is clearly toward drafting directly
on computers. Nevertheless, a combination of methods for inputting data
is employed. Drafters in Nova Scotia, British Columbia and the Northwest
Territories may compose text using computers or have their inputting done
by administrative staff. Similarly, drafters in the Yukon use Microsoft
Word on their personal computers for drafting, but some inputting of data
and revision is done by administrative staff. In Newfoundland and Labrador,
most drafters compose using computers. In Quebec and Alberta, inputting
is generally done by administrative staff. In New Brunswick, Saskatchewan,
Ontario, Nunavut and Manitoba, drafters input text directly during the
drafting process.
In the Legislative Services Branch of the federal Department
of Justice, all drafters draft using computers, and drafters in the Regulations
Sections also have the services of support staff for data inputting. All
members of the Branch are connected to the same network and may transmit
data between themselves. House of Commons drafters use computers for the
drafting of private members' bills, while support staff do the keyboard
inputting for motions to amend government bills.
46 / 48 ELECTRONIC AVAILABILITY
OF STATUTES AND REGULATIONS
Are statutes and regulations in this jurisdiction available electronically?
Do drafters have on-line access :
- to provincial statute databases?
- to federal statute databases?
- to the Internet?
Over the past few years, the legislation of all provinces
and territories in Canada has been made available on-line by governments
as described below. Many jurisdictions also produce, from time to time,
CD-ROM versions of their legislation. In addition, all drafting offices,
but one, now provide drafters with access to the Internet (Alberta drafters
are expected to have access shortly). As a result, drafters now have almost
unlimited access to all Canadian legislation on-line : statutes, regulations,
bills and status of bills and official gazettes where useful information
is published.
Legislative texts available on-line in provinces or territories
and at the federal government :
Alberta — Statutes and regulations,
bills, status of bills and official gazettes
British Columbia — Statutes and regulations,
orders in council and ministerial orders, bills, status of bills (first
and third reading versions)
Manitoba — Statutes and regulations,
bills, status of bills
New Brunswick — Statutes and regulations,
first reading version of bills, status of legislation (bills), Royal Gazette
Newfoundland and Labrador — Statutes
and regulations, Newfoundland Gazette, progress of bills and bills once
distributed to the House of Assembly
Northwest Territories — Statutes
and regulations, status of bills and bills summaries
Nova Scotia — Statutes and regulations,
bills, status of bills, amended versions of bills
Nunavut — Statutes and regulations,
bills and gazettes
Ontario — Statutes and regulations,
Ontario Gazette, first-reading version of bills, status of bills, proclamations
Prince Edward Island — Statutes,
Royal Gazette, first-reading version of bills, status of bills
Quebec — Statutes and Regulations,
bills, status of bills, bills as enacted
Saskatchewan — Statutes and regulations,
the Saskatchewan Gazette, first-reading version of bills, status of bills
Yukon — Statutes and regulations,
the Yukon Gazette, bills and status of bills
Federal government — Statutes and
Regulations, the Canada Gazette, bills (legislative summary, first-reading
and as-passed by the Senate or House of Commons versions) and status of
bills.
47 UPDATING OF DATABASES
If statutes are available electronically, by whom and how often is
the database kept updated?
Each jurisdiction has a slightly different procedure and
time frame for updating its database.
In Nova Scotia, there have been three issues of the CD-ROM
so far (1997, 1998 and 1999), to which the response from the legal profession
has been poor, perhaps because of the existence of a corresponding Web
site. The Legislative Counsel Office is in charge of updating the information,
but because of legislative priorities there is no dedicated staff responsible
for publishing ; thus, consolidations (print, CD-ROM and Web site) are
somewhat out of date. Web site and pamphlet copies are the most up to
date.
In Manitoba, the Legislative Counsel Office will update
the statute base on an ongoing basis, within three months of the coming
into force of an enactment.
Since January 2001, Ontario, through the Office of Legislative
Counsel and Publications Ontario, has provided 14-day data currency for
both its internal and public on-line databases. It plans to provide 24
to 48-hour currency by 2003.
In Newfoundland and Labrador, the Legislative Counsel Office
updates the databases as soon as it becomes necessary.
In the Yukon, databases (CD-ROM until the end of 1999,
and thereafter on the department's file server) are updated by Legislative
Counsel office staff shortly after the end of the parliamentary session
in which they were assented to, in the case of bills, or shortly after
they have been made, in the case of regulations.
The Queen's Printer updates the databases for New Brunswick
(quarterly) and Saskatchewan.
In British Columbia, databases are updated jointly by the
Legislative Counsel and the Queen's Printer.
In Alberta, new CD-ROMs are available quarterly, but the
Internet is updated weekly and the office database daily.
The Société québécoise
d'information juridique (SOQUIJ) updates its database of Quebec
legislation once a year, while the Official Editor and the Barreau du
Québec update their Quebec legislation databases weekly.
The updating of the statutes and regulations of Nunavut
is carried on by the Department of Justice Librarian.
Federal statutes and regulations are available in electronic
form on CD-ROM and on the Department of Justice's Internet site. New CD-ROMs
are released three times a year and the Internet site is updated at the
same interval.
49 DRAFTING WORK TOOLS
Are tools such as drafting manuals, deskbooks and notes for drafters
available to address legislative and linguistic aspects of drafting?
Most provinces and territories have some work tools to assist
legislative drafters with the linguistic and technical aspects of drafting.
The Yukon office has now started developing its own drafting manual and
deskbook, and drafters there make frequent use of Driedger's The Composition
of Legislation and the standards for bilingual drafting that have
been developed by the Drafting Section of the Uniform Law Conference.
A style manual, currently being revised, is used by drafters in Alberta.
New Brunswick has an English and a French Drafting Manual as
well as a Co-drafting Manual. In light of its Revision Project,
New Brunswick is reviewing these manuals. In Nova Scotia, drafting work
tools are limited and in Newfoundland and Labrador there are none, but
in both jurisdictions the office is small enough to permit informal discussions
on drafting issues during which drafters share their ideas and experiences
; in addition, Nova Scotia drafters have their own library and access
to three others (Justice Department, Barristers' Society and Law
school). In British Columbia, a Guide to Legislation is available
and the Legislative Style Committee is working on a style manual for drafters.
Saskatchewan has developed an in-house drafting manual and, in addition,
has an extensive library of drafting texts and legal sources. The Northwest
Territories uses a drafting style manual. Ontario has a drafting manual,
which is currently being revised, and may also rely on drafting conventions
based on the rules for legislative drafting developed by the Uniform Law
Conference. In Nunavut, drafters use textbooks and materials developed
in other jurisdictions. With very few exceptions, the House of Commons
drafters follow the drafting conventions of the Department of Justice.
Drafters in the Legislative Services Branch of the federal
Department of Justice have access to several guides to the making of legislation.
The Guide to the Making of Federal Acts and Regulations
is available in electronic and hard-copy formats. Primarily intended for
government officials who are involved in the legislative or regulatory
processes, it gives an overview of the policy-making process and the steps
involved in the drafting, printing and enactment of Acts and in the making
of regulations. It describes the roles of those involved and addresses
concerns related to matters of policy, legal principles and administrative
practicality. There is also a publication by the Treasury Board Secretariat
entitled Federal Regulatory Process : Procedures for Submitting Regulations
for Ministerial Approval.
The Legislation Deskbook is available in electronic
format. Primarily intended for use by drafters in the Headquarters Legislation
Section and the Finance Tax Drafting Services Section, it is a comprehensive
text containing information on the drafting of statutes, including linguistic
and technical aspects and legal issues. It also includes information about
the policy development process and the parliamentary process for the passage
of a bill.
The Federal Regulations Manual is available in
electronic and hard-copy formats. It gives an overview of the essentials
of the making of federal regulations, including a description of the federal
regulatory process, how to give drafting instructions, drafting and format
rules, a description of the plain-language approach to drafting and the
basic steps involved in the drafting of regulations. It is intended for
anyone involved in the development of federal regulatory texts, whether
in the context of policy development, drafting, examination or final review.
The Guide canadien de rédaction législative
française is available to drafters in the Legislation Services
Branch in electronic and hard-copy formats. It contains the results of
the jurilinguists and lawyers' research on recurring problems related
to the drafting of the French version of statutes.
The legal opinions of the Advisory and Development Services
Group are available electronically within the Branch and will shortly
be accessible through the Department of Justice's data bank of legal opinions.
A database is currently being developed that will contain significant
court decisions pertaining to delegated legislation.
Finally, drafters in the Legislation Services Branch receive
Legislative Drafting Conventions — linguistic guidelines
issued by the Deputy Chief Legislative Counsel — and Drafting
Notes — directives issued by the Deputy Chief Legislative Counsel
— on all aspects related to the drafting of bills and regulations.
The subject-matter of Drafting Notes is often developed into
articles that are incorporated in the Legislation Deskbook and
Federal Regulations Manual.
50 DEVELOPMENT AND COMMUNICATION
OF DRAFTING TOOLS
If such tools are available, how and by whom are they
developed, amended and communicated? For example, by a policy decision
made by the office as a whole? Through committees? In consultation with
other offices or jurisdictions?
In most provinces and territories, the impetus for the development
and amendment of work instruments comes from within the legislative counsel
office.
In Alberta, drafting policy is generally developed through
office discussions, with the final decisions made by the Chief Legislative
Counsel.
In Nova Scotia, drafting directives are issued by the Chief
Legislative Counsel, in consultation with office staff.
In Manitoba, the Deputy Chief Legislative Counsel and the
Publication Coordinator and Legal Editor lead the office to consensus
on drafting matters ; agreed-upon revisions are then circulated to staff.
In Quebec, work tools are generally prepared by one or two
persons and are then circulated to other members of the drafting office
for consultation.
In British Columbia, a Legislative Counsel Style Committee
sets drafting policy.
Drafting policy in Ontario is developed by the office as
a whole, usually based on background papers and committee recommendations.
In the Legislative Services Branch of the federal Department
of Justice, any drafter may raise a drafting issue which will then generally
be referred to one of the Branch drafting committees. These committees
include : the Groupe de jurilinguistique française and
the English Legislative Language Committee, which are primarily concerned
respectively with linguistic aspects specific to the French version and
English version of legislation ; the Plain Language Committee ; the Bijuralism
Committee, concerned with the incorporation of common law and civil law
concepts into federal legislation ; the Deskbook committee, which
deals with most matters related to the drafting of bills that are not
within the mandate of any other committee ; and the Regulations Sections
Drafting Committee. The particular committee will conduct research and
make recommendations that will be discussed among staff members (usually
drafters in the Drafting Services Group and often in consultation with
Legislative Revising and Editing Services or, depending on the issue,
the Chief Legislative Counsel) or, in the case of an issue of limited
scope, those drafters interested in or affected by it. A decision will
then be made and a Drafting Note or a Legislative Drafting
Convention issued. If a drafting policy has been determined but a
more detailed written explanation is warranted, an article will be written
— usually by members of the appropriate committee, in consultation
with the rest of the committee members — and added to the Legislation
Deskbook or the Federal Regulations Manual.
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