Beginning January 1, 2026, civil and family long chambers hearings will be booked online using the Court Online Booking System (COBS) in all court locations.
Because demand for newly released lengthy chambers hearing dates exceeds the Court's supply in some locations, parties and counsel currently compete to secure such dates by telephoning Scheduling at their earliest opportunity on a specified day each month. Scheduling then allocates the newly released dates on a "first to call" basis.
The new online booking system will create two booking processes - a 'booking window' process for allocating newly released hearing dates, and an 'on-demand' booking system. Some court locations will use both processes, while others will use only the 'on-demand' booking system.
In specified court locations, including those where demand exceeds supply, parties and counsel will submit their preferred dates during a booking window (1st to the 7th of each month). After the booking window closes, court time will be allocated so that all users have an equitable opportunity to secure dates. Unsuccessful booking requests will be tracked, and priority assigned to the user's next request. The Court will monitor the use of this priority system.
As January 2026 is the first month with online bookings for long chambers hearings, the booking window will be extended to January 1st - 14th, to ensure that all users are aware, and have sufficient time to utilize, the new 'booking window' process.
For more details about this expansion, please see the notice issued by Chief Justice Skolrood. More information about COBS and its expansion is available here.