Hearing Format

Hearings can be held orally or by written submissions.

Oral hearings may proceed in-person or electronically (in either a fully virtual or hybrid mode).

Parties may request and a hearing panel may decide on the appropriate format of the hearing.

For guidance on the appropriate hearing format, please see Hearing Committee Best Practices for Electronic Proceedings.

In-Person Hearings

In-person hearings entail personal attendance of the parties, their witnesses and legal counsel (if represented by a lawyer), in a physical hearing room, where the hearing is held in the presence of a hearing panel.

In-person hearings can be held in CIRO’s offices, court reporters' offices or other locations as chosen by the Hearings Office.

Electronic Hearings

Electronic hearings are provided for in the Investment Dealer and Partially Consolidated Rules and the Mutual Fund Dealer Rules of Procedures. An electronic hearing means a hearing that is held by electronic technology that allows persons to hear and see one another.

Webex is a video and audioconferencing tool used in CIRO’s electronic and hybrid hearings.

See the E-Hearing Preparation Checklist (PDF) to help you prepare for an electronic hearing.

Hybrid Hearings

Hybrid hearings combine physical and virtual modes of hearing. This means that although some participants may connect via video or audio, others will be physically present in a hearing room.

It may be that the entire proceeding takes place in a hybrid environment, or only parts of the proceeding, such as witness testimonies and other evidence, require a hybrid mode.