The Supreme Court of Canada is experiencing a notable increase in its caseload this year, prompting attention after years of decline in the number of judgments produced by the court. In 2026, the court has agreed to hear 41 new appeals, marking the highest intake since 2018, when 42 cases were accepted.

Throughout the 2020s, the court has accepted a smaller percentage of appeal applications compared to previous years, approving only about 7 percent of requests in earlier years of this decade. This year, however, the acceptance rate has nearly doubled to 13 percent, reflecting a shift toward hearing more cases.

Each year, the court receives several hundred applications requesting appeals, but it remains selective in choosing which cases to hear. The Supreme Court Act specifies that cases must raise issues of national significance or resolve differing judgments from lower courts to be eligible for consideration. The justices do not disclose their reasons for accepting or rejecting cases.

Legal professionals have expressed concern over the smaller number of rulings in recent years, worrying that fewer Supreme Court decisions may lead to a lack of clarity and coherence in Canadian law. With fewer precedents set by the highest court, unresolved legal questions may persist across the country’s judicial system.

Daniel Byma, executive legal officer and chief of staff to Chief Justice Richard Wagner, noted that the court does not establish formal targets for how many appeals it grants annually. “The court aims to hear as many cases as it can,” Byma said in response to inquiries about the recent increase in accepted appeals.

Despite the uptick this year, the overall caseload remains lower than in the 2010s, when the court accepted an average of 52 cases per year. Since 2020, the average has been closer to 34 cases annually. Chief Justice Wagner indicated at a June press conference that the court anticipates its workload will continue to increase, potentially returning to pre-pandemic levels.

As the Supreme Court prepares to address its largest influx of appeals in nearly a decade, observers will be watching how the court balances managing a heavier docket with the need to provide authoritative guidance on key legal issues facing Canada.