BCLaws

About BCLaws

CiviX Server is an electronic library platform providing public access to the laws and bylaws of British Columbia, including provincial legislation, civic bylaw content, and related policy and legislative materials. It is accessible both as a browsable, searchable website and as a RESTful API returning raw XML data, with the BC Laws website itself built as one application of this underlying data.

The CiviX Server API allows requesting lists of documents, specific documents or parts of documents, and documents matching search terms across the full text or specific sections. Data can be returned formatted for display on another website or as raw XML for further processing. It is intended for third parties building custom applications on top of the structured legal and bylaw data.

The API is free to use and built on non-proprietary internet standards. Content is made available under either the King's Printer Licence (for content from www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca) or the Local Government Bylaw Licence (for local government bylaw content such as City of Abbotsford bylaws), depending on the source of the content being consumed.

Key features

• Free public access to British Columbia provincial legislation and civic bylaw content
• RESTful API providing raw XML data access to the law library
• Retrieve document lists, specific documents, or specific parts of documents
• Search for documents containing specific terms, including within a specific part
• Data returned formatted for web display or as raw XML for further processing

Frequently asked questions