Lawyers for the companies charged with safety violations following a 2010 death at the Wolverine Mine say they are not getting enough information on the charges against their clients.

A lawyer for Procon Mining Inc. and Procon Mining and Tunneling, as well as one representing Yukon Zinc Corp., were in court Thursday asking a judge to quash the charges against them, claiming they are too vague.

Each company is facing four charges under the Occupational Health and Safety Act surrounding failing to ensure a safe workplace at the Wolverine Mine, as well as failing to implement the necessary procedures to make sure it was safe.

Yukon Zinc has also been charged with an additional count of not taking reasonable steps to make sure the workplace was safe, as well as one count of not preparing and maintaining a design report.

William Fisher, a 25-year-old from Kelowna, B.C., was killed on April 25, 2010 when a section of tunnel wall collapsed onto a piece of equipment he was servicing.

Two others with him were knocked to the ground but did not suffer any serious injuries.

The current charges include the date of the alleged offence as well as the location, and then list the offences as they are written in the Occupational Health and Safety Act.

Procon's lawyer, James Sutherland, said the charges lack in detail that would allow the companies to understand the case against them.

He argued the written charges need to go beyond the date and location and provide specific details about what the companies are alleged to have done.

Specific details are required to properly prepare a defence, he said.

Both defence lawyers argued that, given the size and complexity of the operation at the Wolverine Mine, more detailed charges are required compared to other types of cases.

Prosecutor Cindy Freedman said the way the charges are written is sufficient.

Any other details will be a part of the trial process and are included in information the Crown has already given to the defence, including expert reports, she said.

Judge Deborah Livingstone, a deputy judge from Ontario, has three options for dealing with this application.

She can either dismiss the defence's claims and allow the case to continue with the charges the way they are, amend the charges to include more detail, or quash the charges completely.

Freedman argued that quashing charges should be a last resort only if an amendment is not possible.

Livingstone is scheduled to give her decision on the application on March 2.