The designation was officially proclaimed at the society's annual meeting in Victoria, British Columbia on October 22 of that year by the Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia, Iona Campagnolo.

The arms of the society were accordingly augmented in December 2002 with the addition of the Royal Crown to the supporters.

The society's mace is fashioned from pewter and wood, and inscribed with heraldic symbols.

[4] The society has six regional branches, which sponsor periodic talks and lectures on the topic of heraldry: British Columbia / Yukon, Laurentian (Montreal), Ottawa Valley, Prairie, and Toronto.

[5][6] The society has underwritten the cost of displaying the arms of the Governors General of Canada at Ottawa's Church of St. Bartholomew, sponsored the diamond jubilee display of the Queen's Beasts at the Canadian Museum of History, financed the design and acquisition of the tabard of the Chief Herald of Canada, assisted in the restoration of the heraldic installations at Hart House at the University of Toronto, and actively liaisons with provincial and municipal governments for "the protection and proper use of heraldry".