SUSPENSION OF SUPERIOR COURT OF JUSTICE REGULAR OPERATIONS

Notice to Accused Persons, Profession, Crown, Public Prosecution Service of Canada, Correctional Institutions, Witnesses, Jurors, The Public and The Media Regarding Criminal Operations

UPDATED NOTICE FOR MATTERS TO BE HEARD IN THE ONTARIO SUPERIOR COURT OF JUSTICE DURING THE COVID-19 EMERGENCY

The emergency created by COVID-19 may, in some instances, render strict compliance with the procedural rules set out in theCriminal Proceedings Rulesimpossible or impractical.  The rules were drafted without contemplation of how virtual court hearings would be conducted in a pandemic.   These functional gaps cannot be an impediment to the timely, fair and just adjudication of matters heard by the Court.

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To address the safety of all who use and work in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (SCJ), the Court suspended its regular operations and  implemented processes to have ONLY urgent matters heard in all areas of its work as set out in the Notices to the Profession issued by the Superior Court of Justice on March 15, 2020, which came into effect on March 17, 2020.

For Civil/Family matters, please refer to the Civil/Family Notice updated April 2, 2020

As the COVID 19 pandemic continues, the Court recognizes it has a constitutional responsibility to ensure access to justice remains available. To promote access to justice, to minimize growing caseloads, and to maintain the effective administration of justice in Ontario, the Court is expanding its operations beyond the most urgent matters. All matters will be heard remotely by way of telephone or video conference.

For the Court’s processes to be successful, judges of the Court will require lawyers to act co-operatively and to be flexible to achieve a timely, just and fair hearing. Counsel, accused persons and all court participants can anticipate that the judiciary will, in turn, make every effort to respond with flexibility and creativity, where feasible and appropriate.

There will necessarily be regional differences in approach. Some of the Court’s regions have significantly higher volumes than others.  At this time, some regions have court administration and trial coordination support better equipped to work virtually. The Court is making the best use of resources available to it.