Criminal Rules of the Ontario Court of Justice effective July 1, 2012

The new Criminal Rules of the Ontario Court of Justice become effective July 1, 2012, replacing the existing Rules of the Ontario Court of Justice in Criminal Proceedings.  These new Criminal Rules will govern procedures in all criminal proceedings at the Ontario Court of Justice.

• New annotated Criminal Rules: for courtroom use, print the PDF version
• Forms under new Criminal Rules
  • Form 1: Application
  • Form 2: Response
  • Form 3: Consent

Ten Things To Know About the New Criminal Rules

1. The new Criminal Rules come into effect on July 1, 2012 and apply to all criminal proceedings across the province before the Ontario Court of Justice.
2. The objective of the new Criminal Rules is that proceedings are dealt with “justly and efficiently. The new Criminal Rules specifically describe what is meant by dealing with proceedings “justly and efficiently”.
3. The old Criminal rules were enacted in 1997.  The new Criminal Rules reflect the many changes since that time in criminal law and practice, court administration, and technology.
4. The new Criminal Rules are brief, written in plain language and contain extensive commentary regarding their interpretation and application. This reflects the reality that many accused today do not have legal counsel or are unrepresented.
5. There are 5 new Criminal Rules, compared to 32 old Criminal Rules.
6. There are 3 new Forms, compared to 15 old Forms. There is an Application form, a Response, and a Consent form.
7. The new Criminal Rules emphasize timely and detailed information sharing to ensure that matters are dealt with on a timely and informed basis, rather than  matters being delayed because of poor advance preparation.
8. Applications regarding pre-trial matters such as adjournment applications, counsel withdrawals, or applications for a Charter stay must be heard at least 60 days before the scheduled trial date, unless the Court orders otherwise.
9. Judicial pre-trials must be attended by parties having decision-making authority. Focus hearings must be attended by counsel who will conduct the preliminary hearing, or a designate counsel with decision-making authority.
10. Judges retain the power to excuse any non-compliance with the new Criminal Rues, to the extent necessary to ensure that proceedings are dealt with “justly and efficiently”.

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