Remarks of the Honourable J. Michal Fairburn, Associate Chief Justice of Ontario
The Opening of Courts Ceremony for 2022 on YouTube: https://youtu.be/sd7Be7yG9ag
(October 3, 2022)
(September 21, 2022)
(September 13, 2022)
The Court of Appeal has changed the file naming convention for electronic materials. The file name must now start with the document character code, followed by the Court of Appeal file number, and end with the relevant file extension. For more information, see Appendix B of the COVID Practice Direction.
The Honourable George R. Strathy retires from the Court of Appeal for Ontario today, after having served as Chief Justice of Ontario for eight years and as an appellate and trial judge for nearly fifteen years. On the occasion of his retirement, he has published some reflections on Ontario’s justice system: https://www.ontariocourts.ca/coa/about-the-court/publications-speeches/cjo-strathy-speech-justice-system/.
(August 31, 2022)
(August 26, 2022)
(August 30, 2022)
(August 25, 2022)
(August 22, 2022)
The Court of Appeal for Ontario updated its COVID Practice Direction today with respect to the manner of hearing for inmate and Ontario Review Board appeals and the Court’s expectations regarding gowning. In brief, the updates are:
For the full updates, please review the Court’s COVID Practice Direction.
(June 16, 2022)
Beginning July 4, 2022, masks will no longer be required at the Court of Appeal. Attendees may still choose to wear a mask. Many COVID-19 protective measures remain in place. If you are attending an appeal hearing, please review the Court’s COVID-19 Practice Direction and the Protocol for In-Person Hearings During the Pandemic.
(May 10, 2022)
The Court of Appeal for Ontario has created an infographic and a flyer summarizing the current COVID-related procedures. They can be found at: https://www.ontariocourts.ca/coa/how-to-proceed-court/covid-19/covid-related-procedures-at-a-glance/.
(March 22, 2022; revised April 26, 2022)
Beginning April 4, 2022, the Court of Appeal for Ontario will begin hearing appeals and panel motions in person.
Inmate appeals will also be returning to an in-person format, but until further notice, inmates who are in custody at the time of their appeal hearing will continue to appear by video conference. Inmates who are out of custody at the time of their appeal hearing may choose to appear in person or by video conference. For motions in inmate matters, inmates – whether in custody or out of custody at the time of the motion hearing – must appear remotely by video or audio conference.
Appeal from orders made under Part XX.1 – Mental Disorder of the Criminal Code (generally known as Ontario Review Board appeals or ORB appeals) will also be returning to an in-person format, but until further notice, accused persons who are in custody at the time of their appeal hearing and who are not represented by a lawyer will continue to appear remotely by video conference. Accused persons who are out of custody at the time of their appeal hearing and who are not represented by a lawyer may choose to appear in person or by video conference. For motions in these matters, accused persons who are not represented by a lawyer – whether in custody or out of custody at the time of the motion hearing – must appear remotely by video or audio conference.
Single motions, purge court, and status court will continue to be heard remotely until further notice.
Parties will have the option of attending in-person appeals and panel motions remotely using a Zoom link, which will be provided to them.
Until further notice, the Court will continue to encourage physical distancing. In-person attendance is ordinarily limited to individuals making oral submissions and a maximum of two additional individuals per party. All other individuals, including members of the public and media, will be able to observe remotely by Zoom.
Given the return to in-person hearings, the Court is also revising the standard wording for the surrender condition in release orders pending appeal.
For more information about these changes, please review the Court’s Protocol for In-Person Hearings During the COVID-10 Pandemic at this link and the Court’s Consolidated Practice Direction Regarding Proceedings During the COVID-19 Pandemic at this link. Please also ensure to use the Court’s updated Counsel Slip and Hearing Information Form at this link.
(March 28, 2022)
Justice Jill M. Copeland Appointed to the Court of Appeal for Ontario.
(March 22, 2022)
Beginning April 4, 2022, the Court of Appeal for Ontario will begin hearing appeals and panel motions in person. Inmate appeals will also be returning to an in-person format, but until further notice, inmates will continue to appear by video conference.
(December 17, 2021; revised January 13, 2022)
In response to the most recent developments related to the COVID-19 pandemic, effective December 20, 2021 and until further notice: (i) unless otherwise directed, all appeal hearings at the Court of Appeal for Ontario will proceed remotely using the Zoom platform; (ii) status court and purge court are suspended; and (iii) public counter services will not be available. All members of the public should avoid non-essential visits to the courthouse. Parties must file all documents electronically in accordance with the Consolidated Practice Direction Regarding Proceedings in the Court of Appeal During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
(January 10, 2022)
In response to the most recent developments related to the COVID-19 pandemic, until further notice, counsel are not expected to gown for any appearances before the court. The Consolidated Practice Direction Regarding Proceedings in the Court of Appeal During the COVID-19 Pandemic has been amended to reflect this change (see para. 93).
(December 21, 2021)
In response to the most recent developments related to the COVID-19 pandemic, effective immediately and until further notice, the Court of Appeal for Ontario is returning to using the standard wording of the surrender condition in release orders that was used previously in the pandemic. This wording requires appellants on bail to surrender by 7:00 a.m. the morning the judgment is to be released or by 7:00 a.m. on the “sunset date” (i.e., the expiry date of the release order), whichever is earlier. For more information, please see paras. 125-131 of the Consolidated Practice Direction Regarding Proceedings in the Court of Appeal During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
(December 20, 2021)
Justice Jonathon George and Justice Lise Favreau Appointed to the Court of Appeal for Ontario.
(November 25, 2021)
The Chief Justice of Ontario and the Associate Chief Justice of Ontario have issued a statement welcoming senior counsel to share opportunities for oral submissions with junior counsel: Statement Regarding Submissions from Counsel.
(November 22, 2021)
In consultation with relevant stakeholders, the Court of Appeal is in the process of reviewing and revising Rule 12 (and its associated Form 8) and Rule 54 of the Criminal Appeal Rules, which relate to accessing lower court documents and exhibits in order to prepare appeal books. While these rules are undergoing review and revision, the Court has released a Practice Direction Regarding Accessing Court Documents and Exhibits from Lower Courts for Purposes of Preparing Appeal Books in Criminal Appeals. This practice direction provides further clarification and guidance on how parties to a criminal appeal gain access to court documents and exhibits from the lower court. The practice direction is effective immediately.
(November 10, 2021)
The Court of Appeal for Ontario has amended its Consolidated COVID-19 Practice Direction in order to revise the standard wording for the surrender condition in release orders pending appeal. For more information, see paras. 130-136 of the Consolidated COVID-19 Practice Direction.
(November 5, 2021)
The Court of Appeal released its decision in Restoule v. Canada (C66455 & C68595). The appeals concern the 1850 Robinson-Huron and Robinson-Superior Treaties. The reasons are available at https://coadecisions.ontariocourts.ca/coa/coa/en/item/20082/index.do and a public overview is available at https://coadecisions.ontariocourts.ca/coa/coa/en/item/20090/index.do.
(November 1, 2021)
The Court of Appeal for Ontario has amended its Consolidated COVID-19 Practice Direction in order to reflect the coming into force of the new Criminal Appeal Rules.
(October 26, 2021)
Beginning November 8, 2021, the Court of Appeal for Ontario will begin hearing appeals in person.
The Court will begin hearing criminal appeals and panel motions in person on November 8 and will begin hearing civil appeals and panel motions in person on November 15.
Inmate appeals, single-judge motions, purge court, and status court will continue to be heard remotely until further notice.
In-person attendance will be limited to counsel and self-represented litigants. Observers, including clients and the public, will be able to observe remotely by Zoom.
For health and safety reasons, the Court had been hearing appeals remotely by Zoom throughout most of the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on public health advice the Court will resume hearing appeals in-person with appropriate health and safety measures in place. The Court continues to receive regular public health advice and will, if advisable, return to hearing appeals remotely.
For more information, please review the Court’s Protocol for In-Person Hearings During the COVID-10 Pandemic at this link and the Court’s Consolidated Practice Direction Regarding Proceedings During the COVID-19 Pandemic at this link.
(October 21, 2021; Revised October 28, 2021)
New Criminal Appeal Rules for all criminal matters at the Court of Appeal for Ontario will come into force on November 1, 2021. On that day, the current Criminal Appeal Rules, SI/93-169, 1993 Canada Gazette, Part II, will be revoked.
In general, the new Rules will apply to all criminal matters at the Court of Appeal for Ontario whether commenced before or after November 1, 2021.
The new Criminal Appeal Rules may be reviewed at https://www.ontariocourts.ca/coa/files/rules-forms/criminal-rules-en.pdf.
Please note:
(September 27, 2021)
The Court of Appeal for Ontario has amended its Consolidated COVID-19 Practice Direction to remove the information about scheduling urgent matters in July and August 2021 and to specify that only lawyers licensed by the Law Society of Ontario to practise law in Ontario may act and sign as a witness for a surety’s signature and for an out-of-custody appellant’s signature on Appendix A of the Court of Appeal for Ontario’s “all-in-one” release order. The amendments to the Consolidated COVID-19 Practice Direction can be found at Appendix A of the Practice Direction.
(September 14, 2021)
Remarks of the Honourable George R. Strathy, Chief Justice of Ontario
(September 9, 2021)
(July 7, 2021)
The Court of Appeal released today housekeeping amendments to the Practice Direction Concerning Civil Appeals at the Court of Appeal for Ontario.
(July 6, 2021)
The Court of Appeal for Ontario has amended its Consolidated COVID-19 Practice Direction and revised its Counsel Slip and Hearing Information Form. The amendments to the Consolidated COVID-19 Practice Direction can be found at Appendix B of the Practice Direction. The Counsel Slip and Hearing Information Form has been revised to allow those that appear before the Court to provide their prefix, pronouns and/or name pronunciation (through phonetic spelling or a link to an audio recording).
(June 17, 2021)
https://pm.gc.ca/en/news/news-releases/2021/06/17/prime-minister-announces-nomination-honourable-mahmud-jamal-supreme
(June 7, 2021)
The Court of Appeal for Ontario has launched a new website. We are interested in your opinions, suggestions and comments about the new website. Please send us your website feedback.
In April and June, the Court of Appeal heard appeals in Restoule v. Canada (C66455 & C68595). The appeals concern the 1850 Robinson Huron and Robinson Superior Treaties. Pursuant to court orders, a recording of the stage one hearing is available on Vimeo at https://vimeopro.com/user135794168/c66455 and a recording of the stage two hearing is available at https://vimeopro.com/user135794168/c68595