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Ontario Court of Justice Recent Decisions

• 2025-09-05 R. v. Wickham, 2025 ONCJ 461 (CanLII)
  Key Words: Criminal infractions — Assault — Defence of property — Accused charged with assault after pushing landlord out of rental property — Whether the accused had a valid defence under section 35(1) of the Criminal Code — Defence of property requires reasonable belief of peaceable possession, unlawful entry, defensive purpose, and reasonable force — Criminal Code, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46, s. 35(1)<br />Property — Defence of property — Reasonable force — Accused used physical force to expel landlord from rental property — Whether the force used was reasonable in the circumstances — Force must be proportionate to the threat posed — Negligible threat posed by landlord entering to investigate plumbing issue — Crown proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the force used was unreasonable — Criminal Code, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46, s. 35(1)(d)<br />Lease — Landlord's right of entry — Notice requirements under Residential Tenancies Act — Landlord entered rental property to investigate plumbing issue — Whether landlord provided lawful notice of entry — Notice must specify date, time, and purpose of entry and need not be received to be effective — Crown failed to prove notice was provided — Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 17, s. 27<br />Evidence — Credibility and reliability — Landlord-tenant relationship — Acrimonious relationship between landlord and tenant — Whether complainant's evidence was credible and reliable — Court accepted evidence of independent witnesses to corroborate complainant's account — Minor inconsistencies in testimony did not undermine overall reliability
• 2025-09-04 R. v. Mann, 2025 ONCJ 457 (CanLII)
  Key Words: Criminal infractions — Possession of firearm — Prohibited device — Knowledge and control — Accused found guilty of possessing a loaded, prohibited firearm and over-capacity magazine in a duffel bag — Did the accused have knowledge and control over the firearm and prohibited items? — Crown established possession through circumstantial evidence and direct observations — Criminal Code, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46, ss. 86(1), 91(1), 92(1)<br />Evidence — Circumstantial evidence — Inference versus speculation — Defence theory of evidence planting by a third party — Defence argued firearm was planted by another resident to frame the accused — Was the defence theory sufficient to raise a reasonable doubt? — Defence theory rejected as speculative and unsupported by evidence — R. v. Villaroman, 2016 SCC 33 applied<br />Evidence — Identification of accused — Surveillance and covert camera footage — Police observations of accused carrying blue duffel bag containing firearm — Was the accused properly identified as the individual in possession of the duffel bag? — Identification of accused established through consistent police testimony and photographic evidence<br />Criminal procedure — Constructive possession — Knowledge and control — Firearm found in accused's residence — Did the Crown meet its burden of proof in establishing constructive possession? — Constructive possession established through accused's exclusive use of the duffel bag and presence of personal items within it — R. v. Morelli, 2010 SCC 8 applied
• 2025-09-03 North Eastern Ontario Family and Children’s Services v. M.R., 2025 ONCJ 453 (CanLII)
  Key Words: Child protection — Interaction of criminal and child protection orders — Paramountcy doctrine — Criminal release orders conflicting with child protection access orders — Whether criminal court orders override child protection orders under the CYFSA — Criminal court orders prevail in cases of conflict — Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017, S.O. 2017, c. 14, Sch. 1, s. 87(7), 87(8), 94(8), 94(11)<br />Child protection — Temporary access — Best interests of the child — Allegations of severe abuse — Supervised access for parents — Whether temporary access is appropriate for parents accused of abuse — Balancing risks of harm from abuse and harm from separation — CYFSA, ss. 1(1), 1(2), 74(3), 94(8)<br />Child protection — Supervised access — Terms and conditions — Supervision by society workers — Frequency and duration of access — Separate access for parents — Whether parents should have joint or separate access — Incremental approach to access — CYFSA, s. 94(8)<br />Child protection — Developmental assessments — Best interests of the child — Whether developmental assessments should be directed to assist in determining access and parenting time — Importance of understanding children’s emotional well-being and attachment — CYFSA, ss. 1(1), 1(2), 74(3)
• 2025-09-02 Green v. Dyer, 2025 ONCJ 449 (CanLII)
  Key Words: Family — Costs in family law proceedings — Relocation of child — Father’s failure to provide financial disclosure and complete intake form for the Office of the Children’s Lawyer — Should the father be ordered to pay costs for delaying the proceedings? — Subrule 17(18) of the Family Law Rules mandates immediate costs for unprepared parties or those who fail to comply with procedural obligations<br />Civil procedure — Costs — Procedural non-compliance — Father’s failure to meet disclosure deadlines and complete intake form caused adjournment of settlement conference — Does the father’s failure justify an immediate costs order? — Subrule 17(18) of the Family Law Rules governs costs for unproductive conferences due to non-compliance<br />Family — Costs — Reasonableness and proportionality — Factors considered in awarding costs — Mother’s costs claim deemed reasonable and proportional — Father’s conduct found unreasonable, delaying resolution of relocation issue — What factors should be considered in determining the reasonableness of costs? — Subrule 24(14) of the Family Law Rules outlines factors for setting costs
• 2025-09-02 R. v. Herrington, 2025 ONCJ 450 (CanLII)
  Key Words: Criminal infractions — Sentencing — Intimate partner violence — Offender convicted of assaulting intimate partner in the context of coercive control — What is the appropriate sentence considering denunciation, deterrence, rehabilitation, and proportionality? — Suspended sentence with probation imposed — Criminal Code, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46, ss. 718, 718.2<br />Criminal procedure — Conditional discharge — Suspended sentence — Offender sought conditional discharge to avoid criminal record — Court found conditional discharge contrary to public interest — Does a suspended sentence better reflect the principles of sentencing? — Suspended sentence imposed with probation terms<br />Evidence — Aggravating and mitigating factors — Intimate partner violence — Aggravating factors included coercive control, victim’s vulnerability, and impact on children — Mitigating factors included offender’s lack of criminal record, remorse, and rehabilitation efforts — How should these factors influence sentencing? — Aggravating factors outweighed mitigating factors<br />Criminal infractions — Ancillary orders — DNA order — Weapons prohibition — Victim fine surcharge — What ancillary orders are appropriate in sentencing for intimate partner violence? — DNA order, five-year weapons prohibition, and victim fine surcharge imposed