If you do not have a lawyer retained, you will have to attend court yourself. Your matter will be one of hundreds on the day’s docket. It could take several hours to get before the justice of the peace. This justice will ask you to confirm your name, date of birth, language of choice, and ask if you wish to have your charges read. You will be advised to contact the crown attorney to get your disclosure. Finally, you have to select the next court date approximately one month in the future. If you have a lawyer retained, they can take care of all of the above on your behalf.

First thing you should do is get legal advice from an experienced criminal lawyer. Your lawyer will request disclosure from the crown attorney’s office.

Most criminal lawyers in the area charge a block fee and can give you a quote up front. The cost will be much higher if the matter goes to trial and is lengthy. The amount will be much smaller if it resolves without going to trial. Most criminal lawyers, including at Adam Rice Law, accept legal aid certificates.

Legal Aid Ontario issues certificates to those who qualify. There are two criteria: first, the prosecution must be seeking a jail sentence, second, your income must be below a certain threshold. Applications can be made by calling Legal Aid Ontario at 1-800-668-8258. There is a separate expedited process for accused in custody.

The law requires that police bring a person before the Court within 24 hours. Once they are before the Court, a bail hearing may commence right away, or it may be adjourned for up to three days. Bail hearings take place right away, so the person who wishes to bail someone out (the “surety”) must act quickly to make sure that everything is in place on time. To be a surety, you should: . Not have a criminal record · Be over the age of 18 · Have an ability to supervise the accused adequately · Be willing to promise an amount of money that they could lose if the accused breached their bail · Have the capacity to understand and enforce the conditions the Court · Attend court on the day of the bail hearing One of the most important aspects of a bail hearing is being properly prepared which includes, but not limited to: a well thought out supervision plan, an informed and experienced lawyer, a reasonable amount of money or assets that can be pledged as collateral for an accused’s release, and a serious and respectful attitude towards the proceedings. Bail is an extremely important part of the proceedings and must be treated with as much seriousness as the trial itself. If a person is not granted bail, they may have to wait many months until trial before being released or at a minimum several days or weeks before the detention order is appealed. Contact Adam Rice Law to greatly increase the chances of a person being released and into the care of a surety(s).