The following document is a reproduction
The Honourable Mr. Justice I.B. Cowan
Ontario Court of Justice Court House, Suite 100\
7755 Hurontario Street
Brampton, ON
L6W 4T6
June 4, 2001
Mr. Alan Gold President Criminal Lawyers’ Association
365 Bloor St. E., Suite 1807
Toronto ON
M4W 3L4
Dear Alan,
Re: TIME LIMITATION IN ONTARIO COURT OF JUSTICE (CRIMINAL) BRAMPTON
Effective, September 1, 2001, a practice direction signed by Regional Senior Justice A. Zuraw will take effect with regard to the management of cases in the Assignment Court in Brampton. This direction follows the recommendation of the Brampton Criminal Court Management Committee, comprised of members of the defence bar, agencies involved in the court process; Crown Attorney’s office; the Judiciary and Courts Administration. The Committee examined the role of extended delays in the Assignment Courts in the setting or dates. It ascertained that the average number of appearances in the Assignment Court in Brampton was seven. This lead to large numbers of cases coming back on a daily basis without a great deal happening to the case. It is acknowledged that there are cases of unusual complexity that will require longer periods of time in the pre-trial process. The Committee recommended that a normal case should be in a position to either be resolved or a trial date set within a three-month period. Consequently, effective September 1, 2001 a practice direction will mandate that this procedure will be followed: 1) Any criminal case appearing in an Ontario Court Assignment Court in Brampton shall, within three months from its first appearance, either have set a trial date, or be set for a guilty plea if so indicated. 2) Any case that is not in a position to do this shall be transferred in front of a Case Management Judge who shall be seized with that case, for management purposes, until it is in a position to proceed. 3) In the building there will be a number of Case Management Judges on any given day who will share the caseload. 4) This procedure shall be followed without exception.
I would request that you circulate this direction to your members so that they are aware of the change in procedure coming on September 1, 2001. I thank you for your co-operation and continuing interest in the administration of justice in this Court.
Yours very truly,
Ian B. Cowan,