Ontario Court of Justice
The Ontario Court of Justice is a provincial court of record for the Canadian province of Ontario. The court sits at more than 200 locations across the province and oversees matters relating to family law, criminal law, and provincial offences.
Jurisdiction
This court is subordinate in relationship to the "superior" courts. The phrase "provincial court" or "territorial court" is often used to mean a low level court whose decisions can be reviewed by a superior court. Decades ago, they were managed at the local municipal level.The Ontario Court of Justice is a division of the Court of Ontario. The other division of the Court of Ontario is the Superior Court of Justice. Until 1999, the Ontario Court of Justice was known as the Ontario Court.
Family law
Family law cases deal with matters of custody, access and support, child protection so long as these are not incidental of or were not previously a part of a divorce application. Cases are heard by a judge only. Appeals from these cases are heard by the Superior Court of Justice.Criminal law
The Court deals with approximately 95% of criminal charges laid within the province and has responsibility for other matters pertaining to criminal law, including authorizing search warrants, bail hearings, and peace bonds, under sections 515 and 810 of the Criminal Code, respectively.Criminal law cases heard before the Court are summary conviction offences, less serious indictable offences under section 553 of the Criminal Code, and indictable offences where the defendant has elected to have his or her trial heard in the Ontario Court of Justice. Criminal cases are heard by a judge only. Appeals from cases involving summary conviction offences are heard by the Superior Court of Justice. Appeals involving indictable matters are heard by the Ontario Court of Appeal.
Criminal law matters before the Court also include remand or bail hearings and peace bonds. These matters are not required to be heard by a judge and may be dealt with by a justice of the peace. An appeal of a bail decision must be heard by the Superior Court of Justice.
Structure of the Court
Section 35 of the Courts of Justice Act sets out the structure of the Ontario Court of Justice.Provincial Judges
Provincial judges are appointed, as considered necessary, by the Lieutenant Governor in Council on the recommendation of the Attorney General. A person cannot be appointed as a provincial judge unless he or she has:
The normal age of retirement for a provincial judge is age 65, however there are exceptions that allow a provincial judge to continue in office until age 75, at which point they are required to retire without exception.
Judicial Appointment Committee
Justices of the Court of Justices are selected for appointment by the provincial Minister of Justice on recommendation of the Judicial Appointments Advisory Committee. It is currently composed of 13 members.
Current members consist of:
- Fareed Amin, Chair
- Justice Sharon Nicklas
- Justice Martin P. Lambert
- Justice Paul Robertson
- Gerald Chan, Stockwoods LLP
- Katherine Hensel, Hensel Barristers
- Ormond Murphy
- Sylvie Beauvais
- Jean Hébert
- Asha Luthra
- Brian Mullan
- Kathleen O’Keefe
- Gabriel Tremblay
The Lieutenant Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Attorney General, appoint a provincial justice to the position of Chief Justice of the Ontario Court of Justice. The Chief Justice is the President of the Ontario Court of Justice. They are responsible for directing and supervising the sittings of the Court throughout Ontario and for assigning its judicial duties. If the Chief Justice is absent from Ontario or is for any reason unable to act, his or her powers and duties shall be exercised and performed by an associate chief justice of the Ontario Court of Justice designated by the Chief Justice. A Chief Justice has a single term of office of eight years, but will nonetheless continue in office until a successor is appointed, up to a total term of nine years.
Associate Chief Justice
The Lieutenant Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Attorney General, appoint provincial justices to the positions of Associate Chief Justice and Associate Chief Justice-Coordinator of Justices of the Peace of the Ontario Court of Justice for single terms of six years. The Associate Chief Justice and the Associate Chief Justice-Coordinator of Justices of the Peace provide support to the Chief Justice and have specific delegated responsibilities as well as those set out in statute. The Associate Chief Justice-Coordinator of Justices of the Peace administers the Ontario Native Justice of the Peace Program. Within the Court, the principal responsibility for this program falls to the Senior Justice of the Peace/Administrator of the Ontario Native Justice of the Peace Program. The stated goal of the program is to encourage and enable Aboriginal Canadians to play a greater role in decision-making in the administration of justice, by serving as justices of the peace, particularly in areas of the province with significant Aboriginal population.
Regional Senior Justice
Ontario is divided into seven geographic regions for judicial administration: northwest, northeast, west, central west, central east, east, and Toronto. Each region has a regional senior judge and a regional senior justice of the peace. The Lieutenant Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Attorney General, appoint a provincial justice to the position of regional senior justice for a term of three years. The responsibilities of a regional senior judge are to exercise the same powers and functions as the Chief Justice of the Ontario Court of Justice in his or her region, subject to their authority. A regional senior justice also assists in the supervision of the justices of the peace within that region. This is done in consultation with the Associate Chief Justice-Coordinator of Justices of the Peace and the regional senior justice of the peace.
Regions
Current Justices
Central East Region
| Name | District | Date Appointed | Previous Position | - |
| Justice Esther Rosenberg | 2010 June 1, 2018 | Rosenberg, Pringle | - | |
| Justice Simon C. Armstrong | Newmarket | Deputy Director of Regional Legal Operations, PPSC Blake, Cassels & Graydon | - | |
| Justice John F. Adamson | - | |||
| Justice Cecile Applegate | Barrie | Wasaga Law Private Practice | - | |
| Justice Robert W. Beninger | Peterborough | - | ||
| Justice Jonathan Bliss | Barrie | Private Practice | - | |
| Justice Michael Block | Oshawa | - | ||
| Justice Peter Nicholas Bourque | Newmarket | - | ||
| Justice Jennifer Broderick | Crown attorney | - | ||
| Justice Paul Burstein | Private Practice | |||
| Justice Lisa M Cameron | Crown attorney | - | ||
| Justice Edward A. Carlton | Bracebridge | - | ||
| Justice Nancy A. Dawson | Barrie | - | ||
| Justice Mary Teresa E. Devlin | - | |||
| Justice Jon-Jo Douglas | Barrie | - | ||
| Justice Nyron Dwyer | Newmarket | Private practice | - | |
| Justice Marquis S. V. Felix | - | |||
| Justice Robert Gattrell | - | |||
| Justice Amit A. Ghosh | Newmarket | Crown attorney | - | |
| Justice Victor Giourgas | - | |||
| Justice Brenda M. Green | Oshawa | February 16, 2017 | Crown attorney | - |
| Justice Michael Harpur | Barrie | - | ||
| Justice Marcella Henschel | Ontario Crown Prosecutor | - | ||
| Justice Ferhan Javed | Oshawa | Private Practice | - | |
| Justice Cynthia Johnston | - | |||
| Justice Joseph F. Kenkel | - | |||
| Justice Stuart W. Konyer | Lindsay | May & Konyer Associates | - | |
| Justice Glenn D. Krelove | Barrie | - | ||
| Justice Susan C. MacLean | Oshawa | Crown attorney | - | |
| Justice John Stuart McInnes | - | |||
| Justice Angela L. McLeod | - | |||
| Justice Shannon B. McPherson | 2017 | - | ||
| Justice Enno J. Meijers | Barrie | Crown Attorney | - | |
| Justice Mary E. Misener | - | |||
| Justice Anastasia M. Nichols | - | |||
| Justice John N. Olver | - | |||
| Justice John A. Payne | - | |||
| Justice Christine Pirraglia | - | |||
| Justice David S. Rose | - | |||
| Justice Esther Rosenberg | - | |||
| Justice Peter Tetley | Newmarket | - | ||
| Justice Graham Wakefield | Oshawa | - | ||
| Justice Peter C. West | - | |||
| Justice Timothy C. Whetung | Peterborough | - |
Central West Region
| Name | District | Date Appointed | Previous Position |
| Justice Sharon M. Nicklas | |||
| Justice P. H. Marjoh Agro | |||
| Justice Kathleen A. Baker | Brantford | Children's Aid Society | |
| Justice Lesley M. Baldwin | Burlington | ||
| Justice Patrice F. Band | Brampton | Crown attorney | |
| Justice W. James Blacklock | Brampton | ||
| Justice Louise Botham | Brampton | ||
| Justice Stephen D. Brown | Milton | Sole practitioner Markham law | |
| Justice Frederic M. Campling | Hamilton | ||
| Justice Sandra Caponecchia | 2017 | ||
| Justice Philip J. Clay | |||
| Justice J.A. Tory Colvin | Welland | ||
| Justice Alan D. Cooper | |||
| Justice Jennifer A. Crawford | |||
| Justice Paul R. Currie | Brampton | Private practice Crown attorney | |
| Justice Joseph A. De Filippis | |||
| Justice Bruce W. Duncan | |||
| Justice Patrick W. Dunn | Brampton | ||
| Justice Gethin B. Edward | |||
| Justice Jacqueline Freeman | Brampton | Private practice | |
| Justice George S. Gage | Hamilton | ||
| Justice Robert Gee | Brantford | Sole practitioner Child, Chaimovitz Jones, Rogers | |
| Justice Colette D. Good | Brantford | Crown attorney | |
| Justice Nathalie Gregson | Sault Ste. Marie | ||
| Justice David Harris | St. Catharines | Private practice | |
| Justice Kathryn L. Hawke | |||
| Justice Iona M. Jaffe | Brampton | Federal Prosecutor | |
| Justice Nancy S. Kastner | Brampton | ||
| Justice Sonia V. Khemani | Brampton | private practitioner | |
| Justice Richard J. LeDressay | Milton | ||
| Justice Anthony F. Leitch | Hamilton | ||
| Justice Alison R. Mackay | Brampton | sole practitioner | |
| Justice June Maresca | Brampton | ||
| Justice Eileen Martin | Welland | ||
| Justice Sandra Martins | Brampton | Crown counsel | |
| Justice Donald McLeod | Brampton | Hinkson, Sachak | |
| Justice Katherine L. McLeod | Brampton | ||
| Justice Paul F. Monahan | Brampton | Fasken Martineau DuMoulin | |
| Justice Fergus C. ODonnell | Toronto | ||
| Justice Paul T. O’Marra | Brampton | Sole practitioner Legal Aid | |
| Justice Lise S. Parent | |||
| Justice Bruce E. Pugsley | Orangeville | ||
| Justice Mohammed M. Rahman | Brampton | Ontario Crown Law Office Public Prosecution Service of Canada | |
| Justice Elinore A. Ready | Brampton | ||
| Justice G. Paul Renwick | Brampton | Crown Attorney | |
| Justice Richard H. K. Schwarzl | Brampton | ||
| Justice Kevin Sherwood | Simcoe | Sole practitioner Sherwood Wyonch Ryder, Planz and Sherwood | |
| Justice Victoria A. Starr | Milton | Starr Family Law Office of the Children's Lawyer | |
| Justice James Stribopoulos | Brampton | Kapoor & Stribopoulos Barristers | |
| Justice Anthony William Joseph Sullivan | Brampton | sole practitioner | |
| Justice Ann Jane Watson | St. Catharines | ||
| Justice R. Cameron B. Watson | Ontario Securities Commission Crown attorney | ||
| Justice Peter H. Wilkie | Brampton | ||
| Justice Bernd E. Zabel | Hamilton | ||
| Justice Martha Zivolak | Brandford | ||
| Justice Allison Dellandrea | Brampton | ||
| Justice Shahbudin Amarshi | Brampton | Crown with PPSC private practitioner | |
| Justice John North | Toronto | Public Prosecution Service of Canada | |
| Justice Peter Andras Schreck | Brampton | Schreck Presser LLP Schreck & Greene, Pinkofsky Lockyer Sole practitioner | |
| Justice Jill Miriam Copeland | Brampton | Sack Goldblatt Mitchell LLP executive legal officer at the Supreme Court of Canada legal counsel for the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario |
East Region
Northeast Region
Northwest Region
Toronto Region
| Name | District | Date Appointed | Prior Position |
| Aston J. Hall | |||
| Justice Sandra Bacchus | |||
| Justice Feroza Bhabha | Crown attorney Department of Justice private practice | ||
| Justice Miriam Bloomenfeld | Metro East | Crown attorney | |
| Justice Richard Blouin | Newmarket | ||
| Justice Ronald D. Boivin | Old City Hall | ||
| Justice Howard Borenstein | Metro East | Private practice | |
| Justice Joseph W. Bovard | Old City Hall | ||
| Justice Timothy E. Breen | 2017 | ||
| Justice Carol Brewer | Crown Attorney | ||
| Justice Beverly A. Brown | Metro North | ||
| Justice Harvey P. Brownstone | Sheppard Ave | ||
| Justice Lloyd M. Budzinski | Metro West | ||
| Justice Kathleen J. Caldwell | Old City Hall | ||
| Justice James R. Chaffe | |||
| Justice Leslie A. P. Chapin | Old City Hall | ||
| Justice Susan M. Chapman | 2017 | ||
| Justice Howard I. Chisvin | Newmarket | Private practice | |
| Justice Steven R. Clark | Brampton | ||
| Justice Thomas P. Cleary | |||
| Justice Frank D. Crewe | Toronto | Sole practitioner | |
| Justice Kimberley Ann Crosbie | |||
| Justice Carole Curtis | |||
| Justice Antonio Di Zio | |||
| Justice Kate Doorly | Toronto | Crown attorney | |
| Justice Philip A. Downes | |||
| Justice Karen M. Erlick | 2017 | ||
| Justice Lucia Piera Favret | Newmarket | ||
| Justice Lawrence T. Feldman | Metro East | ||
| Justice John A. Finlayson | |||
| Justice Melvyn Green | Private practice | ||
| Justice Mara B. Greene | Toronto | ||
| Justice Rachel Grinberg | 2017 | ||
| Justice Jack M. Grossman | Metro North | ||
| Justice Mary L. Hogan | Old City Hall | ||
| Justice William B. Horkins | |||
| Justice Carolyn Jane Jones | |||
| Justice Edward J. Kelly | Toronto | Private Practice | |
| Justice Robert Kelly | Brampton | ||
| Justice Ramez Khawly | Old City Hall | ||
| Justice Neil L. Kozloff | Metro North | ||
| Justice Gerald S. Lapkin | Metro West | ||
| Justice Eric N. Libman | Old City Hall | ||
| Justice Timothy R. Lipson | Metro East | ||
| Justice Rita J. Maxwell | 2017 | ||
| Justice Malcolm McLeod | |||
| Justice Salvatore Merenda | |||
| Justice Cathy Mocha | College Park | ||
| Justice Lori B. Montague | |||
| Justice Daniel F. Moore | |||
| Justice John C. Moore | College Park | ||
| Justice Katrina Mulligan | Oshawa | ||
| Justice Ellen B. Murray | |||
| Justice C. Ann Nelson | Brampton | ||
| Justice Petra E. Newton | College Park | ||
| Justice Sheilagh O’Connell | Milton | Director of Legal Aid Ontario's Family Law Services Legal Aid Ontario Sole practitioner | |
| Justice Diane I. Oleskiw | Metro North | ||
| Justice Russell J. Otter | Metro East | ||
| Justice Debra A. W. Paulseth | Jarvis FD | Director of Toronto Court Services Private practice | |
| Justice Manjusha Pawagi | Brampton | Children's Aid Society | |
| Justice Heather F. Pringle | |||
| Justice Leslie C. Pringle | Metro North | ||
| Justice Sheila Ray | 1992 | ||
| Justice Paul Robertson | |||
| Justice Vincenzo Rondinelli | 2017 | ||
| Justice Rebecca Rutherford | College Park | ||
| Justice Melanie Sager | |||
| Justice Richard D. Schneider | Old City Hall | ||
| Justice Brian M. Scully | Jarvis FD | ||
| Justice S. Rebecca Shamai | Old City Hall | ||
| Justice Riun Shandler | Toronto | Crown counsel | |
| Justice Stanley B. Sherr | Old City Hall | Private practice | |
| Justice Russell S. Silverstein | Toronto | ||
| Justice Robert J. Spence | Sheppard Ave | ||
| Justice Maria Speyer | Hamilton | ||
| Justice Andrea Tuck-Jackson | Metro West | ||
| Justice Charles H. Vaillancourt | Metro North | ||
| Justice Brian Weagant | Jarvis FD | ||
| Justice Fern M. Weinper | Metro West | ||
| Justice William R. Wolski | College Park | ||
| Justice Mavin | |||
| Justice Roselyn Zisman | Milton | ||
| Justice Kevin Kells McCallum | Brampton | Sole Practice | - |
| Justice Joe Patrick Paul Fiorucci | Hamilton | sole practitioner | |
| Justice Anne London-Weinstein | Toronto | Weinstein Law Firm |
West Region
Supernumerary and Per Diem Justices
Previous Justices
- David Paciocco
- John Ritchie