What is disclosure in an Ontario criminal case, and why do early court dates keep getting adjourned?

Disclosure is the Crown's file on your case, and the Crown must give you all relevant information it has unless it is privileged. Early court dates are mostly about getting and reviewing that file, so they are short and usually end in an adjournment. Ontario Court of Justice practice directions now expect disclosure, a Crown pre-trial and any judicial pre-trial to be done within about six months of the charge.

Clients often come back from a first appearance saying "nothing happened". In a criminal defence case in Ontario, that is normal: the early dates are about disclosure. This page explains what is in the file, what the Crown must give you, how the court's timelines work, and how to read the file when English is not your first language.

How does disclosure work, step by step?

1. Someone contacts the Crown's office. The court's guide says to contact the Crown Attorney's office prosecuting your case before your first appearance to ask how to get disclosure; if you have hired a lawyer, the lawyer does this for you. Depending on the charge, the prosecutor is the local provincial Crown Attorney or the federal Crown (Public Prosecution Service of Canada).
2. You get access to the file. The Crown's office should send instructions to create an account on the "digital disclosure hub", and you may be asked for identification. You can ask for a paper copy instead.
3. The first package arrives. The Crown usually provides disclosure before or at your first appearance in case management court. Our guide to what happens at a first court appearance in Toronto explains that date.
4. You and your lawyer review it. Check that every file opens and every video plays, then read it closely. Missing items are requested from the Crown in writing.
5. More material keeps coming. The court calls disclosure an ongoing process, and the Crown's duty continues through the trial and appeal (directive D. 10).
6. The pre-trials. Your lawyer and the Crown hold a Crown pre-trial, and, where needed, a judge holds a judicial pre-trial, where disclosure is one of the subjects the parties must be ready to decide (OCJ Criminal Rules, r. 4.2(3)(a)).
7. Resolution or trial. With the file reviewed, the case resolves or a trial date is set. A court application about disclosure is a pre-trial application and must be heard at least 60 days before trial, unless the court orders otherwise (r. 2.4).

What is in your disclosure?

According to the Ontario Court of Justice, disclosure can include:

• the Information, the formal document listing the charges;
• the notes of the police officers involved in the arrest and investigation;
• surveillance video, recordings or photographs;
• financial documents and forensic reports;
• witness statements, recorded on audio or video or in writing; and
• a synopsis of the case.

It usually also includes the one-page Charge Screening Form, which can show the Crown's position on resolution, whether diversion is offered, what sentence the Crown would seek on a guilty plea, and whether the Crown is proceeding summarily or by indictment. That last choice shapes the case; our page on what the Crown's choice between summary and indictment changes explains why. Some parts of the disclosure may be blacked out because they are confidential or irrelevant.

What must the Crown give you?

Ontario's Crown Prosecution Manual (directive D. 10, Disclosure, effective November 14, 2017) sets out the prosecutor's duties:

• provide all information in the Crown's possession relating to the charges, unless it is clearly irrelevant or privileged;
• disclose any information pointing to guilt or innocence that the defence could use;
• keep disclosing throughout the trial and appeal, and after;
• make inquiries where there is a reasonable basis to believe police or another government body holds material that could affect the result; and
• delay disclosure only rarely, after consulting the Crown Attorney, and never for tactical reasons.

The prosecutor decides the timing and the form of disclosure, such as paper or electronic. Exceptions include information that could identify a confidential informer, privileged information, material that could jeopardize an investigation or someone's safety, and private records such as medical records, personal diaries, cell phones or therapeutic records. Recordings of a sexual offence or child abuse are released only to a lawyer who signs an undertaking to use them for the defence, and are not given to an unrepresented accused without a court order.

Why do early court dates keep getting adjourned?

Because case management court exists to track exactly these steps. At each appearance the court asks about disclosure, legal aid or a lawyer, and pre-trials, then sets the next date. Recent practice directions put limits on this:

For charges sworn on or after June 1, 2026, the same practice direction also limits out-of-custody adult cases to three case management appearances unless a judicial officer orders otherwise. Under the 12-week direction, the Crown is expected to screen the case promptly, provide meaningful disclosure and answer disclosure requests promptly, and defence counsel to obtain and review disclosure and follow up on anything outstanding.

Behind these timelines sits the right to be tried within a reasonable time (Charter s. 11(b)). In R. v. Jordan, 2016 SCC 27, the Supreme Court of Canada set a presumptive ceiling of 18 months for cases tried in the provincial court and 30 months for cases in the superior court, or tried in the provincial court after a preliminary inquiry. Delay caused or waived by the defence does not count toward the ceiling, which is one reason to request missing disclosure early and in writing.

What changes the answer?

• Who prosecutes. The provincial Crown follows the Crown Prosecution Manual (D. 10); federal prosecutions are handled by the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, which has its own contact at 10 Armoury Street.
• The kind of evidence. Private records, informer information and recordings of a sexual offence or child abuse carry extra limits (D. 10, exceptions and recordings).
• Whether you have a lawyer. Some recordings go only to a lawyer who signs an undertaking; an unrepresented accused needs a court order (D. 10).
• How much is outstanding. If substantial disclosure has not arrived within four months of the charge being sworn, a judicial pre-trial must be scheduled (Jordan-compliant trial scheduling practice direction).
• Material held by others. If police or another government body declines to provide material the Crown asks for, the accused may seek a court order (D. 10).
• How close the trial is. A disclosure application must be heard at least 60 days before trial unless the court orders otherwise (OCJ Criminal Rules, r. 2.4).
• Custody. The 12-week adjournment does not apply to an accused in custody, and custody cases get scheduling priority (12-week and Jordan-compliant practice directions).

Reading disclosure when English is not your first language

Disclosure is written for lawyers and police, and it is dense: officers' notes, short forms, timestamps and legal terms. Ontario provides court interpreters in any language required in criminal matters, and the Charter protects the right to an interpreter in the proceedings (s. 14), but the ontario.ca interpreter page describes interpretation in court, not the translation of the disclosure file. Reading the file is work you do with your lawyer.

That is where a Farsi-speaking lawyer helps most. Going through the synopsis, each witness statement and the Charge Screening Form in Persian lets you point out what is wrong, missing or out of context, which is exactly what the Crown pre-trial needs. If any part of the evidence is itself in Farsi, such as text messages, or a statement taken through an interpreter, say so early so your lawyer can check how it was handled. Read our guide for Persian-speaking people charged in the GTA for how we work in Farsi.

If you are not a Canadian citizen, the Charge Screening Form deserves special care. For immigration purposes, an offence that can be prosecuted either way counts as indictable, even if the Crown proceeds summarily (IRPA s. 36(3)(a)). Our page on how a criminal charge can affect permanent resident status explains what is at stake.

For example: a disclosure gap that shapes the case

This is a hypothetical, not a real client or a result. Suppose a man in North York, whose first language is Farsi, is charged with assault after an argument outside a store and released on an undertaking. He hires a lawyer before his first appearance at 10 Armoury Street.

The lawyer contacts the Crown's office and receives the first package through the digital disclosure hub: the Information, two officers' notes, a short witness statement and the synopsis. The lawyer goes through it with him in Farsi. He says the store had a camera facing the door, but no video is in the file. The lawyer sends the Crown a written request describing the footage. At the first appearance the case is adjourned for about 12 weeks.

At the Crown pre-trial, the video is still outstanding. Because substantial disclosure is missing at four months, a judicial pre-trial is scheduled, and the judge sets a timeline for the Crown to complete disclosure (r. 4.2(7)(b)). Only once the video arrives can he and his lawyer decide between the options the Crown has offered and a trial.

What mistakes do people make with disclosure?

1. Not checking that the files open. The court's guide says to tell the Crown's office, or the court at your next appearance, if a file will not open or a video will not play.
2. Asking for missing items by phone only. The guide says you must send the Crown's office a request that describes the material you are looking for. Keep a copy.
3. Talking about the offence with the Crown without advice. The court warns self-represented people to be cautious about what they say to the Crown without a lawyer or duty counsel present.
4. Treating the file as yours to share. Disclosure holds private information about other people, and some material is released only on a lawyer's undertaking to use it for the defence (D. 10).
5. Waiting until the trial is close. A disclosure application must be heard at least 60 days before trial (r. 2.4), and defence delay does not count toward the Jordan ceiling.
6. Relying on a relative's translation. A missed detail in a statement can change your instructions to your lawyer. Review it with counsel.

What can you do this week?

1. Find your release papers and note the police occurrence number and your first court date.
2. Speak with a lawyer, who will contact the Crown's office for you; if you have no lawyer yet, contact the Crown's office yourself.
3. Set up the digital disclosure hub account when the instructions arrive, or ask for a paper copy.
4. Open every file and play every video, and note anything that does not work.
5. Write down, in your own language, what you remember and what you think is missing.
6. Keep the disclosure private and in one safe place.
7. Use our first-week checklist after a criminal charge in Toronto for the rest of your papers.

Frequently asked questions

What if I do not have a lawyer yet?

Contact the Crown Attorney's office prosecuting your case before your first court date. The Ontario Court of Justice says to be ready with your full name, date of birth, a list of your charges, the police occurrence number from your release papers, and your email, phone number and mailing address. In Toronto, that is the Crown's office at 10 Armoury Street (416-212-2707). What you receive early helps when you apply for legal aid, speak with duty counsel or meet a lawyer you are thinking of hiring.

I lost my disclosure. Can I get it again?

Yes. The court's guide says to contact the Crown Attorney's office if you lost your original disclosure and need a new copy.

Why are parts of my disclosure blacked out?

The court says sections may be blacked out because of confidentiality concerns or because they are irrelevant. If you think something relevant was removed, raise it with your lawyer, who can ask the Crown about it.

Can a judge make the Crown hand over something?

At a judicial pre-trial, the judge may set timelines for completing disclosure (r. 4.2(7)(b)). Disputes can also go to a court application, which must be heard at least 60 days before trial unless the court orders otherwise (r. 2.4).

Do I have to attend court while disclosure is being reviewed?

Often not, if your lawyer has filed a designation of counsel. Read whether you have to attend court in person or your lawyer can appear.

Does a large file mean more work on the case?

Usually, yes. The size of the file is one of the main drivers of how much work a case takes; see what drives the cost of a criminal defence in Toronto.

Getting help

Disclosure is the basis for every later decision: whether there is a Charter issue to raise, whether diversion or a withdrawal is realistic, which election to make, and whether to go to trial. Gambriani Law PC reviews disclosure with clients in English or Farsi, from Suite 1901, 5000 Yonge Street in North York, Monday to Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., at +1 647 970 3370. Our page on the Toronto courthouse at 10 Armoury Street lists the Crown's and the court's contacts.

This page is general information about Ontario criminal procedure, not legal advice about your case.