Canadian Lawyer

26 J U L Y 2 0 1 6 w w w . C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m Provincial courts by the numbers certain jurisdictions. It is the face of justice for nearly all people who come into contact with the criminal courts. Yet, its public profile, with the rare exception, remains rela- tively low. Outside of an unusually high-profile trial or a news outlet coming across a decision that it will find some- one to be outraged about, the participants in the provincial courts are not often on the media radar. Administering an efficiently run and fair court system, with appropriate outcomes for defendants depending on their offence and their background, is not necessarily going to be highlighted by the media. Yet, it continues to be a very challenging goal in 2016 for provin- cial courts. Many of the current issues — such as court backlogs, services for offenders with mental health and addiction problems, co-operation among the parties, and making use of technology — are ones that experienced lawyers will remember from their early years of practice. Unreasonable delay motions are still common as well, especially in impaired driving cases, more than 25 years after the Supreme Court of Canada issued its ruling in Askov. These issues are at the forefront of what the chief judges and justices of provincial courts across Canada are focusing on in their duties, all of whom are looking for effective ways to deal with these chronic problems. "The first step is to get buy-in from all the jus- tice system stakeholders," says Chief Judge Pamela Williams, of the Nova Scotia Provincial Court. "It does require judicial leadership," she says, including the development of strategic plans. "What is our goal? Is it to punish or is it to protect society and repair harm?" asks Williams. About 50 per cent of Criminal Code offences heard in provincial courts are either property offences, such as shoplifting, or administration of justice cases, such as breach of probation or failure to comply with a court order. Many of the people facing either of these two types of charges are chronic offenders, often with mental health or addiction issues or both. Williams and her counterpart in Alberta, Chief Judge Terrence Matchett, both speak of the need for a better "triage" system to try to deal with these indi- viduals more effectively. "We need to think which matters don't need to be in the [court] system at all?" says Williams, who was appointed chief judge in 2013 and has spent considerable time in recent years presiding over the mental health court in Dartmouth, N.S. In reference to chronic offenders who come before the provincial courts, "by the time we get to them, they are in the emergency ward of the justice system," says Matchett, a former prosecutor and senior provincial justice official, also appointed chief judge in 2013. "There is no magic bullet. All courts need to specialize more on the health of the person," says Matchett. "We need to do a better job of explaining why restorative options in certain cases will make the community safer." The median length of time it takes nationally to complete a case from the date of first appearance is 123 days, according to the most recent data released by Statistics Canada in its annual criminal courts survey. That figure is rela- tively unchanged, even though the total number of criminal cases nationally had dropped nearly 10 per cent in the previous five years. Many provinces take issue with some of the methodology of Statistics cial courts. Many of offenders with me the parties, and lawyers will r delay motio cases, mo ruling in The justic duti chr tic N s g Percentage of all Criminal Code cases in provincial court that are administration of justice offences such as fail to appear or breach of probation. Percentage of all Criminal Code cases that are property offences. Percentage of Criminal Code cases that are impaired driving. Percentage of all cases that are drug offences, including possession. Average days to disposition in 2015 for an impaired driving case in Ontario. Median number of days to dispose of a case in provincial court in Canada in 2014. Median number of days to dispose of a criminal case in Saskatchewan. Average number of months between the arraignment hearing and trial date for a half-day provincial court trial in B.C. in the fall of 2015. Number of cases stayed in B.C. in 2015 because of unreasonable delay (note: this includes all levels of court). Average number of cases stayed in B.C. annually between 2006 and 2010 because of unreasonable delay. Percentage of all criminal cases in Canada (including drug and YCJA) that are stayed or withdrawn without a fi nding of guilt. Percentage of all criminal cases where there is an outright acquittal after a trial. Percentage of all criminal cases in 2015 in Ontario that go to trial. Provinces where the chief judge of the provincial court is female. Percentage of provincial court judges in B.C. who are female. Percentage of provincial court judges in Ontario who are female. Sources: Adult Criminal Court statistics (Statistics Canada), Ontario Court of Justice annual statistical report, Provincial Court of B.C. court report, B.C. Criminal Justice Branch. 26 25 12 71 32 40 35 29 187 123 149 4.8 5 5 5 4

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