Authority over the judicial system in Canada is divided between Parliament and the provincial legislatures.In Ontario, the Courts of Justice Act is a key part of the legislative framework for Ontario courts. The act, among other matters, establishes the primary jurisdiction of each of the province’s three courts:

  • Court of Appeal for Ontario
  • Superior Court of Justice
  • Ontario Court of Justice

The Court of Appeal for Ontario

The Court of Appeal for Ontario is Ontario’s highest court. The court hears:

  • criminal appeals of decisions of the Superior Court of Justice and the Ontario Court of Justice in relation to indictable offences
  • appeals from inmates, including unrepresented inmates who are assisted by duty counsel (heard on alternate months in Kingston and heard monthly in Toronto)
  • motions for leave to appeal and appeals from lower court appellate decisions in relation to summary convictions and provincial offences
  • appeals of final decisions of the Superior Court of Justice in relation to civil and family disputes
  • appeals of final decisions from the Ontario Review Board
  • motions for leave to appeal and appeals of appellate decisions of the Divisional Court
  • single judge and panel motions brought in relation to appeals before the court
  • matters remanded to the Court of Appeal for Ontario by the Supreme Court of Canada, and matters referred to the Court of Appeal by the Lieutenant Governor in Council or the Federal Minister of Justice

The Court of Appeal for Ontario is situated in downtown Toronto at Osgoode Hall. The Chief Justice of Ontario is the Honourable George R. Strathy. The Associate Chief Justice of Ontario is the Honourable Alexandra Hoy.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario is the last avenue of appeal for most Ontario litigants. Although the court’s decisions can be appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada, this usually requires leave. The Supreme Court of Canada hears less than 3% of the cases that have already been heard by the Court of Appeal.

The Superior Court of Justice

The Superior Court of Justice hears civil, family and criminal matters, including the following:

  • criminal prosecutions of indictable offences, including some prosecutions involving young persons
  • summary conviction appeals and bail reviews from the Ontario Court of Justice
  • All civil proceedings (civil claims under $25,000 are dealt with in Small Claims Court, a branch of the Superior Court of Justice)
  • family law disputes involving divorce or property claims, child and spousal support, equalization of property and parenting claims (in its 17 Family Court Branch locations, the Superior Court hears all family law cases, including child protection, adoption and enforcement proceedings)
  • certain family law, child protection and civil appeals
  • the Divisional Court, which is branch of the Superior Court of Justice, hears applications for judicial review and statutory appeals from decisions of provincial administrative tribunals, as well as family law, child protection and civil appeals

Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice sits in over 50 court locations, with its headquarters being at Osgoode Hall in Toronto. Chief Justice Heather J. Smith retired on June 30, 2019, and Chief Justice Geoffrey B. Morawetz was appointed on June 27, 2019.

The Chief Justice of the Superior Court of Justice is supported by Associate Chief Justice Frank Marrocco, who also oversees the Divisional Court and the Small Claims Court. As of 2017, the Superior Court also has a provincially appointed Small Claims Court Administrative Judge.

The Chief Justice of the Superior Court of Justice has the statutory authority to direct and supervise the sittings of the court as well as the assignment of judicial duties. These powers are delegated, subject to the direction of the chief justice, to eight regional senior judges to exercise in their respective regions. In turn, the regional senior judges may designate local administrative or lead judges to assign and schedule cases at certain court sites. Senior Family Justice George Czutrin advises the chief justice on specific matters related to the family court and performs other duties relating to family justice throughout the province, as assigned by the chief justice.

In addition to the judges of the Superior Court of Justice, there are also case management masters, which are provincially-appointed judicial officials who hear and determine certain matters in civil cases, and deputy judges, who are senior lawyers appointed by the regional senior judge (with the approval of the Attorney General) to preside over proceedings in the Small Claims Court.

Ontario Court of Justice

The Ontario Court of Justice hears criminal, family and provincial offences matters in over 200 locations across the province. Ontario Court of Justice’s judicial officers preside over:

  • criminal bail hearings
  • summary conviction prosecutions
  • preliminary hearings or trials for most indictable offences

For certain offences, an accused person can "elect' (or choose) to have a trial by a provincial court judge. If an accused person elects to be tried by a superior court judge (alone or with a jury) or if there is no election, an accused person is entitled to have a preliminary hearing before a provincial court judge, if requested. All criminal cases against youth and adults are commenced in the Ontario Court of Justice and over 98% of these cases are completed in this court.

  • child protection applications, family law disputes involving custody, access and support, and adoption applications
  • Provincial Offences Act prosecutions and appeals

Chief Justice Lise Maisonneuve is the Chief Justice of the Ontario Court of Justice. Associate Chief Justice Peter DeFreitas and Associate Chief Justice-Coordinator of Justices of the Peace Faith Finnestad provide support to the Chief justice. Both associate chief justices have special delegated responsibilities as well as those set out by statute.

There are several other positions that provide important leadership and support in their respective areas of the Ontario Court of Justice.

  • For the period of April 1, 2016 to December 31, 2016 the Senior Advisory Family Judge was Debra Paulseth.
  • From January 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018 this position was held by Wendy Malcolm.
  • For the entirety of the reporting period (April 1, 2016 to March 31, 2018):
    • the Senior Advisory Justice of the Peace was Bernard Swords
    • the Senior Justice of the Peace was Kathy Lou Johnson
    • the Senior Indigenous Justice of the Peace was Marcel Donio

For the purposes of judicial administration, the Ontario Court of Justice has seven regions, each of which has a regional senior judge and a regional senior justice of the peace. Local administrative judges and justices of the peace assist the regional senior judges and regional senior justices of the peace respectively.