Criminal Appeal Lawyer in Brampton, ON

It depends on how the case was prosecuted. Indictable matters go to the Court of Appeal for Ontario. Summary conviction matters go first to the Superior Court of Justice sitting as the summary conviction appeal court.

Section 675(1) allows a person convicted in proceedings by indictment to appeal against conviction on a question of law alone as of right, on a question of fact or mixed law and fact with leave, and against sentence with leave unless the sentence is one fixed by law.

Section 813 gives a defendant in summary conviction proceedings a right of appeal from a conviction or order, against sentence, or against a verdict of unfit to stand trial or not criminally responsible.

Section 686(1) sets out what a court of appeal may do. It may allow an appeal where the verdict is unreasonable or cannot be supported by the evidence, where the trial judgment should be set aside because of a wrong decision on a question of law, or where on any ground there was a miscarriage of justice.

The critical limit sits in section 686(1)(b)(iii). Even where the court thinks an appeal might succeed on a legal error, it may dismiss the appeal if satisfied that no substantial wrong or miscarriage of justice occurred. An error alone is not enough; it has to have mattered.

Not long. The time limits are set by the rules of the relevant court and are measured in days from conviction or sentence, not months. Missing the deadline does not always end the matter, because an extension of time can be sought, but an extension is discretionary and has to be justified.

The practical consequence is simple: if you are thinking about an appeal, get advice straight away. A delay of weeks can turn a straightforward appeal into an application for an extension in which you must explain the delay and show the appeal has merit.

Where a custodial sentence was imposed, release pending appeal can be sought. That application is separate from the appeal itself and needs to be brought promptly.

Success on a conviction appeal does not usually mean walking free. Under section 686(2) the court will normally either enter an acquittal or order a new trial, and a new trial is the more common outcome. That means the case starts again, with the same charge.

On a sentence appeal the court may vary the sentence, which can mean substituting a different term or a different type of sentence.

Because a new trial is the likely result of a successful conviction appeal, part of the advice on whether to appeal is an honest assessment of what a retrial would look like — not just whether an error can be identified.

Appeals are demanding, the standards are high, and most convictions are not overturned. An honest opinion on the merits is worth more than an optimistic one, because pursuing a weak appeal costs time during which other options — a record suspension in due course, for instance — may be better routes to what you actually want.

The first step is obtaining and reading the transcript. Until the transcript of the trial has been reviewed, nobody can responsibly tell you whether you have a ground of appeal. Be cautious of any assessment offered before that.