The criminal case of two former Dalton McGuinty aides has been put over to late March as one of the accused switches to the same law firm defending former CBC host Jian Ghomeshi.

Laura Miller, who was initially represented by Clayton Ruby in the breach of trust related to allegations of deleted emails linked to the Liberal government’s cancellation of two gas-fired power plants, has switched to Scott Hutchison of Henein-Hutchison.

Lawyers for Miller, who was McGuinty’s deputy chief of staff in the premier’s office, and former chief of staff David Livingston, appeared briefly in the Ontario Court of Justice on Wednesday.

The matter was adjourned to Mar. 23 while Hutchison’s firm reviews disclosure from federal prosecutors handling the high-profile case.

Livingston and Miller were charged in December with breach of trust, mischief in relation to data, and misuse of a computer system. Both have denied any wrongdoing. McGuinty, who left office in 2013, was not a subject of the investigation and co-operated with police.

Appearing for Miller, counsel Sam Walker of Henein-Hutchison declined comment on the change in lawyers.

In a statement on her FundRazr crowdfunding page, Miller said she was “deeply grateful” to Ruby and his firm.

“I can never thank them enough for their support and guidance. As I prepare for the next phase of this long and complex case, I have retained Scott Hutchison to act as my legal counsel,” she added, citing his “extensive government experience and technological expertise.”

Miller, who has resigned as executive director of the British Columbia Liberal party, has raised $68,001 from 97 donors toward her $100,000 goal.

The charges against Miller were a surprise given that police had previously said only Livingston was the subject of their investigation and had not mentioned any other persons of interest.

Ruby was incredulous when the charges, which could result in up to 10 years in prison if convictions are registered, were laid.

“This is the office of the premier of Ontario, for God’s sake! No records get destroyed there. They just get stored somewhere else,” Ruby said in an email at the time.

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Miller said in December that charges follow her complaints about the conduct of the OPP and released a statement saying: “I have always had trust and confidence in the police. Today, that is not so.”

Hutchison was a Crown counsel for 16 years ending in 2005, has handled more than two dozen cases in the Supreme Court of Canada, and is the author of several legal texts, including Computer Crime in Canada.

His law partner, Marie Henein, is representing Ghomeshi in his sexual assault case.

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