Court Services

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Provincial Government has declared a State of Emergency. Court and tribunal operations are reduced and some services will not be available until the State of Emergency ends.

Important: If you received a ticket on or after March 1, 2020, you have until December 1, 2020 to exercise one of the options on the back of your ticket. If you do not respond by December 1, 2020, you may be deemed not to dispute the charge and the court may enter a conviction for the offence. You do not have to attend in person to request a trial. Request can be made by email or mail by completing a Notice of Intention to Appear (NIA) form and sending the NIA form to poacourt@toronto.ca or by mail to the court address on the back of your ticket. A NIA form is available online at toronto.ca/courtforms. If your fine was due and payable on or after March 16, 2020, you have until December 1, 2020 to pay your fine.

Tickets & Court Proceedings

No in-person Provincial Offences Act proceedings will be conducted before October 19, 2020. All Provincial Offences courtrooms in Toronto are currently closed. Beginning September 28, 2020, the Ontario Court of Justice will hear non-trial matters remotely by audio conference and continue to prepare for the resumption of trials.

The Chief Justice of Ontario will direct courts to reopen, and the Tribunals will direct the reopening of in-person hearings.

Status of Services

All online services remain available to the public, including access to court forms; making a payment; looking up your court case status; and requesting an early resolution meeting with the prosecutor.

Email inquiries can be directed to POACourt@toronto.ca.

Our Customer Service Call Centre is also available at 416-338-7320 (Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.).

Provincial Offences court motions and payments can be submitted by regular mail to the court location listed on your notice.

City of Toronto Provincial Offences Act intake services are open for electronic written hearings for matters submitted electronically or by mail only.

Court Counters Reopen By Appointment Only on September 14, 2020

Court Services public counters at 1530 Markham Rd., 2700 Eglinton Ave. W. and 60 Queen St. W. will be open by appointment only. To book an appointment, please send an email to POACourt@toronto.ca and include the word “Appointment” in the subject line of your email. Appointments will be booked one to two weeks in advance of receiving your email. Appointments may also be booked by telephone at 416-338-7320.

Where possible, prior to booking an appointment, consider online services such as payments and filing your request or filing your court application by email.

Protecting Your Health

Your health and safety inside a court location is our top priority. Measures are in place to protect everyone who attends a court location including:

Enhanced Cleaning: We will continue to regularly clean high touch areas with Health Canada approved disinfectant cleaners many times a day. These areas include: public service counters, entrance areas, hand rails, paper towel and toilet paper dispensers, sinks and faucets, public seating and public washrooms.

Hand Sanitizer Stations: you can find hand sanitizer stations located throughout the building. We encourage you to use them if you cannot wash your hands or as a secondary way to disinfect.

Barriers: Plexiglas barriers are installed at the court location to protect employees and the public at our counters.

Physical Distancing: While in the court location, we use the following measures to encourage physical distancing:

Signs to remind you to physical distance by staying 2 metres apart

Markers on the floor to tell you where to stand when waiting in line to enter the court location, in waiting area and in washrooms.

Arrows to show you which direction to walk.

Signs to show you where to sit.

Wherever possible, you should be the only person in the elevator

The number of people allowed inside a court location at any one time is limited

You will be required to wear a face covering.

Accessibility: If you have an illness or disability that prevents you from wearing a face covering, inform the staff member at the entrance to the court location. If you are unable to go to a court location in person and unable to use an online channel, contact the accessibility coordinator at courtaccessibilityeast@toronto.ca.

Entering the Court Location:

You will need to answer screening questions before entering a court location. Your result will tell you whether you can enter or cannot enter.

When you arrive at the court location we will ask why you are there and inform you of other ways you might be able to handle your matter such as online or email options. We will tell you about the safety measures in place and ask you to follow them while inside the court location.

We will ask you if a Public Health Official or doctor has told you to self-isolate or if you have any of the following symptoms:

Fever

Cough

Runny or Stuffy Nose

Sore Throat

Shortness of Breath

Nausea

Vomiting

Diarrhea

You may be asked to show court staff your belongings or deposit them in a bin for screening or place them on an examination table.

You will be required to wear a face covering at the facility.

There may be delays entering the court location so please give yourself enough time. The number of people allowed inside at one time is limited. You will be allowed entry at the time of your appointment.

Going to the Counter:

For payments at the counter, try to avoid hand to hand exchange of cash and use bank or credit card. Use hand sanitizer after.

Follow physical distancing signs.

Where possible, consider using online or email channels.

Early Resolution Meetings

It is now easier to attend an early resolution meeting with a prosecutor. All early resolution meetings will be held by telephone, regardless of a person’s distance from the courthouse. Persons who received a ticket on or after March 1, 2020 can request an early resolution meeting online via the Court Case Look Up system or by selecting the early resolution meeting option on their ticket and mailing it to the court address on the back of the ticket. The City of Toronto will send notices of early resolution meetings by mail or email to the address on file with the court.

If you cannot find your case, it is likely because the enforcement officer has not yet filed your ticket with the court. Please try again later. Alternatively, you may check the box on your ticket next to the early resolution option and mail the ticket to the address on the back of your ticket.

If you had received an early resolution meeting notice for a meeting date on or after March 16, 2020, your meeting will now be held via telephone and you will be notified of the new date and time of your meeting via email or regular mail at the address on file with the court.

If you would like to request an in-person early resolution meeting, please contact us at POACourt@toronto.ca. In-person early resolution meetings will resume at a future date.

Remote Hearings for Non-Trial Proceedings

Beginning September 28, 2020, Ontario Provincial Offences Act courts will hear non-trial proceedings, including guilty pleas, withdrawals, judgment delivery, first appearances, and adjournments remotely by audio conferencing (telephone).

If you have a matter that will be proceeding by audio conferencing (telephone), you or your representative will receive notice of your hearing date from the court office. Please ensure your contact information is up to date with the court office where your matter is being heard. See the Change of Address section, below.

Disputing a Ticket and Requesting a Trial

Anyone who wishes to dispute a ticket and request a trial can now apply by email or by mail. Please complete the Notice of Intention to Appear form and email it to POACourt@toronto.ca or mail it to the address on the back of the ticket. This change applies to tickets issued on or after March 1, 2020. The information on the ticket that requires a person to attend a court office in person to file a trial request may be disregarded.

If you requested a trial before March 18, 2020, we will send you a notice of a court date by mail, to the address on file with the court.

Reopening a Conviction

Anyone who was previously convicted without a hearing and wishes to apply to have the conviction reopened by the court can send their application by email or mail. The required forms are available online. The completed forms can be emailed to POACourt@toronto.ca or mailed to the address indicated on the back of their ticket.

Fine Extension

Anyone who wishes to apply for an extension of time to pay a Provincial Offences fine can now apply by email or by mail. The required forms are available online. Completed forms can be emailed to POACourt@toronto.ca or mailed to the address indicated on the back of their ticket.

Remote Judicial Pre-trial Hearings

Remote judicial pre-trial hearings began on June 10, 2020. If you have a judicial pre-trial postponed or ordered in Court, you will be notified of the date your judicial pre-trial will be proceeding.

Scheduled to Appear in Court

If you were summoned or scheduled to appear in court for a provincial offence on or after March 16, 2020 and before October 19, 2020, you do not need to attend, as the matter will be rescheduled. You will be notified of the new date by mail at the address on file with the court.

Change of Address

If your address has changed, please email us at poacourt@toronto.ca with your name, case number, and new address information and we will update our system. Alternatively, you can download the Change of Address form and mail the completed form to the court office indicated on your ticket or the court office where your hearing was held.

Court Transcripts

Effective September 14, 2020, ordering a new transcript for Toronto Provincial Offences Act cases will be available. For more information and a listing of approved vendors please visit

For further Province of Ontario information about changes to Provincial Offences Act matters during the State of Emergency, please visit the Ontario Court of Justice.

Adjudicative Boards (Tribunals)

Toronto Local Appeal Body, Administrative Penalty Tribunal and Toronto Licencing Tribunal

Tribunal staff are accessible by email and phone.

Tribunals have postponed in-person hearings. Individuals affected will be notified by email with a Notice of Postponement. Details are as follows:

The Administrative Penalty Tribunal has postponed in-person hearings from March 16, 2020 up to and including October 1, 2020 to a future date.

The Toronto Licensing Tribunal has postponed in-person hearings from March 16, 2020 up to and including October 1, 2020 to a future date.

The Toronto Local Appeal Body has postponed in-person hearings from March 16, 2020 up to and including September 8, 2020 to a future date.

Please note: all filing due dates remain suspended, including all timelines established by Toronto Local Appeal Body Rules, Notices and procedural orders (from March 16, 2020 up to and including August 14, 2020). If your appeal involved a direction that prescribes timelines related to filings, the exchange of witness statements, meeting of experts, or similar directions, these timelines are suspended until further notice.

The Tribunals have started to provide some services remotely and staff are actively working on rescheduling matters that are eligible for electronic hearings.

If your matter is eligible for an electronic hearing, tribunal staff will contact you by email with information on next steps.

If you would like to proceed with an electronic hearing and have not yet received an email from tribunal staff, please contact the Tribunal by email or phone for more information:

Administrative Penalty Tribunal (apt@toronto.ca) or 416-338-3412

Toronto Local Appeal Body (tlab@toronto.ca) or 416-392-4697

Toronto Licencing Tribunal (tlt@toronto.ca) or 416-392-4700

Questions

Toronto Court Services welcomes inquiries by email at POACourt@toronto.ca or via our Customer Service Call Centre at 416-338-7320 (Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.).