Immediately.  As soon as you become aware that the police want to speak with you, consult with a Criminal Defense lawyer. The sooner we get involved, the more we can do to protect you. Oftentimes, critical information is revealed to the police before a lawyer gets involved in a criminal case, which changes the entire direction of the defense. The only thing you should do when contacted by the police is pick up the phone and contact LAWYER UP.

You can, but it's not advisable. Anyone who represents themselves in a criminal case is at a significant disadvantage in defending themselves, as the Crown is a lawyer, and you likely are not. There is an old saying among lawyers, that "only a fool has himself for a lawyer". Not even lawyers represent themselves when they have legal problems. What does this tell you?

Never. Let your lawyer do the talking. You will never talk the police out of charging you. After you've been charged, you have no reason to speak to the police, as anything you need to say can be said through your lawyer to the Crown. Your case will always be harder to defend the moment you start talking to the police. You have the right to remain silent. Use it.

You have many legal rights in the criminal process. The main ones are these: the right to be presumed innocent, the right to remain silent, the right not to be arbitrarily detained or arrested, the right not to be unreasonably searched or have items unreasonably seized, the right to speak to a Criminal Defense Lawyer on arrest, and to be informed of this right, the right to reasonable bail within 24 hours, the right to receive disclosure of the Crown’s case, the right to a trial within a reasonable period, the right to a jury trial in serious cases, and the right to an appeal if you believe an error was made in your conviction or sentence at trial.

The sooner we are retained, the sooner we can resolve your criminal matter. If we are retained immediately on or after arrest, we can request a copy of the Crown's disclosure before your first court appearance, and, if disclosure is complete, we can schedule a meeting with the Crown's office to discuss your matter before or shortly after your first court appearance, which is typically a few weeks after you've been charged. If there is no reasonable prospect of conviction, or you have a strong legal defence, we can negotiate with the Crown to have your charges withdrawn at our first meeting.

In a nutshell, every criminal case begins with an investigation and arrest by the police. After the arrest, if you are not released on a promise to appear in court, you are held for a bail hearing, where it is determined whether you should be released before trial, and on what terms.

After your bail hearing, we request the Crown disclosure, and review it with you. When disclosure is complete, we schedule a meeting with the Crown's office to negotiate for your charges to be withdrawn or reduced. Oftentimes, we also meet with the Crown and judge to discuss the legal issues in your case, such as outstanding disclosure, delay, the violation of your rights by police on arrest, unlawful searches by the police, and the admissibility of your statements to police.

If you wish to fight your criminal case at a trial, we will schedule trial dates. Oftentimes, we need to prepare pre-trial applications to deal with legal issues before trial, which are scheduled and argued before a judge. If you do not wish to have a trial but to resolve your criminal matter, we can hammer out the best deal possible with the Crown, and assist you in resolving the matter in court..

At trial, the Crown has the burden of proving their case. The Crown calls evidence, and you have the right to cross-examine the Crown's witnesses. You also have the right to call defence evidence, including through witnesses of your own. After the evidence is heard, the judge or jury make their decision, and, if you are convicted, there is a sentencing hearing to determine what punishment should be imposed.

After trial, you have the right to appeal, if you are unhappy with the result. You can appeal your conviction or sentence (or both). An appeal hearing is scheduled where you can argue that the judge or jury at your trial made an error of fact of law, that entitles you to a substituted decision (acquittal), new trial, or reduced sentence. You can also apply to remain on bail pending your appeal hearing.

If you are sentenced to imprisonment, there is a process for early release (parole), and once you are released from imprisonment. there is a process for applying for a pardon and to have your fingerprints and mugshot destroyed. This is the criminal justice process, in a nutshell.

The sentences available for each type of offence are discussed on the services page of this website. There is a sentencing range for each offence, which has been set by judges in the case law. The actual sentence you receive will very much depend on a number of factors present in your case, and the offence you've been charged with. We can advise you on all of this, and provide you with a precise estimate of the sentence you could receive on conviction, once we review your case in detail. Bear in mind, there is a lot we can do to reduce your possible sentence, before any sentencing hearing, and this will form part of our defence strategy.

Depending on your circumstances, you could be facing regulatory, professional discipline, or immigration consequences, as a result of your criminal charges or a criminal conviction or sentence. We can advise you on these matters, and defend you against these other consequences. The best thing you can do to avoid these consequences is to retain LAWYER UP to win your criminal case, or have the charges withdrawn or reduced as soon as possible.

We can tell you how good your chances are, once we review the Crown’s disclosure, meet with you to hear your story, research the applicable case law, and pursue any investigative leads. We will identify every possible legal defence available to you, and tell you about the problems with the Crown’s case. When can then provide you with a percentage breakdown of your chances of winning your case.

The legal fees in your matter will depend on a number of factors, including: the seriousness of the matter, the complexity of the matter, the urgency of the matter, and sometimes the result obtained. We can discuss this once we meet with you. We do not take Legal Aid. We cannot defend you effectively on a Legal Aid budget.