Choosing a Trial

After you have been arrested you will receive a date to appear in court.  The first thing that will happen is that you will receive a copy of the “disclosure“.  This is all of the evidence that the police have gathered against you.  Once you have reviewed all of the disclosure with your lawyer you will then need to decide whether to plead guilty or set a trial date.  In most cases, the trial will take place in provincial court and will be set anywhere from about 8 to 18 months into the future depending on the length of the trial and the complexity of the issues.  However, in some more serious cases, such as a sexual assault, you will be able to choose the court where the trial will take place.  You can choose to have the trial in provincial court, superior court to be tried by judge alone or superior court to be tried by judge and jury.  If the trial in the superior court you will also having the option of a preliminary inquiry which is held in provincial court.  At a preliminary inquiry your lawyer will have the ability to cross-examine some or all of the witnesses to test their evidence in preparation for trial.  Which venue is best in a particular case is dependent on a number of factors and is a topic which should be explored in detail with your lawyer.