If your first court date was between the dates of March 16, 2020 and July 3, 2020, your court matter has been automatically adjourned to future court dates that have been posted here. Subject to COVID-19 notices, you will have to be present for that new first appearance date either in person, teleconference, or videoconference (check the OCJ notice for future details). Failure to appear for your first court date may result in a warrant for your arrest and a criminal charge of failure to appear for court. If you have already retained a lawyer, they will be able to attend court on your behalf during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Your First Court Appearance During
COVID-19

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*Information is subject to change based on the Ontario Court of Justice
COVID-19 notices which can be found
here: https://www.ontariocourts.ca/ocj/covid-19/
If your first court date was between the dates of March 16, 2020 and July 3, 2020,
your court matter has been automatically adjourned to future court dates that have
been posted here. Subject to COVID-19 notices, you will have to be present for
that new first appearance date either in person, teleconference, or
videoconference (check the OCJ notice for future details). Failure to appear for
your first court date may result in a warrant for your arrest and a criminal charge
of failure to appear for court. If you have already retained a lawyer, they will be
able to attend court on your behalf during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Before your First Court Appearance
Before your first court appearance, you will want to meet with your lawyer to
discuss how your case will progress and to give them information that may be
helpful in understanding the criminal charges against you. You should also gather
various documentation and bring it with you to your meeting including:

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 Release paperwork (ie, recognizance, bail, or promise to appear forms)
 Any disclosure or documents previously given to you by the Crown or police
 Any documents relevant to the charges (ie, photographs, emails, digital records,
etc)
 Photo identification
Your lawyer can then decide what documents would be useful in resolving the
criminal charges and what further documents may be required.
If you have retained a lawyer before your first court date, your lawyer will be
able to appear on your behalf for your first court date through a Designation of
Counsel so that you will not have to attend personally going forward unless
required by your lawyer or the Court.
Attending Court In-Person
You may have to attend court in-person during COVID-19 if you have a trial or
preliminary inquiry hearing, or if the Court issues new directives on in-person
court attendance. Please keep these general guidelines in mind when attending
in-person.
On the day of your court appearance, arrive early and do not be late for your
hearing. Give yourself time to find the courtroom you are appearing in and to
meet your lawyer ahead of team in case they need to speak with you before the
appearance.
When the judge/justice enters the courtroom, you will stand until instructed to
be seated by the court staff. Do not speak or talk during the proceeding unless
otherwise directed by your lawyer or the judge/justice. Make sure your
cellphone is off.
If you are appearing for a set-date appearance, you will wait until your name is
called by the Crown attorney. Once called, you will be asked for an update on the
status of your case before the court sets a future remand date for you to return to
court. This will continue until a trial date is set or your matter resolves. A lawyer
can appear on these routine set-dates on your behalf and save you significant time
from attending court personally. You may also be asked to speak with Legal Aid
while at court if you intended on applying for Legal Aid assistance.

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If you are attending for a trial or preliminary hearing, make sure to dress
appropriately. An experienced trial lawyer will advise you as to your
recommended dress and personal appearance for trial. At the start of the case, the
charges against you will be read out in court. The Crown Attorney will present
evidence and call witnesses to support the charges against you. You or your
lawyer will have the ability to cross-examine and challenge the Crown evidence,
and present defence evidence if required. After both sides have presented
evidence, questioned witnesses, and given closing arguments, the judge will
return a verdict on your case.
Please remember, this is just an overview of the generalized processes. Your
proceedings may vary slightly depending on the charges and severity of the
criminal offence.
If you have further questions about attending court and need a criminal defence
lawyer to help fight your charges, please contact RGZ Law at (416) 873-6970 for
a free consultation today!
Source: https://rgzlaw.com/2020/04/20/your-first-court-appearance-during-
covid19/