Published plans and annual reports 2024–2025: Ministry of the Attorney General

Ministry overview

Ministry’s vision

The Ministry of the Attorney General works to deliver an accessible, responsive and resilient justice system that inspires public confidence and upholds the rule of law.

To achieve this, the ministry is committed to transforming the justice system, prioritizing its critical frontline services and delivering more services remotely and online to ensure that vulnerable individuals and families get the help they need when and where they need it.

Ministry programs

The Ministry Administration Program includes the Attorney General's office, Parliamentary Assistant's office and Deputy Attorney General's office, the Corporate Services Management Division (CSMD) and the Communications Branch. This program provides for the overall administration of the Ministry. CSMD provides strategic support and advice in the areas of business and fiscal planning, human resources, diversity, inclusion and accessibility, emergency management, project management, data and analytics, facilities management and oversight of the ministry’s capital, accommodation and lease portfolio. CSMD also delivers shared services for the justice sector, including security support, freedom of information and French language services.

The Prosecuting Crime Program is responsible for the prosecution of all criminal offences under the Criminal Code and other federal and provincial statutes, to inspire public confidence and uphold the rule of law. This program also provides legal representation for the Crown in Right of Ontario in all criminal matters, including prosecuting criminal cases before all levels of courts, representing the Crown on appeal and providing legal advice to the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General in all criminal law matters and to the police upon request.

The Policy, Justice Programs and Agencies Program includes the Policy Division and the Indigenous Justice Division.

The Policy Division is responsible for developing legislation, regulations and policy initiatives to respond to diverse issues in areas such as civil, family, human rights, administrative and commercial law, as well as regulation of the liquor, gaming, horseracing and retail cannabis sectors. It is also responsible for policy oversight and partnership building relating to the ministry's regulatory and operational agencies, adjudicative tribunals and programs. The agencies, tribunals and programs in the division include:

• Tribunals Ontario
• Ontario Land Tribunal
• Legal Aid Ontario
• the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario
• iGaming Ontario
• the Ontario Human Rights Commission
• the Human Rights Legal Support Centre
• the Special Investigations Unit
• the Law Enforcement Complaints Agency
• the Bail Verification and Supervision Program

In addition, the division administers ministry public appointments to all agencies and adjudicative tribunals, manages the notaries and commissioners’ program that provides direct service delivery to non-lawyer/non-paralegal notary and commissioner applicants, and provides administrative support to the two judicial appointment advisory committees that make recommendations to the Attorney General for judges and justices of the peace appointments in Ontario.

The Indigenous Justice Division is dedicated to addressing Indigenous justice issues, with a specific focus on reducing recidivism rates and the overrepresentation of Indigenous people in the justice system as victims, accused and offenders. The division is committed to building strong and respectful relationships with Indigenous communities in Ontario in order to improve trust in, and understanding of, the justice system. The division is currently engaged in work that includes overseeing Indigenous justice programs, facilitating Indigenous cultural competency training, legislative reform, policy development and Coroner's Inquests. The division also provides strategic advice to the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General on matters tied to Indigenous justice. The division works closely with, and supports/informs the work of, other divisions within the Ministry of the Attorney General, other ministries including the Ministry of the Solicitor General and the Ministry of Indigenous Affairs, the Ontario Provincial Police and First Nations Police Services within the province. In addition, the division supports the Indigenous Justice Group and the Elders' Council as they provide critical expert advice to the Attorney General and other ministries as requested.

The Legal Services Program includes both the Civil Law Division and the Office of Legislative Counsel.

The Civil Law Division provides legal services in all civil law matters to the Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General, all ministries and many agencies in the Ontario Public Service. The division supports the Attorney General in his duties as Chief Law Officer of the Crown, which includes conducting litigation for and against the Crown, ensuring the rule of law is maintained and that Cabinet decisions are legally and constitutionally valid, and advising on matters of law connected to the government’s operations and priorities.

The Office of Legislative Counsel is responsible for legislative drafting in English and French. This includes drafting bills for the Government and members of the Legislative Assembly and drafting regulations. The office also provides related legal advice and editing and publishing services, including providing the content for the e-Laws website.

The Court Services Program is responsible for the administration and functioning of criminal, civil, family and small claims courts in Ontario. These services comprise of three main components: court administration, judicial services and court construction. Court administration and judicial services provide judicial, courtroom and court operational support, and are divided into three key program areas: court and client services, program support services and judicial services. Court construction, which is delivered by Corporate Services Management Division, manages funding for new courthouses and large-scale renovations of existing court facilities to support a justice system that is modern, secure and accessible.

The Victims and Vulnerable Persons Program delivers vital services to victims of crime and their families, children, and vulnerable persons. Victims of crime and their family member(s) are supported through the Ontario Victim Services Branch, which offers a wide array of support services delivered both directly and through ministry funded community agencies. Mentally incapable adults receive personal and property guardianship services from the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee, and the Office of the Children's Lawyer protects the personal and property rights of children before courts and tribunals. The Office for Victims of Crime, a statutory advisory agency to Ontario’s Attorney General, is also included in this program.

The Political Contribution Tax Credit is a credit for contributions made to an Ontario party, constituency association or candidate registered under Ontario's Election Finances Act.

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario regulates the liquor, gaming, cannabis and horse racing sectors in Ontario in accordance with the principles of honesty and integrity, and in the public interest.

Key performance indicators

The ministry is in year two of a multi-year process to review and refresh its Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to ensure they:

• are fully reflective of the ministry’s key priorities and stated outcomes
• have appropriate target values and rationales

The ministry understands the need to be transparent in its performance reporting and this report continues to reflect previous recommendations from the Auditor General to communicate performance results.

As part of this process, the ministry is enhancing its KPI reporting by revising and strengthening, where required, the target rationales and statistical calculations for ministry KPIs and ensuring a strong relationship between targets and baselines. This ensures that the ministry is able to monitor strategic priority areas and improve service to the public and government clients, while supporting measurement of, and effective decision-making related to key investments.

This project has already seen the replacement or revision of its complete suite of government-directed KPIs and will next identify common ministry priorities for the development of ministry-identified KPIs.

At this time, the ministry is able to report on the KPIs that remain unchanged from the previous reporting year, the results for which are highlighted below:

Performance data for the last three years for the KPIs that remain unchanged as a result of the ministry’s KPI redesign work are as follows:

2024–2025 Strategic plan

The Ministry of the Attorney General is responsible for the delivery of an accessible, responsive and resilient justice system that inspires public confidence and upholds the rule of law.

In 2024–2025, the ministry will continue to implement Justice Accelerated, a multi-year strategy that is delivering the most significant upgrade to justice services in Ontario’s history to address longstanding challenges. The ministry will also continue to address delays and backlogs in the justice system to ensure that cases proceed through the system as efficiently and effectively as possible.

The ministry continues to take a multi-pronged approach to transform antiquated systems through the implementation of Lean practices and an end-to-end digital case management system. The ministry is also making investments to establish a sustainable justice system to ensure flexibility in a modern workforce that will be able to adjust for future caseload pressures.

The ministry also continues to support the work of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission (AGCO) in its licensing and regulation of alcohol, gaming, cannabis retail and horse racing in Ontario. The government is currently developing a new retail marketplace for alcohol that will expand the sale of beer, wine, cider and ready to drink spirits in all grocery, convenience and big box stores across Ontario by January 2026. The ministry will continue to work with the AGCO to maintain rigorous standards for licensing, regulation and social responsibility as the retail alcohol framework transitions and expands over the coming years.

In tandem with the work the ministry is doing to update its entire suite of KPIs, the ministry will continue to monitor its KPIs to assess performance in areas where reporting is ongoing: for example, French Language Services, improving conditions of public infrastructure, and client satisfaction.

The ministry’s key priorities are categorized into the following main areas:

Courts modernization

Guided by the Justice Accelerated Strategy, the ministry will continue to transform Ontario’s justice system to address longstanding challenges through ground-breaking digital initiatives that will make it easier for the public to interact with the courts and increase their access to justice.

The Courts Digital Transformation (CDT) initiative is the most significant single step forward in the digital evolution of justice in Canada. CDT will replace outdated and time-consuming paper-based procedures with an intuitive and streamlined online platform to manage cases, documents and schedules. This platform, to be delivered by Thomson Reuters, will support access to both the Superior Court of Justice (SCJ) and the Ontario Court of Justice (OCJ). The first phase of the platform is scheduled to launch in 2025 in Toronto for SCJ family, civil, small claims, enforcement, and divisional courts, and OCJ family court.

The ongoing Virtual and Hybrid Hearings initiative expands and improves courtrooms' capabilities for holding remote hearings across the province. This significantly improves access to justice by removing barriers to attending court events, reduces costs for clients and optimizes the allocation of resources within the ministry by enabling courtrooms with audio and visual technology.

The ministry will continue to prioritize the staffing of courtrooms to address recruitment and retention challenges in frontline court and client representative positions to ensure sustainable court operations now and in the future. Court staff play an essential role in the administration of justice. Without them, court hearings cannot proceed, matters cannot be scheduled, and legal documents cannot be filed, impacting the lives of everyone who needs to access the justice system. The ministry is working closely with judicial officials to ensure matters can proceed as scheduled.

In addition, the ministry continues to work to ensure video and audio court hearings are available in every region, including in more rural, Northern, and Indigenous communities. This ongoing investment will help break down long-standing barriers and will support a modern, accessible legal system that meets the needs of First Nations and Northern communities.

Sustaining Ontario’s justice system

The ministry remains committed to reducing the backlog of criminal cases in Ontario courts and continues to closely monitor backlog reduction progress. Building on the criminal case backlog strategy, the ministry is taking action to keep Ontarians safe and ensure access to justice for those involved in the criminal justice system, including victims and their families.

The ministry is also focused on addressing the backlog of civil and family cases in the province’s courts. This will help to reduce the length of time it takes the courts to reach a decision in civil and family matters and make the justice system more accessible, efficient and responsive to the needs of people across the province.

The ministry will continue to work with all legal partners to explore ways to address delays and backlogs in the justice system. The ministry will work to ensure that cases proceed through the system as efficiently and effectively as possible and Ontario’s justice system remains strong, responsive and sustainable for many years to come.

The ministry will continue to work with Tribunals Ontario to ensure that the ministry’s tribunals provide effective dispute resolution services and that Ontarians who need those services have access to justice. This includes actively addressing the backlog of cases at the Landlord Tenant Board to improve client service and reduce decision timeframes.

Prosecution

The ministry’s top operational risk continues to be the potential for lost cases in the criminal context. R. v. Jordan requires that cases be heard within strict time limits or the accused is free from prosecution, including cases of murder and sexual assault. Protecting these at-risk cases from collapse is in the best interest of the public and community safety.

The ministry continues to invest in Ontario’s prosecution service to effectively case manage and prosecute the increased volume and complexity of gun and gang, auto theft and serious violent criminal cases. The ministry’s new Major Auto Theft Prosecution Response Team will work directly with the Ontario Provincial Police’s Organized Crime Towing and Auto Theft Team to provide advice at the investigative stage and to case manage and prosecute these large and complex cases.

The ministry is supporting prosecution teams across the province by adding additional resources for review and disclosure of digital evidence from police service body-worn and in-car cameras. These investments will help ensure that prosecution teams have the resources they need to provide timely disclosure, lead to fewer cases being dismissed due to delay and foster a resilient, responsive justice system that protects victims and witnesses who cooperate with critical police investigations.

The ministry work on the multi-year Guns, Gangs and Violence Reduction Strategy will continue and help combat gun and gang violence on all fronts across Ontario and keep communities safe. The ministry is focusing on initiatives related to prosecution, intervention, prevention, and victim services.

Support for victims

The ministry continues to support the complex needs of Ontarians within victim services by sustaining and expanding critical programs to support victims of crime, their families and survivors of sexual violence.

This includes investing to support the Independent Legal Advice for Survivors of Sexual Assault program and sustain and expand the Child Victim Witness Support Program. These programs provide legal support for survivors of sexual assault and for children who are victims or witnesses of crime. Participation in these programs allows recipients to better understand the criminal court process and make informed decisions about their legal options, including reporting the incident and holding the offenders to account after experiencing sexual assault.

Review of the Rules of Civil Procedure

The Attorney General, in partnership with the Chief Justice of the Superior Court, established the Civil Rules Review working group to carry out a review of the Rules of Civil Procedure to support the necessary transformation of civil proceedings to help save Ontarians time and money. Through broad consultation with civil justice system participants, the review will identify and target areas for rules reform that will have the most positive impact for the public, self-represented litigants, members of the practicing bar, judges and valued court staff. In the past four years, the ministry created transformational change to civil court processes through 24 regulations amending the court rules as well as amendments to the Family Law Rules, with the Family Rules Committee.

Table 1: Ministry planned expenditures 2023–2024 ($M)

Historical trend analysis data

Table 2: Combined operating and capital summary by vote

Agencies, boards and commissions reporting to the ministry

Ministry organizational chart

• Hon. Doug Downey, Attorney General
  • Catherine Stewart, Executive Assistant & Chief Legal Counsel to the Deputy Attorney General (acting)
  • David Corbett, Deputy Attorney General
    • Rebecca Ganesathas, Director, Communications (acting)
    • Catherine Emile, Justice Cluster Chief Information Officer & Assistant Deputy Minister Justice Technology Services
    • Derek Thompson, Head, Solutions Branch
    • Beverly Leonard, Assistant Deputy Attorney General, Court Services Division
      • Babi Banerjee, Director, Corporate Support Branch
      • Vaia Pappas, Director, Operational Support Branch
      • Jaimie Ann Lee, Director, Program Management Branch
      • Directors: Court Operations
        • Rosanna Giancristiano, Toronto
        • Mena Zaffino, Central East
        • Ann Gendron, East
        • Debbie Dunn, Central West
        • Angela McGonigal, West (acting)
        • Cathy Kulos, Northeast
        • Jennifer Rob, Northwest
      • Shannon Chase, Executive Legal Officer, Court of Appeal
        • Jamal Salim, Director, Judicial IT office
      • Rosemarie Juginovic, Executive Legal Officer, Superior Court of Justice (acting)
      • Kathleen Murphy, Executive Legal Officer, Ontario Court of Justice
    • Randy Schwartz, Assistant Deputy Attorney General, Criminal Law Division
      • Nancy Krigas, Director, Assistant Deputy Attorney General’s Office
      • Directors: Crown Operations
        • Andrew Locke, Toronto
        • Paul Tait, Central East
        • Julie Scott, East
        • Todd Norman, Central West
        • Belinda Pagliaroli, West
        • Kelly Weeks, North
      • Leslie Paine, Director, Crown Law Office, Criminal
      • Fred Braley, Director, Guns & Gangs
      • John Corelli, Director, Complex Prosecution Bureau
      • Dayna Arron, Executive Director, Justice Centres
      • Janine Hodgins, Director, Office of Strategic Initiatives Initiatives
      • Majid Juma, Director, Strategic Operations & Management Centre
    • Sean Kearney, Assistant Deputy Attorney General, Civil Law Division (acting)
      • Chantelle Blom, Director, Crown Law Office, Civil
      • Sarah Wright, Director, Constitutional Law Branch
      • Nayla Ibrahim, Director, Strategic & Business Management Branch
      • Jane Price, Director, Education and Development Branch
      • Samir Khalil, Portfolio Director (Economics, Infrastructure and Government) (acting)
        • Directors: Legal Services
          • Fateh Salim, Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery/Ministry of Infrastructure (acting)
          • Len Hatzis, Treasury Board Secretariat
          • Tom McKinlay, Ministry of Finance (acting)
          • Roslyn Baichoo, Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (acting)
          • Mary Gersht, Ministry of Transportation
      • Kikee Malik, Portfolio Director (Community, Health and Social Services) (acting)
        • Directors: Legal Services
          • Brian Loewen, Ministry of the Solicitor General
          • Cheryl Carson, Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport/Ministry for Seniors and Accessibility/Ministry of Francophone Affairs (acting)
          • Peter Spencer, Ministry of Health/Ministry of Health and Long Term Care/Agencies) (acting)
          • Elaine Atkinson, Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services (acting)
          • Hari Viswanathan, Family Responsibility Office (acting)
          • Amyn Hadibhi, Ministry of Education/Ministry of Colleges and Universities (acting)
      • Donald Bennett, Portfolio Director (Indigenous, Lands and Resources) (acting)
        • Directors: Legal Services
          • Stephan Luciw, Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (acting)
          • Stephen Lockwood, Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (acting)
          • Estee Garfin, Indigenous Affairs Ontario (acting)
          • Donna Glassman, Ministry of Energy/Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade (acting)
          • Diane Zimnica, Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry
          • Lauren Temple, Ministry of Mines/Ministry of Northern Development
          • Natasha Wilson, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (acting)
    • Mark Spakowski, Chief Legislative Counsel
    • Olha Dobush, Assistant Deputy Attorney General, Victims & Vulnerable Persons Division
      • Nicole Mahabir, Director, Divisional Corporate Support Branch (acting)
      • Jill Dubrick, Director, Ontario Victim Services
      • Dianne Carter, Children’s Lawyer
      • Sidney Peters, Public Guardian & Trustee
    • Paula Reid, Assistant Deputy Attorney General & Chief Administrative Officer, Corporate Services Management Division
      • Erika Cotter, Director, Business & Fiscal Planning
      • Lisa Gold, Director, Human Resources Strategic Business Unit (acting)
      • Andrew Nizielski, Director, Facilities Management Branch
      • Frank Skubic, Director, Justice Sector Security and Emergency Management Branch
      • Peter O'Keefe, Director, Project Implementation (acting)
      • Dominic Fernandes, Director, Analytics & Evidence Branch
      • Mirjeta Dhamo, Coordinator, French Language Services
      • Noel Kent, Coordinator, Freedom of Information
      • Carol Pham-de Leon, Director, Courts Digital Transformation Branch (acting)
      • Brad Obee, Director, Audit Services (Treasury Board Secretariat)
    • Marian Jacko, Assistant Deputy Attorney General, Indigenous Justice Division
      • Raj Dhir, Executive Director, Indigenous Justice Policy (acting)
      • Jennifer Abbott, Legal Director, Indigenous Services
      • Kaitlin Ritchie, Legal Director
    • Jane Mallen, Assistant Deputy Attorney General, Policy Division
      • Juliet Robin, Executive Director, Justice Policy Development
      • Mariela Orellana, Director, Agency & Tribunal Relations (acting)
      • Ana Kapralos, Director, Program Modernization & Appointments Branch (acting)
      • Joe Whitehead, Executive Director, Ontario Land Tribunals (acting)
      • Harry Gousopoulos, Executive Director, Tribunals Ontario
        • Mira Gamsa, Director Of Operations
        • Lorissa Sciarra, Director, Strategic Development
        • Cristina Boucinha, Director, Strategic Business Service Tribunals Ontario
      • Christopher Wu, Chief Operations Officer, Law Enforcement Complaints Agency (acting)
      • Brad Brand, Director, Special Investigations Unit (acting)
      • Michael Harris, Director, Ontario Human Rights Commission (acting)
    • Samantha Poisson, Assistant Deputy Attorney, General Recovery Division (acting)
      • (Vacant), Legal Director, Operations Recovery
      • (Vacant), Director, Operational Support

Ministry of the Attorney General legislation

Administration of Justice

• Administration of Justice Act
• Apology Act, 2009
• Arbitration Act, 1991
• Assessment Review Board Act
• Bail Act
• Blind Persons’ Rights Act
• Class Proceedings Act, 1992
• Commissioners for Taking Affidavits Act
• Community Safety and Policing Act, 2019 (sections pertaining to the Law Enforcement Complaints Agency)
• Courts of Justice Act
• Crown Witnesses Act
• Dog Owners’ Liability Act
• Education Act (sections pertaining to Special Education Tribunal — English & French)
• Evidence Act
• Execution Act
• Fines and Forfeitures Act
• Fire Protection and Prevention Act, 1997 (sections pertaining to the Fire Safety Commission)
• Habeas Corpus Act
• Hearings in Tribunal Proceedings (Temporary Measures) Act, 2020
• Hospitals and Charitable Institutions Inquiries Act
• Human Rights Code
• Judicial Review Procedure Act
• Juries Act
• Justices of the Peace Act
• Legal Aid Services Act, 2020
• Legislation Act, 2006
• Licence Appeal Tribunal Act, 1999
• Limitations Act, 2002
• Ministry of Correctional Services Act, 1990 (sections pertaining to the Ontario Parole Board)
• Negligence Act
• Notaries Act
• Ontario Land Tribunal Act, 2021
• Ontario Works Act, 1997 (section pertaining to Social Benefits Tribunal)
• Parental Responsibility Act, 2000
• Prevention of and Remedies for Human Trafficking Act, 2017
• Provincial Offences Act
• Public Inquiries Act, 2009
• Real Property Limitations Act
• Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (sections pertaining to the Landlord and Tenant Board)
• Safe Streets Act, 1999
• Special Investigations Unit Act, 2019
• Statutory Powers Procedure Act
• Tobacco Damages and Health Care Costs Recovery Act, 2009
• Opioid Damages and Health Care Costs Recovery Act, 2019
• Tribunal Adjudicative Records Act, 2019
• Victims’ Bill of Rights, 1995

Family Law

• Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017 (sections pertaining to Child and Family Services Review Board, Custody Review Board)
• Children's Law Reform Act
• Family Law Act
• Safe Access to Abortion Services Act, 2017

Inter-jurisdictional

• Enforcement of Judgments Conventions Act, 1999
• International Choice of Court Agreements Convention Act, 2017
• International Electronic Communications Convention Act, 2017
• International Interests in Mobile Equipment Act (Aircraft Equipment), 2002
• International Recognition of Trusts Act, 2017
• Interprovincial Summonses Act
• Reciprocal Enforcement of Judgments (UK) Act
• Reciprocal Enforcement of Judgments Act
• Settlement of International Investment Disputes Act, 1999
• Transboundary Pollution Reciprocal Access Act

Property Statutes

• Accumulations Act
• Aliens’ Real Property Act
• Conveyancing and Law of Property Act
• Disorderly Houses Act
• Escheats Act, 2015
• Expropriations Act
• Fraudulent Conveyances Act
• Mortgages Act
• Occupiers’ Liability Act
• Partition Act
• Property and Civil Rights Act
• Religious Organizations’ Lands Act
• Short Forms of Leases Act
• Trespass to Property Ac

Business Regulation

• Absconding Debtors Act
• Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario Act, 2019
• Business Records Protection Act
• Cannabis Control Act, 2017
• Cannabis Licence Act, 2018
• Charities Accounting Act
• Commercial Mediation Act, 2010
• Construction Act
• Costs of Distress Act
• Creditors’ Relief Act, 2010
• Electronic Commerce Act, 2000
• Frustrated Contracts Act
• Gaming Control Act, 1992
• Horse Racing Licence Act, 2015
• International Commercial Arbitration Act, 2017
• International Sales Conventions Act, R.S.O. 1990
• Liquor Licence and Control Act, 2019
• Mercantile Law Amendment Act
• Sale of Goods Act
• Statute of Frauds
• Unconscionable Transactions Relief Act
• Vendors and Purchasers Act
• Wages Act
• Warehouse Receipts Act

Professional Regulation

• Architects Act
• Barristers Act
• Chartered Professional Accountants of Ontario Act, 2017
• Law Society Act
• Professional Engineers Act
• Public Accounting Act, 2004
• Solicitors Act

Crown Duties/Immunity

• Crown Agency Act
• Crown Attorneys Act
• Crown Liability and Proceedings Act, 2019
• Ministry of the Attorney General Act
• Ombudsman Act
• Public Authorities Protection Act
• Public Officers Act
• Supporting Ontario's Recovery Act, 2020

Estates

• Absentees Act
• Crown Administration of Estates Act
• Declarations of Death Act, 2002
• Estates Act
• Estates Administration Act
• Perpetuities Act
• Powers of Attorney Act
• Public Guardian and Trustee Act
• Settled Estates Act
• Substitute Decisions Act, 1992
• Succession Law Reform Act
• Trustee Act
• Variation of Trusts Act

Other

• Age of Majority and Accountability Act
• Civil Remedies Act, 2001
• Donation of Food Act, 1994
• Executive Council Act
• Good Samaritan Act, 2001
• Human Trafficking Awareness Day Act, 2017
• Libel and Slander Act
• Lieutenant Governor Act
• Members’ Integrity Act, 1994
• Ontario Association of Former Parliamentarians Act, 2000
• Prohibiting Profiting from Recounting Crimes Act, 2002
• Religious Freedom Act
• Revised Statutes Confirmation and Corrections Act, 1993
• Time Act

Democracy Statutes

• Election Act
• Election Finances Act
• Electoral System Referendum Act, 2007
• Legislative Assembly Act
• Representation Act, 2015

Appendix: 2023–2024 Annual Report

In 2023–2024, the Ministry of the Attorney General continued to build on its progress to transform Ontario’s outdated justice system, support victims and vulnerable people, and build stronger, more collaborative relationships with the justice system.

The ministry remained steadfast in its commitment to respond to evolving demands in the justice system and establish new and innovative ways of delivering services remotely, in-person and online. The ministry delivered exceptional service to the public despite significant financial pressures.

Key performance indicators

As part of the annual Strategic Planning Process, the ministry reports its progress on its ministry KPIs. The ministry has made progress in, and met or exceeded, the stated targets in several areas:

• Completion of Emergency Management Program requirements: the ministry continues to meet this target through a 100% compliance rate each year.
• Facility Condition Index for the leasehold component of the ministry’s Leasehold Asset Management Program (LAMP) assessed sites: The ministry is on track to achieve its planned renewal investments in courthouse buildings.
• Percentage of clients satisfied with services received: the ministry exceeded the target of 85% by achieving a 92.5% satisfaction rate in 2022–2023, and results improved even more in 2023–2024, with a 94.3% satisfaction rating. The ministry has maintained good client satisfaction levels, and this is demonstrated in the ministry’s satisfaction rating.

The ministry faced challenges achieving the target for two KPIs:

• Percentage of designated bilingual positions filled with incumbents with the right level of French proficiency:the ministry’s results dropped from 64% last year to 60% as of March 31, 2023. The Justice Sector Ministries’ French Language Services (FLS) Strategic Plan has a strong focus on recruitment and retention of a qualified bilingual workforce and aligns with FLS enterprise initiatives. This is ongoing work, and the ministry committed to provision of FLS in all areas of its operations.
• Percentage of public facing service standards for timely service delivery that are achieved: the ministry’s result last year was 77.2%, but this figure has fallen to 73% as of March 31, 2023. In April 2022, various programs aimed at supporting victims — along with the related data — moved to the Ministry of Children Community and Social Services.

Each year, the ministry conducts a lessons-learned exercise to identify successes and challenges to ensure the best outcomes for the people of Ontario through responsible investment and evidence-based decision-making.

Justice accelerated strategy

The ministry continued the largest digital transformation of the justice sector in Ontario’s history, designed to bring more services, such as e-filing, paying court fees and certain court hearings, online and closer to Ontarians, no matter where they live in the province.

In July 2023, the ministry invested $166 million in the Courts Digital Transformation initiative to deliver more legal services online, replacing outdated paper-based procedures with a digital platform that will support access to the Superior Court of Justice and the Ontario Court of Justice. Thomson Reuters was awarded the contract to deliver the new digital justice platform, which will allow court users to:

• file documents quickly and easily online
• digitally access court case information online
• pay fees online
• connect virtually to hearings
• manage court appearances online
• receive decisions electronically

The ministry also expanded the Justice Services Online (JSO) platform to allow court users to file nearly 800 different court documents online, without having to go to court.

The ministry expanded the types of court documents that can be filed online to include bankruptcy and Divisional Court files in addition to expanding the online court case search tool to ensure the public can access basic court information and select civil and active criminal matters.

The expansion of the JSO continues to allow court users to digitally access court information 24 hours a day from anywhere, without having to go to a courthouse.

The ministry continues to work to ensure video and audio court hearings are available in every region, including in more rural, Northern, and Indigenous communities. In 2021–2022, 40 installations were completed, with another 50 completed in 2022–2023. In 2023–2024, eight courtrooms were completed under Phase 1, and 26 courtrooms were completed under Phase 2.

In April 2022, the ministry invested $2.5 million to purchase, install and operate Starlink satellite internet and video conferencing equipment to enable virtual court proceedings and video conferencing. As of September 2023, 48 Starlink satellite units have been installed across 27 fly-in communities. The ongoing investment will help break down long-standing barriers and will support a modern, accessible legal system that meets the needs of First Nations and Northern communities.

Criminal court case backlog

In 2023–2024, unprecedented case volumes and continuing impacts from the COVID‑19 pandemic continued to present capacity challenges for Ontario’s court system. The ministry worked to address delays and backlogs in the justice system.

The government’s investment of $72 million over two years continues to have a positive impact. Launched in October 2021, the strategy supported the hiring of additional Crown prosecutors to mitigate the risk of serious cases being stayed for delay, the hiring of new staff to strengthen court and victim/witness services, and increased funding for enhanced legal aid services. The resources put in place are now permanent and an ongoing investment has become part of the ministry’s annual funding.

Courts staffing

Court staff play an essential role in the administration of justice and the ministry is committed to attracting, developing, and retaining a diverse and professional workforce. Starting in 2024, the ministry increased the number of full-time, permanent court staff across the province through almost $6 million in additional annual funding. The ministry has offered full-time employment opportunities to existing on-call staff and is recruiting new, permanent, full-time staff and on-call court staff in Toronto Region.

Major Auto Theft Prosecution Response Team

In May 2023, the ministry invested $13.9 million over three years for the new Major Auto Theft Prosecution Response Team. The team works directly with the Ontario Provincial Police’s Organized Crime Towing and Auto Theft Team to provide advice at the investigative stage and to case manage and prosecute these large and complex cases.

This team provides permanent, dedicated prosecutors at courthouses in jurisdictions facing the highest rates of auto theft, such as Toronto, Hamilton, Ottawa and London. The team is also structured so that prosecutors can be mobilized and deployed to other courthouses across the province.

Intensive Serious Violent Crime Bail Support Team

In April 2023, The ministry announced $26 million over three years to establish Intensive Serious Violent Crime Bail Support Teams within the courts system to ensure that there are dedicated prosecutors and subject matter experts to prepare for and properly conduct the often lengthy and complex bail hearings. These investments will immediately help to address serious, violent and repeat offenders by providing more resources to police to investigate and apprehend these accused persons and to prosecutors and courts to conduct complex, time-consuming bail hearings with the best evidence possible. This investment was part of a larger government investment of $112 million over three years to help ensure that high-risk and repeat violent offenders comply with their bail conditions, and prosecutors have the resources to prepare for and conduct complex bail hearings.

Brampton (A. Grenville and William Davis) Courthouse Expansion

In early 2024, Infrastructure Ontario completed the expansion of the Brampton (A. Grenville and William Davis) Courthouse, one of the busiest courthouses in the province. The $117 million expansion boasts enhanced technology to support more virtual hearings and included:

• Six additional floors with 18 additional hearing rooms: 13 courtrooms, three settlement conference spaces and two pre-trial rooms for the Superior Court of Justice and Ontario Court of Justice.
• Upgraded security features, including courtrooms built for trials involving multiple accused persons and remote testimony spaces.
• Improved accessibility spaces such as barrier-free witness stands and specialized seating for jury members.

Legal Aid Ontario

The ministry continues to work with Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) to ensure access to justice and effective legal services for eligible low-income Ontarians. In 2023, LAO made changes to the compensation structure for private bar lawyers who are paid to do legal aid work. The compensation structure is set out in the legal aid tariff.

The compensation structure for legal aid lawyers in Ontario had been largely unchanged over the past 25 years, and the hourly rates and block fee rates had not increased since 2015. These tariff changes acknowledge the increased complexity of providing legal aid services. In order to implement key tariff improvements in a timely manner, LAO is taking a phased approach to implementation.

The first phase of tariff reforms came into effect in October 2023. The second phase of tariff reform changes will be launched in two stages. The first stage of phase two came into effect in March 2024 and the second stage is expected to be implemented in July 2024.

LAO’s current strong financial position has enabled LAO to fund these tariff changes.

iGaming reference

In February 2024, Ontario filed a reference with the Court of Appeal to clarify whether permitting people in Ontario to participate in online games and betting involving players located outside of Canada would be consistent with the Criminal Code. The reference is expected to be heard in November 2024.

Housing Supply Action Plan

As part of the government’s plan to address housing supply, legislative changes were passed to help ensure disputes holding up housing growth are resolved faster. Once proclaimed the changes to the Ontario Land Tribunal Act will help speed up proceedings, resolve cases faster and streamline processes at the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT).

As announced in the 2023 Budget, the ministry is investing $11.8 million over three years to help the OLT speed up case resolution, improve client service and support faster housing creation, by:

• hiring more support staff
• investing in technology for digital and hybrid hearings
• improving client service via phone and web channels
• enhancing its case management system

The ministry continues to work with Tribunals Ontario and the Landlord Tenant Board (LTB) to address the accumulation of active cases before the board. The ministry has taken action to increase funding and resources for the LTB. This will improve client service and continue to reduce active applications and decision timeframes at the board. In 2023–2024, the ministry invested $6.5 million in the LTB to appoint an additional 40 adjudicators, more than doubling the number of full-time adjudicators and hire five staff to improve service standards and continue to reduce active applications and decision timeframes. This funding was in addition to the $11.8 million over three years announced in the 2023 Budget to help reduce the backlog of cases by hiring more support staff and expanding hearing hours.

Providing Responsive Services for Vulnerable People

In September 2023, the ministry provided an additional $2.13 million annually for two years for Partner Assault Response providers to help sustain the program and address service pressures. This represents an approximate 22% increase in annual funding for all service providers.

In March 2024, the ministry provided over $1.4 million through the Grant to Support Child Victims of Gun and Gang Violence in communities across the province to help support young victims, witnesses and survivors of gun and gang violence and human trafficking. The new program is funded as part of a $121 million investment by the federal government to help prevent gun and gang violence in Ontario, and builds on the province’s Guns, Gangs and Violence Reduction Strategy and the Anti-Human Trafficking Strategy.

Table 3: Ministry interim actual expenditures 2023–2024