Justice of the Peace (JP)
A Justice of the Peace (JP) is a judicial officer who exercises a specific subset of judicial functions — most importantly: receiving informations and issuing process; conducting bail hearings; issuing search warrants and other investigative orders; presiding over provincial-offence matters; and conducting certain pre-trial criminal procedures. JPs are appointed by the Ontario government and operate alongside (but with narrower jurisdiction than) Provincial Court judges.
Mass Tsang's criminal lawyers appear before JPs in bail hearings, warrant-related matters, and procedural appearances every day.
Statutory authority
JPs derive their authority from the Justices of the Peace Act (Ontario) and from various federal statutes that confer specific powers on them, including the Criminal Code. JPs are not lawyers (though some have legal training); they must complete training and ongoing professional development. Their role is structured to handle high-volume, lower-complexity judicial functions, freeing Provincial Court judges to focus on trials and complex matters.
Bail hearings
Most bail hearings in Ontario are conducted by JPs. The JP applies the section 515 framework — the three statutory grounds for detention, the reverse-onus rules, and the bail conditions framework. JPs are also responsible for show-cause hearings on warrants for breach of bail. The procedural standards for bail hearings before JPs are the same as those before judges.
Issuing process and warrants
JPs receive sworn informations and decide whether to issue process — a summons (compelling attendance at court without arrest) or an arrest warrant. They also issue: search warrants under section 487; Feeney warrants under section 529; production orders for documents and digital evidence; tracking-device warrants; and other investigative orders. JPs play a critical front-end role in police investigations.
Provincial offences
JPs preside over most matters under the Provincial Offences Act — including Highway Traffic Act offences, Liquor Licence Act matters, by-law offences, and many regulatory prosecutions. The procedural framework is the POA, which is simpler than Criminal Code procedure. Many HTA charges are resolved before JPs rather than before judges.
JP vs. judge
JPs do not preside over criminal trials of indictable matters or any matter beyond their statutory jurisdiction. They cannot accept guilty pleas to indictable offences or impose sentences on criminal convictions. For criminal trial work, only judges have jurisdiction. The line between JP and judge functions is sharp and procedurally important.
Related glossary terms
