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| Patrick J Ducharme |
Before defence counsel may withdraw, he or she requires the permission of the court. A formal application must be brought to the court seeking leave to withdraw.
The Rules of the court require that an application be brought as soon as is reasonably practicable and in sufficient time to avoid the need to adjourn a scheduled preliminary inquiry or trial. More specifically, the Rules require fifteen days notice before the date fixed for the hearing of the application which cannot be less than ten days prior to the date set for trial in the Superior Court of Justice1 and thirty days notice before the date fixed for the hearing of the application, no less than sixty days prior to the date set for a preliminary hearing or trial in the Ontario Court of Justice2. The Notice of Application usually requires supporting materials such as an affidavit by or on behalf of the Applicant. The affidavit will set out the particulars of the charge, the procedural history of the case and the reasons why there is a request to withdraw. The Rules require a full statement of all facts material to a determination of the application without disclosure of information that would be protected by solicitor-client privilege, unless that privilege has been waived or the court permitting such disclosure has given an order.
The above is the an excerpt of Patrick J Ducharme's book, Canadian Criminal Procedure, available at Amazon or in bulk through MedicaLegal Publishing along with Criminal Trial Strategies.
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