Ontario Criminal Defence Practice Management
Criminal defence practice moves fast — bail hearings, Crown pre-trials, trial dates, s.11(b) Charter arguments, and mountains of disclosure. Atticus keeps every deadline tracked, every disclosure document searchable, and every client file organized.
A serious criminal matter can generate thousands of pages of disclosure — police notes, forensic reports, witness statements, surveillance records, and expert opinions. Finding the one line that matters during cross-examination shouldn't require scrolling through 400 PDF pages at 11pm.
Atticus processes every disclosure document you upload, extracts key parties, dates, witnesses, and action items, and makes everything semantically searchable. Ask “What did the complainant say about the date of the incident?” and get a direct answer.
Typical steps Atticus helps you track for an Ontario criminal matter
Initial Retainer & Consultation
Intake form, conflict check, engagement letter, retainer funds to trust
Bail Hearing / Release
Bail hearing date, conditions, surety documents, release order processing
First Appearance / Plea Date
Court date tracking, Crown disclosure request, set date appearance
Crown Disclosure Review
Upload and AI-process all disclosure: police notes, ITO, forensic reports, witness statements
Crown Pre-trial
Pre-trial conference date, Crown position documented, resolution discussions
Judicial Pre-trial
JPT date, trial estimate, Charter applications identified, draft legal memos
Charter / Evidentiary Motions
s.8 search and seizure, s.9 arbitrary detention, s.10(b) right to counsel, Voir Dire
Trial Preparation
Witness subpoenas, expert witnesses, exhibit list, cross-examination notes
Trial / Guilty Plea
Trial date, submissions, sentencing position, character references
Sentencing / Disposition
Sentencing date, probation order, ancillary orders (SOIRA, DNA), appeal period noted
Appeal (if any)
Notice of Appeal deadline (30 days from sentence), grounds of appeal memo
File Closure
Final billing, file archive, trust balance reconciled, limitation period for civil claims if applicable
Since R v Jordan [2016] SCC 27, strict presumptive ceilings apply: 18 months for provincial court matters, 30 months for superior court matters. Atticus tracks your matter's first appearance date and flags when the ceiling is approaching — critical for identifying potential s.11(b) Charter arguments before the window closes.
Automated deadline extraction — every court date from Crown disclosure and court documents is captured automatically.
Upload police notes, ITOs, forensic reports, and witness statements. AI extracts key parties, dates, and facts. Ask questions in plain English and get answers grounded in the file.
Every appearance, pre-trial, and trial date captured and tracked. 9am morning briefing and 6pm escalation alerts if upcoming dates are unresolved.
Generate Notices of Motion, legal memos, client update letters, and closing submissions — grounded in your case file. Review and edit before filing.
LSO-compliant trust receipts and disbursements. Per-client trust balances always visible. Negative balance alerts in morning briefing.
Shareable secure portal link for each matter. Clients can upload documents directly — disclosure extras, character reference letters, medical records — automatically processed by Atticus.
AI-powered conflict check against all existing clients, companies, and parties extracted from your documents. Runs on new client creation and on demand.
Yes. Atticus automatically extracts court dates, appearances, and procedural deadlines from bail records, Informations, and Crown disclosure. It sends daily morning briefings and a 6pm escalation alert if anything is unresolved.
Yes. Atticus processes PDF, DOCX, and TXT files — police notes, witness statements, forensic reports. AI extracts key parties, dates, witnesses, and action items, and makes everything semantically searchable via the Atticus chat.
Yes. Criminal defence matters can be organized with custom action item checklists from initial retainer through bail, pre-trials, motions, trial, and sentencing.
Yes. The AI Draft tool generates Notices of Motion, legal memos, client update letters, and engagement letters — grounded in your client's case file. The lawyer reviews and edits before filing.
No credit card required. Full access to all features including document processing, Atticus AI chat, deadline tracking, and billing.
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