Can a paralegal defend a criminal charge in Ontario?
Most people charged with assault start by searching for a criminal lawyer, because nobody has told them there is another answer. There is one, it has a section number, and it has limits worth knowing before you spend anything.
Point Duty is a licensed Ontario paralegal practice that can defend a criminal charge prosecuted by summary conviction — assault, theft under $5,000, mischief, uttering threats and others on the Law Society of Ontario’s permitted list. The authority is Criminal Code s.802.1 together with Ontario Order in Council 1115/2019. Indictable matters require a lawyer.
Where the permission actually comes from.
The short version is that a federal statute set a limit, a federal bill pushed most criminal charges past it, and a provincial order made in advance kept the door open. All three matter, because the third one is the reason a paralegal can still take your file.
The rule is a number
Section 802.1 of the Criminal Code decides when someone who is not a lawyer may represent a defendant, and it does it with a number. A defendant may not appear, or examine or cross-examine witnesses, by agent where they are liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term of more than six months. Three exceptions follow: the defendant is an organization, the appearance is only to request an adjournment, or the agent is authorized under a program approved by the lieutenant governor in council of the province.
Six months used to be the whole answer
Before 19 September 2019, the general maximum for a summary conviction offence under s.787(1) was six months. Six months is not more thansix months, so the ordinary summary offence fell just inside the line and paralegals could act without anything further being needed. That is why a six-month figure still appears against these charges on a great many Ontario legal websites. It was the correct number, until it wasn’t.
Bill C-75 moved the offences, not the bar
Bill C-75 came into force on 19 September 2019. It raised the default summary conviction maximum in s.787(1) to two years less a day and standardized most other summary maximums to the same figure. Section 802.1 was not amended — its six-month bar stayed exactly where it was. Offences that had sat below the line were now above it. Read alone, that would have removed paralegals, articling students and LPP candidates from nearly all summary criminal work overnight.
Ontario used the third exception
On 15 August 2019 the province made Order in Council 1115/2019, which provides that for the purposes of s.802.1 the regulation of persons authorized to practise law or provide legal services by the Law Society of Ontario under the Law Society Act — including its determination of who may appear or examine or cross-examine witnesses as an agent on summary conviction offences — is an approved program. That is exception (c), used deliberately. It took effect on 19 September 2019, the same day as C-75, so no gap ever opened.
So the Law Society draws the line
Because the Order in Council routes the decision to the regulator, the operative list is the Law Society’s, and its criterion is historical: regulated agents may appear on offences that, as of 18 September 2019 — the day before C-75 — were punishable by a maximum of six months on summary conviction. That roster is published as Permitted Criminal Code Summary Conviction Offences for Regulated Agents. It runs to 154 entries, and this site reproduces it in full. It is a closed list, not a general permission — a charge being summary is not by itself enough.
The criminal charges I take.
These are the 9criminal charges Point Duty defends most often. Every one of them is punishable on summary conviction by up to two years less a day, and every one appears on the Law Society’s permitted list. Eight are hybrid, which means the Crown elects the path and I can act once it elects summarily. One — causing a disturbance — is straight summary, with no election to wait for.
- AssaultHybrid · on summary electionCriminal Code s.265 / s.266
Any intentional application of force without consent — from a shove to a strike. Defended on consent, self-defence, de minimis, or evidentiary grounds.
- Theft Under $5,000Hybrid · on summary electionCriminal Code s.334(b)
Shoplifting, employee theft, and other low-value theft charges. Routinely diverted or resolved without a criminal record for first-time accused.
- MischiefHybrid · on summary electionCriminal Code s.430
Damage to or interference with property — graffiti, vandalism, obstruction. Available defences turn on intent, ownership, and proportionality.
- Cause DisturbanceSummaryCriminal Code s.175
Disturbing the peace in or near a public place by fighting, screaming, swearing, or obstructing persons. Summary offence — strong defences available.
- Dangerous DrivingHybrid · on summary electionCriminal Code s.320.13
Operating a motor vehicle in a manner dangerous to the public — a Criminal Code offence distinct from the HTA's careless driving. Hybrid; on summary election within paralegal scope.
- Prohibited DrivingHybrid · on summary electionCriminal Code s.320.18
Driving while subject to a court-ordered driving prohibition. A Criminal Code offence distinct from the HTA's Drive Suspended. Hybrid; on summary election within paralegal scope.
- Criminal HarassmentHybrid · on summary electionCriminal Code s.264
Repeated communication, following, or threatening conduct that causes another person to fear for their safety. Hybrid offence; on summary election within paralegal scope.
- Uttering ThreatsHybrid · on summary electionCriminal Code s.264.1
Knowingly uttering, conveying, or causing any person to receive a threat to cause death, bodily harm, or damage to property. Hybrid offence; on summary election within paralegal scope.
- Fail to Stop After AccidentHybrid · on summary electionCriminal Code s.320.16
Failing to stop after a collision involving another person, vehicle, or animal, with knowledge of the accident. The criminal counterpart to the HTA's Fail to Remain — escalates when injury or death is involved.
This is not the whole of what is permitted — it is what comes through the door. The full roster runs to 154 entries and is searchable by section number or keyword on the scope of practice page. If your charge is on that list and not on this one, call anyway.
What I cannot take, and what happens then.
A page arguing that paralegals can defend criminal charges owes you the other half of the sentence. There are three ways a criminal matter falls outside what I am licensed to do, and the third one catches people out.
Offences that can only be tried by indictment
Robbery, aggravated assault, break and enter into a dwelling-house, and the most serious offences against the person carry no summary path at all. There is no election for the Crown to make and no point at which a paralegal can act on them. A barrister is required from the first appearance.
Hybrid charges where the Crown elects indictment
Eight of the nine charges above are hybrid. The Crown chooses which way to proceed, and that choice is not always announced at the first appearance. If it elects to proceed by indictment, my authority ends there — including partway through a file I have already been working on. It is one of the first things I check, and I will tell you the moment it changes.
Summary matters that are simply not on the list
This is the category people are most often surprised by, because it cuts across the intuition that a paralegal can take anything summary. The clearest example is impaired driving: operation while impaired and over the legal limit under s.320.14 are not on the Law Society's list on either election. A paralegal who defends your speeding ticket cannot defend your impaired charge. Sexual assault under s.271 is not on the list either. Break and enter appears only for a place other than a dwelling-house under s.348(1)(e) — not for a home.
What happens then
A barrister is required, and I refer you to one. I have been in Ontario courthouses since 2002 and the referral network is the practical result of that. I say it on the first call, before you have paid anything — you are not charged for finding out that I am not the right person for your matter. If the election changes partway through a file, the same thing happens then, and the disclosure I have already obtained and read goes with you so the work is not done twice at your expense.
One further limit is worth knowing at the outset rather than after a verdict: a summary conviction appeal is heard in the Superior Court of Justice, and a paralegal cannot appear there. Trial is within my scope; an appeal from it is not, and that stage would need a lawyer.
Which one you actually want, on a summary matter.
Assume the charge is inside paralegal scope, so both are genuinely open to you. Four things decide it, and only one of them runs entirely in my favour.
Cost
Generally lower, for a structural reason rather than a discount. A lawyer carries the overhead of a full barrister's practice. A paralegal is licensed for a defined scope and operates on a leaner cost base. The defence work on a file inside that scope — disclosure review, Crown negotiation, trial preparation — is the same work. Point Duty publishes its ranges rather than making you call to find them out.
Scope
This is the real difference, and it runs one way. A lawyer's licence has no ceiling. Mine is a defined list, and everything on this page is about where that list ends. If your matter is on it, the licence is not the deciding factor. If it isn't, nothing else about the comparison matters.
Familiarity with the court
Depends on the individual, not the licence. A paralegal in a summary and Provincial Offences practice is in the Ontario Court of Justice and the POA courts constantly, and knows the local Crown's screening habits — which is often what determines whether diversion is realistic. A criminal lawyer who does summary work has the same familiarity. One who does mostly Superior Court trials may have less of it in that courtroom than they do elsewhere. Ask whoever you are speaking to how often they are in the courthouse where your matter sits.
When a lawyer is the better call
When the charge is indictable, or the Crown has elected to proceed by indictment. When the matter is a hybrid charge that looks likely to go up on indictment, and you would rather not change representatives partway through. When an appeal is a realistic prospect, because a summary conviction appeal is heard in the Superior Court of Justice and a paralegal cannot appear there. When the same facts have produced a family law matter, an immigration application, or a civil claim, and having one representative across all of it is worth more than the saving. And when you have significant jail exposure and simply want a barrister on it — that is a legitimate preference, and I will say so rather than talk you out of it.
None of this is an argument that lawyers are the expensive option for work a paralegal should be doing. A lawyer’s training is broader and their licence has no ceiling, and on anything that touches the edge of my scope that breadth is worth paying for. The argument is narrower: on a charge that sits inside the list, the licence is not the thing that decides the outcome, and you should not be paying for scope you will never use. Full detail on cost is in the FAQ, and the background behind the disclosure work is on the former police officer page.
Can a paralegal act on an assault charge in Ontario?
- Yes — Point Duty defends assault under Criminal Code s.266 where the Crown proceeds by summary conviction, and s.266 appears on the Law Society of Ontario's permitted list for regulated agents. Assault is a hybrid offence, which means the Crown chooses the path: on a summary election a licensed paralegal may act, and if the Crown elects to proceed by indictment the matter requires a lawyer. Crowns commonly proceed summarily on a simple assault where there is no significant record and no serious injury, but the election is the Crown's to make, not mine.
Is a paralegal cheaper than a lawyer for a summary charge?
- Generally yes, and the reason is structural rather than a discount. Point Duty quotes a summary conviction criminal matter such as assault or theft under $5,000 at $1,500 to $3,500 to a non-trial resolution, with a trial quoted separately, all flat fees plus HST. A lawyer carries the overhead of a full barrister's practice; a paralegal is licensed for a defined scope and runs a leaner one. The defence work on a file inside that scope — disclosure review, Crown resolution discussions, trial preparation — is the same work either way. Where the matter falls outside paralegal scope, a lawyer is not the more expensive option; it is the only option.
What happens if the Crown elects to proceed by indictment after I retain you?
- Point Duty tells you immediately and refers you to a criminal defence lawyer. On a hybrid charge this is a real possibility rather than a theoretical one, because the Crown's election is made on its own timetable and is not always known at the first appearance. My authority under Criminal Code s.802.1 ends at that election — I cannot continue on the matter, and any representative who tells you otherwise has the rule wrong. The disclosure already obtained and reviewed goes with you to the lawyer who takes over, so that work is not repeated at your cost.
Can a paralegal get a criminal charge withdrawn?
- Yes. A withdrawal is the Crown's decision rather than the representative's, and it is reached the same way whoever argues for it: by reading the disclosure, identifying what the Crown cannot prove, and putting that position to the prosecutor. On summary matters within scope I conduct those resolution discussions with the Crown directly, and routes such as diversion, a peace bond under s.810, or a withdrawal on completion of conditions are frequently available to a first-time accused. No representative, paralegal or lawyer, can promise you a withdrawal, and you should be wary of one who does.
Will I still get a criminal record if a paralegal handles my case?
- The record follows the outcome, not the kind of representative. A finding of guilt on a summary charge creates a criminal record whether a paralegal or a lawyer argued the file. Withdrawals, peace bonds and absolute discharges do not create one; a conditional discharge creates a record that is removed after three years. On a first-time file the aim is one of those non-record outcomes — through Crown resolution, diversion where you are eligible, or a defence run at trial.
Kerlan McLean · Licensed Paralegal · Law Society of Ontario licence no. P00506
Verify this licence in the LSO Directory →
Sources: Criminal Code s.802.1 and s.787(1); Ontario Order in Council 1115/2019 (15 August 2019); Law Society of Ontario, Permitted Criminal Code Summary Conviction Offences for Regulated Agents. Last reviewed . General information, not legal advice.
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