How Bail Works in Ontario: A Guide for Families

By Robb MacDonald · Updated 6 October 2026

In Ontario, a person held after arrest must be brought before a justice within 24 hours where one is available. At the bail hearing the Crown usually has to justify detention. For some charges the accused has to justify release instead. Either way, the release plan, and especially the surety, is what the court weighs most.

What happens in the first 24 hours after an arrest?

Police can release someone from the station with a promise to come to court, or hold them for a bail hearing. If they hold them, section 503 requires that the person be taken before a justice within 24 hours, or as soon as possible if no justice is available in that time.

The person in custody has the right to speak to a lawyer, and police have to give them a reasonable chance to do it. If you are the one getting the phone call, the most useful thing you can do is get a lawyer's name to them and start thinking about who could be a surety.

A bail hearing does not have to go ahead on the first day. Either side can ask for an adjournment, but under section 516 the court cannot put it over for more than three clear days without the accused's consent. A short adjournment to line up the right surety is often worth more than a rushed hearing that fails.

Where are bail hearings held in Toronto?

Adult bail hearings in Toronto's Ontario Court of Justice are heard at the Toronto Regional Bail Centre, 2201 Finch Avenue West. Most are in front of a justice of the peace, not a judge. Murder and a few other offences are the exception: bail for those can only come from a Superior Court judge, which our article on bail in homicide and violent crime cases covers.

Families can usually attend. Sureties should plan to be there in person, with identification, because they will probably be called to testify.

Who has to prove what at a bail hearing?

In most cases the Crown has to show why the person should be detained, or why the conditions it wants are needed. That is the starting point under section 515, and the court is supposed to choose the least onerous form of release that will work. The Supreme Court called this the ladder principle in R. v. Antic, 2017 SCC 27.

For a list of charges the burden flips. This is called a reverse onus, and the accused has to show why detention is not justified. The list includes an offence allegedly committed while already on bail, many firearms offences, and assault or sexual assault involving choking or strangling. It also covers violence against an intimate partner by someone with a prior conviction for it, and a breach of bail while on release.

The July 2026 bail reforms made this harder. A reverse-onus accused now has to clearly demonstrate that the release plan addresses the risks they pose. The list itself got longer too. It now includes home invasions, violent extortion and some car thefts. A third violent indictable offence triggers it, and so does a repeat weapons-violence offence within ten years. And for reverse-onus cases, the ladder principle no longer applies.

What does the court weigh?

Section 515(10) gives three grounds for detention, and the hearing is organized around them.

The first is whether the person will come to court. Ties to the community matter here: a stable address, work or school, family nearby.

The second is public safety, including the safety of any complainant or witness. The question is whether there is a substantial likelihood the person will commit an offence or interfere with the case if released. Most surety evidence is aimed at this ground.

The third is public confidence in the administration of justice. The court looks at the apparent strength of the case, how serious the offence is, whether a firearm was involved, and the potential sentence. Since July 2026 it can also consider the number and gravity of other outstanding charges. In R. v. St-Cloud, 2015 SCC 27, the Supreme Court said this ground is not reserved for rare cases, and it now comes up most often in serious violent charges.

What does it mean to be a surety?

A surety is a person who agrees to supervise the accused while on bail and pledges an amount of money as a promise that they will. Usually no money changes hands at the start. Ontario courts generally take a promise to pay rather than a cash deposit, and the Code tells them to prefer that where the surety has assets that could be recovered.

The job is real, and the court will ask whether you can actually do it. Expect questions about how well you know the accused, what you know about the charges and any record, where the person will live, who else is in the home, your work hours, and what you would do if a condition were broken. The honest answer to that last one is that you would call the police. A surety who can't say that out loud will not be approved.

If the accused breaches bail, the court can order the surety to pay some or all of the pledged amount. A surety who no longer wants the responsibility can apply to be relieved of it, and the accused then goes back into custody unless a new surety steps in.

There is one new rule families should know about. Since July 2026, a court cannot name a person as a surety if they were convicted of an indictable offence in the past ten years, unless it is satisfied that no other suitable surety is available and that it is in the interests of justice.

What conditions can be imposed, and what happens if one is broken?

Common conditions include living at a named address, a curfew or house arrest, no contact with the complainant or certain people, staying away from places, no weapons, and reporting. They are supposed to be necessary to address a real risk and no more onerous than that. The Supreme Court made the point in R. v. Zora, 2020 SCC 14: every condition is a fresh way to be charged, so a court should not add conditions as a matter of routine.

Breaking a condition is a criminal offence under section 145, separate from the original charge. It can also lead to the bail being cancelled. And because a breach while on release is on the reverse-onus list, the next bail hearing starts with the burden on the accused. If a condition is unworkable, the fix is to vary it, by agreement with the Crown or by court application, not to ignore it.

What if bail is denied?

The accused can apply to a Superior Court judge for a bail review under section 520. A review is not a second try at the same hearing. It usually needs an error in the original decision or a material change, such as a new and stronger surety. Where someone stays detained, the jailer must apply for a detention review once 90 days have passed, and R. v. Myers, 2019 SCC 18, held that the judge has to ask whether continued detention is still justified, including whether the case is moving.

This is why the first hearing matters so much. A plan that is put together properly the first time is far easier to win on than a review after a loss.

How families can help right now

• Write down where the person can live, who else lives there, and whether anyone in the home has a record.
• Think about who could be a surety and whether they can be at the bail centre in person.
• Gather proof of address, a letter from an employer or school, and a rough idea of the surety's assets.
• Do not discuss the facts of the case with the person in custody. Calls from jail are recorded and can be used as evidence.

Robb MacDonald has practised criminal defence for more than twenty years and handles bail hearings across Toronto and the GTA. He earned his J.D. at Queen's University in 2006, was called to the Ontario bar in 2007, and trained under Edward Greenspan QC. He is a two-time provincial advocacy champion (Arnup Cup, OTLA Cup) and is in court about five days a week. Every Ontario lawyer is regulated by the Law Society of Ontario.

If someone you love is waiting for a bail hearing, call (416) 315-1505 or email rm@lawintoronto.com. The office is at 130 Spadina Ave. #606, Toronto, ON M5V 2L4, and Robb answers day and night. You can also request a confidential consultation.