Assistant Crown Attorney

ELIGIBILITY FOR THIS COMPETITION IS RESTRICTED TO STEP 1 CANDIDATES INCLUDING OPS ALOC AND OCAA LAWYERS living or working within 125 km of this location. Note: Eligible lawyers from outside the Area of Search may apply but will not be entitled to relocation or travel expenses for the transfer as set out below.

Step 1: All regular/fixed-term OCAA and ALOC lawyers on staff, current Redeployment List Members and current Articling Student Hireback Pool Members.
Step 2: In the absence of qualified applicants at Step 1 the competition may be reposted so that external applicants or non-members of the above-mentioned groups would then be eligible to apply.

The Ministry of the Attorney General, Criminal Law Division, is seeking an Assistant Crown Attorney for the Oshawa (Durham Region) Crown Attorney's Office to perform prosecutorial and administrative duties.

The Criminal Law Division is a large geographically dispersed operation with approximately 1900 staff who help protect community and personal safety through prosecution of offences across the province.

The Ministry of the Attorney General's vision is to create an innovative, sustainable and responsive justice system that inspires public confidence and upholds the Rule of Law; a necessary precondition for a just society. The Criminal Law Division has a responsibility to ensure public safety, through the effective and efficient prosecution of crime. The prosecution of crime is the core business of the division and is a non-discretionary essential service required to guarantee basic public safety and security.

OPS Commitment to Diversity, Inclusion, Accessibility, and Anti-Racism:

We are committed to build a workforce that reflects the communities we serve and to promote a diverse, anti-racist, inclusive, accessible, merit-based, respectful and equitable workplace.

We invite all interested individuals to apply and encourage applications from people with disabilities, Indigenous, Black, and racialized individuals, as well as people from a diversity of ethnic and cultural origins, sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions.

Visit the OPS Anti-Racism Policy and the OPS Diversity and Inclusion Blueprint pages to learn more about the OPS commitment to advance racial equity, accessibility, diversity, and inclusion in the public service.

We offer employment accommodation across the recruitment process and all aspects of employment consistent with the requirements of Ontario's Human Rights Code. Refer to the "How to apply" section if you require a disability-related accommodation.

What can I expect to do in this role?

Duties Will Include:

• Preparing cases and conducting on a regular basis prosecutions, hearings, applications, motions, appeals and/or reviews on behalf of the Attorney General for criminal and quasi-criminal offences in the Ontario Court of Justice, Youth Court, Provincial Offences Court, Bail Court, including Weekend and Statutory Holiday (WASH) Court, and the Superior Court of Justice
• Providing legal support and advice to Justice Sector Partners, such as Police, Victim Witness, Probation and Parole, etc, as appropriate
• Performing case management duties to support the efficient prosecution of criminal matters, e.g. screening, disclosure, resolution meetings, and supporting the Region as required remotely via SCOPE
• Ensuring timely and comprehensive responses are made to all substantive, procedural and policy requirements in the criminal litigation process
• Developing and maintaining technical skills to be able to communicate and work effectively with computer technology and databases made available to professional staff
• Performing special justice-related projects and involvement in community programmes as requested
• Keeping informed on office/regional/divisional/provincial initiatives, protocols and directives and implementing them to ensure consistent practices within the justice system. e.g. Bail Best Practices Protocol, Criminal Modernization, Case Management Protocol, Indigenous People's Court and Domestic Violence Court Initiatives
• Establishing and maintaining professional relationships and working cooperatively with all members of the Criminal Law Division (management, colleagues and support staff) and with other participants in the justice system for the purpose of enhancing communication between the parties and improving the administration of justice
• Drafting indictments, examining Informations and other documents
• Assisting other counsel with prosecutions, research, etc.

How do I qualify?

Mandatory

• Membership in good standing as a lawyer with the Law Society of Ontario

Technical Legal Experience

• Demonstrated experience and expertise in conducting prosecutions in the Ontario Court of Justice (Criminal); Youth Court; Bail Court, including Weekend and Statutory Holiday (WASH) Court and the Superior Court of Justice
• Experience in prosecutions of a serious and complex nature, including jury trials
• Knowledge of the Criminal Code of Canada, Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, criminal law procedures, rules of evidence and case law
• Knowledge and understanding of the role and function of a prosecutor in the criminal justice system in Ontario
• Experience in case management duties to support the efficient prosecution of criminal matters (e.g. screening, disclosure and resolution meetings)

Interpersonal and Communication Skills

• Demonstrated judgment and analytical ability to determine appropriate legal remedies
• Demonstrated interpersonal, presentation and communication skills

Other Essential Skills

• Willingness and ability to travel to other court locations to support the prosecution team across the Central East Region and the Province as assigned
• Technical skills to work effectively with computer technology and databases made available to professional staff