Ontario’s official daily court lists show cases scheduled for the current day and the next court day, including the case name, time, courtroom, and reason for appearance. For Toronto civil, family, and Divisional Court matters, use the Ontario Courts Public Portal instead. Follow your summons or court notice if the online listing differs.
If you need to check when or where an Ontario court matter will be heard, start with the province’s official online services rather than a third-party case database. The right service now depends partly on where the case is being heard and what type of proceeding it is.
| What you need | Where to look | Key detail |
|---|---|---|
| Today’s or next court day’s Ontario hearing | Official Ontario hearing-list service | Shows the time, location, reason for appearance, and other basic details |
| Toronto civil, family, Small Claims, or Divisional Court hearing | Ontario Courts Public Portal | Toronto moved to this system on October 14, 2025 |
| A broader active case search | Ontario online court case search | Can show the next hearing date and other case information |
| A case missing from the online schedule | Relevant courthouse | Court staff can confirm scheduling information |
How Ontario daily court lists work
Ontario’s online schedule covers upcoming proceedings in the Superior Court of Justice and the Ontario Court of Justice. Depending on the case, you may see the party or case name, hearing time, room number, reason for the appearance, and planned method of attendance.
The service now provides information for two court days. At about 8:00 a.m., the current day’s information is updated, the previous court day drops off, and the following court day is added. The information may also change later in the day.
That matters if you checked the schedule the night before. A courtroom, attendance method, or other listing detail can change, so check again before leaving for court.
For Ontario Court of Justice criminal matters, you may also see a Docket Line number. It helps court staff and duty counsel locate the matter in their working dockets. It does not tell you the order in which cases will be called. Our related guide, Probation in Canada, goes further into this.
Toronto uses a different system for several case types
A major change took effect on October 14, 2025. Civil, family, and Divisional Court appearances heard in Toronto stopped appearing on the older listing website and moved to the Ontario Courts Public Portal.
Ontario’s Ontario Courts Public Portal currently covers 6 Toronto-region case types: civil proceedings, family matters, Small Claims Court, bankruptcy, enforcement, and Divisional Court proceedings. Criminal case searches in Toronto continue through Ontario’s other case-search service.
If your matter involves a civil lawsuit, Lawverra’s guide to the Ontario Rules of Civil Procedure explains the stages of filing, deadlines, and the Superior Court process. For lower-value disputes, the Small Claims Court Ontario guide covers the separate Small Claims procedure.
How to find your hearing
Searching takes only a few minutes when you know the court location.
- Open the official Ontario hearing-list website, or use the Ontario Courts Public Portal for the Toronto case types described above.
- Select the courthouse or region where the matter is scheduled.
- Choose the appropriate case category when the service asks for it.
- Look for the party name or case information and confirm the hearing date.
- Check the courtroom, time, reason for appearance, and method of attendance.
- Recheck the information close to the hearing because online schedules can change.
If you need information beyond the current or next court day, use Ontario’s broader online case-search service. It can provide information such as the court location, case title, file or Information number, and the next scheduled event, when available.
Why your case may be missing
An absent listing does not necessarily mean your appearance was cancelled.
Ontario says several types of matters may not appear online. These can include proceedings added after the schedule was posted, matters dealt with in writing, cases restricted from public access, and certain youth- or child-related proceedings. Weekend and statutory-holiday criminal schedules are also not published through the regular service. We break this down further in Birth Certificate Ontario.
Provincial Offences Act matters, such as many Highway Traffic Act proceedings, generally do not appear there either. Those cases are usually handled through the applicable municipal Provincial Offences court.
Most importantly, a missing online entry does not cancel a summons or another direction requiring you to attend. The official service warns that failing to appear can lead to serious consequences, including a warrant, dismissal of a case, or the proceeding continuing without you.
Contact the courthouse if your notice says you must attend and you cannot find the matter online.
What “method of attendance” tells you
The schedule may state that a hearing will be held in person, by videoconference, by telephone, or in a hybrid format. Do not assume that seeing a remote option means you can choose how to appear.
The courts advise participants to confirm the applicable attendance rules and any directions issued in their own case.
This distinction is especially important in criminal proceedings. Someone attending a bail matter may face different requirements from a person observing it. Lawverra’s guide to bail in Canada explains the broader release and court process.
Family cases can involve their own orders and attendance requirements. Lawverra’s restraining order guide explains how Ontario family-court protection orders differ from criminal-law peace bonds.
Public access does not remove publication restrictions
Court proceedings are generally open to the public, but an online listing is not permission to publish everything connected with a case.
The listing service warns that it may not show complete details of publication or disclosure bans, particularly when a restriction was recently imposed. Anyone publishing information remains responsible for confirming and following any applicable ban.
That distinction matters for journalists, bloggers, and anyone posting case details online. Seeing a name or hearing on a public schedule does not override a court order or statutory restriction.
What to do if you need more than the schedule
The online hearing schedule is designed to answer a narrow question: when and where is an upcoming matter being heard?
For a future date outside the displayed period, a past proceeding, detailed case records, or uncertainty about an appearance, use the provincial case-search tool or contact the court office. Ontario specifically directs users who cannot find the information they need to the courthouse where the case was or is being heard.
Do not rely on a cached search result, an old screenshot, or an unofficial docket when attendance matters. Check the official source close to the hearing.
Check the official source before you attend
Online hearing schedules are useful, but they are not a substitute for a summons, a court order, or a direction from court staff. Use the official Ontario service to check your appearance, confirm the attendance method, and verify the information again near the hearing date.
If anything conflicts with the notice you received, contact the courthouse before assuming your appearance has changed.
Frequently asked questions
The service updates at about 8:00 a.m. each court day and can change again during the day. It displays the current court day and the following court day.
Yes. The official service now provides listings for both the current and next court day. Weekend and statutory holiday schedules may be handled differently and are not part of the regularly published criminal listings.
Attend if a summons, court order, or other official notice requires you to appear. Then contact the courthouse to confirm the case details. An online omission does not cancel your obligation to attend.
Use Ontario’s online court-case search for information beyond the two-day hearing schedule. If the information is unavailable there, contact the court office handling the matter.
Provincial Offences Act matters generally are not included in the Ontario Court of Justice online schedule. Contact the appropriate municipal Provincial Offences court for those cases.
