4. Learn if you will have a contested bail hearing

Before you appear at your , your lawyer or  usually speaks to the Crown about your plan.

The Crown may agree to a consent release. This means the Crown agrees that you should get bail and what bail conditions you should have.

Even if the Crown agrees to your release, the judge or justice of the peace must still approve it before you're released. And your  might still have to .

If the judge or justice of the peace has concerns, you may be allowed to present another bail plan. Or they may decide not to release you.

Contested bail hearings

If the Crown does not think you should be released, or does not agree with your bail plan, you will have a contested bail hearing.

The Crown must convince the court that you should not be released based on 1 or more of the grounds of detention. Your bail plan must explain why it is safe to release you into the community.

The Crown and your lawyer both present why you should have certain conditions.

Reverse onus

Sometimes, you may need to convince the court that you should be released. This is called a reverse onus bail hearing. You will have a reverse onus bail hearing if you are charged with certain crimes or if you have a certain criminal history.

For example, you will have a reverse onus hearing if you're charged with:

not following your bail or
a crime that involves violence against your intimate partner and you have already been found guilty of a similar , even if you got a conditional or 
a serious crime that you committed while you were out on bail for a different serious crime
a serious crime where you used a gun, for example armed robbery or  with a weapon
most serious crimes that involve guns or drugs, for example drug or weapons trafficking, stealing guns, or having a gun illegally
a serious violent crime and you have already been  of 2 or more serious violent crimes