On a defence motion in a murder prosecution, the court considered whether a court-ordered mental disorder assessment report had to be disclosed immediately to the Crown under s. 672.2(4) of the Criminal Code.
Relying on the fair trial rationale recognized in prior Ontario authority, the court held that strict compliance with the provision should yield where immediate disclosure would impair the accused's ability to decide whether to advance an NCR defence.
The report was ordered to be delivered only to defence counsel and not filed with the court or disclosed to the Crown at that stage.
If the accused later intends to rely on the report or raise capacity or NCR, disclosure and filing must occur at least 60 days before trial.
