When a young person is accused of breaking the law in Ontario, the case is generally not handled under the same rules that apply to adults. Instead, it falls under the Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA), a federal law that creates a separate framework for how young people are dealt with by police, Crown prosecutors, and the courts. This page introduces the YCJA at a general level and links to more detailed pages on specific topics. It is general information only and does not replace legal advice about a specific young person's situation.
The youth justice system shares some features with the adult system, since both ultimately flow from the Criminal Code and other federal offences. But the YCJA layers additional principles, procedures, and protections on top of that, reflecting the view that young people should generally be treated differently from adults when they are accused of an offence.
Who the YCJA Applies To
The YCJA generally applies to young people who were at least 12 years old but under 18 years old at the time of an alleged offence. Children under 12 cannot generally be charged with a criminal offence in Canada; concerns about a younger child's behaviour are generally addressed through other systems, such as child welfare services, rather than the criminal justice system. Once a young person turns 18, they generally move into the adult system for any new alleged offences, though a case that began while someone was under 18 can continue under the YCJA even after they turn 18, and in some circumstances a young person can be sentenced as an adult for very serious offences. A lawyer can confirm exactly how these age rules apply to a specific case.
Why the Youth System Is Different
The YCJA is generally built around the idea that young people are still developing and have a reduced level of maturity compared to adults, and that the justice system should reflect this. Rather than treating accountability and rehabilitation as competing goals, the Act generally tries to hold young people accountable in a way that is proportionate to both the seriousness of the offence and their reduced maturity, while also emphasizing rehabilitation and reintegration into the community, family, and school life.
The YCJA also generally reflects a preference for dealing with less serious matters outside the formal court process wherever appropriate, through what the Act calls extrajudicial measures and extrajudicial sanctions, discussed in more detail below. The idea is that timely, meaningful intervention early on, and not necessarily formal prosecution, is generally considered more effective for many young people, particularly first-time or less serious offending.
This general preference for alternatives to formal court proceedings does not mean every matter involving a young person is resolved informally. More serious allegations, or situations involving a young person's prior history, are still generally prosecuted through youth court. A lawyer can advise on how a specific matter is likely to be handled.
Extrajudicial Measures and Sanctions
Two related tools sit outside the formal court process under the YCJA. Extrajudicial measures are generally informal responses used by police or Crown counsel for less serious, often first-time allegations, and can include an informal warning, a more formal police caution, or a referral to a community program. Extrajudicial sanctions are a more formal alternative, generally used when an informal measure would not be adequate given the seriousness of the offence or a young person's history. A sanction generally requires the Crown to be satisfied there is enough evidence to proceed, and requires the young person to accept responsibility for their behaviour and agree to participate.
Both tools are generally meant to hold a young person accountable without generating a formal finding of guilt, and each has its own implications for whether any record is created and how long it can generally be accessed. See young people accused of offences and youth records for more detail.
How Youth Court Differs From Adult Court
Beyond the emphasis on extrajudicial alternatives, the YCJA generally changes how a case proceeds once it does reach court. Young people generally benefit from robust rights to consult a lawyer, parents or guardians are generally notified when a young person is arrested or detained, hearings generally take place in a separate youth court, and a young person's identity is generally protected from publication in most cases. Sentencing also follows a distinct framework, with a general presumption against custody and a range of youth-specific sentencing options. Each of these topics is covered in more depth on the pages linked below.
Explore This Section
Frequently Asked Questions
What age range does the Youth Criminal Justice Act cover?
The YCJA generally applies to young people who were 12 to 17 years old at the time of an alleged offence. Children under 12 cannot generally be charged criminally in Canada.
Is the youth justice system just a lighter version of the adult system?
Not exactly. It shares the same underlying offences under the Criminal Code and other federal laws, but it generally follows a distinct legislative framework with its own principles, procedures, and sentencing options, built around accountability that reflects a young person's reduced maturity.
Will a young person automatically avoid court?
No. The YCJA generally encourages the use of extrajudicial measures or sanctions for less serious matters where appropriate, but more serious allegations, or cases involving a young person's prior history, are still generally handled through the formal youth court process.
Do parents get told if their child is arrested?
Generally, yes. The YCJA generally requires police to notify a parent or guardian when a young person is arrested or detained. See parents and guardians for more detail.
Can a young person's name be published in the media?
Generally not. The YCJA generally imposes a publication ban on information that would identify a young person dealt with under the Act, subject to specific, generally narrow exceptions. See how youth court works for more detail.
Does a young person need their own lawyer, separate from their parents?
Yes. A lawyer represents the young person, not their parents, and a parent generally cannot waive the young person's legal rights on their behalf. See legal assistance for young people for more.
Does a youth record follow someone into adulthood?
Generally not in the same way an adult record does. Youth records are generally subject to specific, generally shorter access periods that vary by outcome and offence, after which the record generally becomes inaccessible, subject to exceptions. See youth records for detail.