What to wear to court | GTAMotorcycle.com

What to wear to court

Boots

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I got rear ended a couple months ago and I have a court date to attend to this week as a witness to the event because the person who hit me got charged with careless driving.

My first question is do I have to go? I'm assuming that's a yes.

My second is what do I wear? this'll be my first time ever having to do this and I have 0 idea what's appropriate.
 
Dress shirt and slacks at minimum to look presentable. Whether it's right or not, if you look like a bag o shyte/ punk/ dooshbag you will not "appear" as believable/ solid witness. So basically, don't dress like me.

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Smart casual will suffice generally, especially if you are not the guilty one. Some dress in more as Joe mentioned - if I was defending against a charge myself I'd probably opt to dress up more, but as just a victim/witness I'd venture to say smart casual is more than enough. Definitely go in looking presentable though.

And yes, you need to be there if you've received a summons. Not showing may not go over well with the courts. It's also in your best interest in order to make sure the charge sticks and any benefits (medical and vehicle repairs etc) are not effected if the charge ended up getting dropped, or worse yet you somehow got implicated as being 50% at the fault by the defendants lawyer. That's a whole lot easier to have happen if you're not there as that witness.

It's really not a big deal...since you're not the one charged just show up, relax, and do what's asked of you. You'll probably end up spending more time sitting waiting than the actual time before the judge, assuming this is regular old traffic court which it probably is since it's careless, not dangerous.
 
Are nice dark jeans and a dress shirt considered presentable

Sent from my raven
 
No dress pants or at least casual pants? As said, since you are only a witness, not as big a deal, but if you can... dress casual would be the least I'd do.
 
Are nice dark jeans and a dress shirt considered presentable

Sent from my raven

Dress shirt with a clean and not torn/stained set of jeans would be considered smart casual to me, yes. Others may disagree on the jeans, but the dress shirt shows you made an effort vs the many others who you'll see there dressed in far less. Many make no effort at all and show up in street clothing.
 
No dress pants or at least casual pants?

Like I said, some will disagree.

Honestly, a set of Khakis or something like that probably isn't a bad idea vs blue jeans. Not expensive to pickup if you don't have any, either...heck, tons of them on the racks at Value Village for that matter. :)
 
To answer the other question no you don't have to go but the chances are good of the charges being dropped without a witness.

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I'd suggest that a more refined question is "what penalties or other impacts are given to those who fail to appear to a subpoena as a witness in provincial court". I don't know the answer, but then again, I would appear unless there was a strong compelling reason, and if so I would contact the crown to advise them of my situation.

Rear-ended? This may be suitable attire:

brady_bunch_episode_zpsy5btpno1.jpg
 
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Five pop up collars and don't skimp on the quality hair product. I would not show up unless I had received and signed something like a registered letter.
 
To answer the other question no you don't have to go

If he received a summons to witness...yes, actually he does. Failure to show could actually result in a warrant for his arrest. And jail time isn't out of the realm of possibility of the judge is a hardass.

The very fact he got a summons means the offender probably hired a good lawyer to try to get him out of the charge and the crown is fighting it vigorously.

OP, be careful whom you take advice from online. It's very much in your best interest to attend, on several fronts.
 
OP, dress smartly as mentioned, you "can" wear jeans, but you "present" better if your wearing slacks, as PP said go to value village for $6.99 your set. The MOST important thing is make sure everything is clean and wrinkle free, (throw your shirt and slacks in the dryer for 10 minutes, no need to iron.

As for do you have to go. If you have been served a document to attend the hearing then YES you MUST attend. I will respectfully disagree with PP on the possibility of "jail time", (technically it could happen, just as you "can" be charged with speeding for doing 1 km/h over, but you would have greater odds at winning the Lotto Max three weeks in a row..lol) Having said that, the crown, and or the JP, (remember this is traffic court so no judge), may take the position if you can't exert the effort to show up in a case where someone has been charged for hitting you then why the hell should they exert the effort to convict the other driver.

It is also highly unlikely that you failing to attend will have "dire" consequences on your claim for benefits, etc. Your adjuster has many more pressing items n their plate than checking to see if you showed up to testify. The fault is assigned via the FDR, NOT the outcome of the charges against the other driver. Fault, (from the insurer's point of view), was assigned within 24 hours of the claim being opened, they don't wait months for a case to go to court to determine who is or isn't at fault.

Upon arriving, (it is best to show up approx 30 minutes BEFORE the time specified on the court document), present yourself to the police officer, (if you recognize him/her), that did the investigation. If you don't see him/her, then present yourself to the crown and advise that your there. If you provided a written statement, ask if you can see it to refresh your memory of the events. They will let you read it over, take your time, note things such as time/date of collision, what the road conditions were like and was it sunny, dark, raining etc, that day. The copper will also likely speak to you may make small talk, (just to help you relax, I used to do this with witnesses I had at trials). You can then sit and they will go thru all the pleas for the day then begin trials for anyone who is pleading guilty, (or setting dates for future hearings).

The defense attorney, or paralegal representing the other driver may approach you. They may ask questions of what you recall etc. Answer their questions a s best you can BUT keep it brief and to the point, the more you talk the more opportunity you present for them to pick apart your story. Relax, and watch the show. You "may" especially if there is to be more than one witness be asked as the trial begins to exit the court room. If you are sit outside and listen for your name to be called on the intercom. Do NOT discuss details of the case with anyone other than the crown, the police officer involved, and the defense counsel. If someone asks what your there for just state I'm a witness, and leave it at that. If the other driver approaches you, be polite but refrain from ANY conversations beyond that.

It seems daunting but afterwards you will say well that was a breeze. Good luck
 
As others have said, you have been summoned to court and can be charged if you don't show. So, yes you have to attend.

If you were the defendant I'd advise you to suit up but as a witness it is totally irrelevant. Wear whatever you are comfortable in. It does not matter. If it were me I'd show up in shorts and a t-shirt as the weather is looking good this week.


I got rear ended a couple months ago and I have a court date to attend to this week as a witness to the event because the person who hit me got charged with careless driving.

My first question is do I have to go? I'm assuming that's a yes.

My second is what do I wear? this'll be my first time ever having to do this and I have 0 idea what's appropriate.
 
Thanks to all the responses. The whole thing was caught on dash cam by the way
https://youtu.be/oVYZw75awvo

So if credibility is the reason for wearing slacks instead of jeans I might just stick with the jeans since the video tells it all


Sent from my raven
 
If he received a summons to witness...yes, actually he does. Failure to show could actually result in a warrant for his arrest. And jail time isn't out of the realm of possibility of the judge is a hardass.

The very fact he got a summons means the offender probably hired a good lawyer to try to get him out of the charge and the crown is fighting it vigorously.

Its traffic court, therefore not a judge, just a "justice of the peace", or JP, and I'm not sure if a JP can issue a warrant for arrest (there are no professional requirements for becoming a JP in Ontario, last I checked, all you need to do is "know someone").

As a witness, there is no need to follow any sort of dress code. Court in general has no requirement, (except to be decent LOL) but it's a good idea to dress formally if defending yourself in a trial.
 
If you have been properly summonsed failure to appear is a criminal matter.
A material witness warrant can be asked for and granted by the prosecutor.
This is rare for a traffic case, but still possible. If you don't appear, the charges will most likely be dropped.
The dash cam evidence is not admissible unless the person who took it attends in court to qualify it.
 
Wear what makes you feel comfortable for the setting you are going. If you wear a suit and end up tugging at your collar or sweating, then don't wear one.

You are a witness and appearances matter but, what you have to say is more important. If you look like a slob and come off as a someone that doesn't care, that will show.

So put some effort into your appearance.
 
I would say dress "nice" but know you may show up there and they say, " we did not need you, it was settled out of court 3 weeks ago", happened to the Missus this year
 
Geez...grown men don't even know how to dress themselves presentably these days. Wtf has the world come to??
 
Geez...grown men don't even know how to dress themselves presentably these days. Wtf has the world come to??
I'm 22 and I've never gone to court so, yeah I definitely don't know what's expected.



I don't wanna look like an absolute idiot coming in a suit which is what I would have otherwise done. Even in jeans and a dress shirt I'm the best dressed here
 
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