In the case of serious offences the Identification of Criminals Act requires that the suspect be photographed and fingerprinted. If a decision is made to prosecute a person, the accused may be detained for trial or released on bail. If the trial is delayed, the Criminal Code provides for a review process which helps to hasten the process. In this sense, the prosecutor has immense discretionary power. The Criminal Code of Canada also recognizes the right of every accused person to a defence attorney.
Several Provinces have legal aid programmes to provide defence attorneys for indigents.
There are two separate court systems in Canada, the federal and provincial courts. The tiers are, from lowest up, provincial courts, county or district courts, and the Superior Court. The provincial courts deal with most criminal cases in Canada. Most Provinces have additional courts such as the justice of the peace, juvenile courts, and family courts. The court of last resort in Canada is the Federal Supreme Court of Canada.