Integrated Criminal Court Survey (ICCS)

Backlog index of information case, number

Backlog Index refers to the number of cases initiated divided by the number of final decisions (the inverse of the completion rate). A Backlog Index greater than 1.0 suggests courts were unable to close as many cases as were initiated, creating a backlog in cases. A Backlog Index less than 1.0 suggests that courts were able to close more cases than were initiated, and able to successfully clear away some of the existing backlog.

Information case combines all charges against a single accused that are laid under a single Information. An Information is a written document that is sworn under oath, typically by a police officer or Crown counsel, to a justice of the peace that alleges a person has committed a criminal offence. The laying of the Information initiates criminal proceedings against an accused. The Workload Time Series Database uses the Information case definition. In standard Integrated Criminal Court Survey (ICCS) reporting, the ICCS case definition is used to report on completed cases only. This ICCS definition uses an approach that links person-charges where they share key dates including date of offence, first appearance date, and final decision date.

The data for this variable are reported using the following measurements:

• Decimal number