OTTAWA: The next hearing on Canadian pop star Justin Bieber's assault charge for striking a limousine driver on the back of the head was set for May 12, court officials said Monday.

The troubled celeb was not in court for the routine pretrial hearing, nor were the throngs of teenage girls that showed up last month hoping for a glimpse of their idol.

Instead, Bieber was represented by his lawyer and the proceedings wrapped up very quickly after prosecutors provided additional disclosures in the case.

The actual trial date has yet to be set.

Toronto police have accused Bieber of hitting a limousine driver “several times” over the back of the head. The car had picked him and five others up from a nightclub in the city in the early hours of December 30.