Rarely Applied Revenue Stripping Provision Results in Huge Fines
A large number of regulatory offences are subject to so called “revenue stripping” provisions. Their purpose is to authorize justices to increase fines imposed on convicted defendants by an amount…
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Is it an Accident? Or a Crime?
The June 20th conviction of a Montreal driver for two counts each of dangerous driving causing death and criminal negligence causing death, highlights once again the difficulty in distinguishing crimes…
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Lac-Mégantic Criminal Charges: How is the Montreal Maine & Atlantic Railway Exposed to Conviction?
Criminal prosecutions of corporations are rare in Canada. The police and Crown appear to prefer the prosecution of individuals, reflecting, perhaps, a shared belief that the conviction and punishment of…
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Regulatory Modernization Act: The Ontario Court of Justice Relies on Multiple Previous Convictions Under the EPA to Impose a Rare Continuous Jail Sentence for Workplace Safety Offences
The Regulatory Modernization Act (RMA) was enacted by the legislature in 2007. Under section 15, it permits the Crown to request a more severe penalty for convictions under a provincial…
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Rowbotham Orders: An Alberta Court Orders a Securities Act Prosecution Stayed Until the Crown Agrees to Pay for the Defendant’s Defence
For over twenty years, Canadian courts have been prepared to order the Crown to fund the cost of retaining a lawyer to defend an unrepresented defendant at trial. The basis…
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Environmental Liability: The Risk of Ignoring the Reasonable Advice of Your Consultant
I recently came across the decision of the B.C. Provincial Court in R. v. Mission Western Developments. This was a Fisheries Act prosecution in which the Crown alleged that the…
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