Tickets

You’ve Received a Ticket

Information you’ll find on this page:

Options When You Receive a Ticket

Information you’ll find on this page:

  • The three (3) options you’ll have upon being issued a ticket.
  • What option you should select.
  • The steps to take, when reviewing your options.
  • The advantages in challenging your ticket(s) and opting for a trial to contest your ticket(s).
  • The time limits for submitting a request to have a trial to contest your ticket(s) (15 days)
  • Information concerning section 11 (b) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, in relation to your ticket(s) and your rights regarding a quick trial to contest your ticket(s).
  • Information concerning the Province of Ontario handing over authority of Municipalities in Ontario to ticket/fine motorists and then collecting those fines.
  • Information about the court rooms in Toronto and the City’s decision to add four (4) more in 2009.
  • Links and information regarding the Highway Traffic Act, the Charter,Application for Stay of Proceedings,Notice of Trial and Disclosure.

Ontario Provincial Offences Courts (Ontario Court of Justice)

Information you’ll find on this page:

  • Provincial Offences Act Courts throughout Ontario which deal with traffic related issues (see the one in your area).
  • There are a number of court rooms listed alphabetically from Barrie, up to and including Woodstock, Ontario.
  • Links are provided for as many of the Courts,  as are available.

Requesting a Trial

Information you’ll find on this page:

  • The process and procedures surrounding requesting a trial to challenge your ticket(s), including time limits.
  • Some discussion about filling out your request for trial, the “Notice of Intention To Appear sheet – form 7″ and what you should and should not include in this form.
  • Some discussion regarding the Charter and your right to a trial, to an Interpreter (in your mother tongue- your language) or Sign Language Interpreter (for deaf or hearing challenged).
  • Information surrounding time limits for requesting a trial, for The Court’s actually having your trial and what the Courts have to say about your Charter rights and the Supreme Court decisions which support these time limits and basic rights.
  • Links and information concerning the Charter of Rights and Freedoms (sections 7, 11(b), 11(d), 14 & 24), the Provincial Offences Act, the Supreme Court’s decision “Morin“, Victim Fine Surcharges, Notice of Trial and Appealing a Conviction or Sentence.

Right to Trial in French

Information you’ll find on this page:

Notice of Trial

Information you’ll find on this page:

  • What to do next, since this is just a written notice, confirming the date, time and location of your trial.
  • It is important to keep this document as you’ll need it to fill out your request for disclosure and you’ll need to copy it and place this in your Application for Stay of Proceedings motion.
  • There are Links to the Ontario Provincial Offences , to the Disclosure section and Disclosure Request Form and to the Charter and what to do next Prior to Trial.

Application for Stay of Proceedings

Information you’ll find on this page:

  • If your trial is scheduled 11 to 14 months, after you received your ticket, your charges should be stayed, meaning that the matter goes away, along with your ticket (s).
  • This page has the entire Application for Stay of Proceedings process/procedure laid out in three different formats, depending on what you use: .odt, .doc & .pdf – download the one you can use.
  • This page does a comprehensive review of Section 11(b) and Section 24 (1) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. There is a detailed explanation as to what your rights are with regard to a timely trial date to hear your charge(s) in relation to the ticket(s) you received.
  • There is a lot of discussion surrounding Supreme Court of Canada decisions:
    • Time Limit Guideline for trials (8-10 months – Morin) and the administrative intake period (see Askov)
  • How to put together this application (with the entire Application contained within this webpage).
  • Where your application must be delivered to:

Disclosure

Information you’ll find on this page:

  • If you don’t receive disclosure, your case should be thrown out.
  • Information on what “disclosure” is, with respect to a traffic court trial and discussion around this right and the importance of exercising this right, before and during every trial.
  • How your right to disclosure flows from section 7 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, section 46 of the Ontario Provincial Offences Act and Canada’s Supreme Court caselaw, in a decision called “Stinchcombe“.
  • A discussion of what happened when Crown Attorney’s and Prosecutor’s weren’t obliged under the law to provide disclosure to the defendant’s counsel and the ramifications associated with pre-Charter events (events unfolding prior to April 17, 1982).
  • The rules that the courts must now follow, when disclosure is requested by the defendant or his/her counsel.
  • What you should expect to receive when you’re fighting a ticket and you have requested “disclosure” from the Prosecutor’s office.
  • Your right, as a defendant, to make “full answer and defence” to a charge or set of charges.
  • How to request disclosure?
  • How long it should take, before you receive full disclosure?
  • What forms or documents you need to fill out for your disclosure request?
  • How far, in advance of the trial, should you submit your request?
  • What you should do if you have submitted your request for Disclosure and have not received it before the trial?
  • Some discussion regarding the Justice of the Peace’s/Judge’s duty to ensure that your rights, in accordance with section 7 of the Charter, are protected and guarded.
  • Links and information will be found for the following: Charter, Ontario Court of Appeal,  Provincial Offences Act, Request for Disclosure Form, Application for Stay of Proceedings, Canada’s Supreme Court decision “Stinchcombe”.

Prior to the Trial

Information you’ll find on this page:

The Players

Information you’ll find on this page:

Plea Bargaining

Information you’ll find on this page:

The Trial

Information you’ll find on this page:

  • What happens when I show up for Trial, what is the normal process that Occurs?
  • Plea Bargaining.
  • Examination-in-Chief (a description of the process and sample questions and answers.
  • What has to happen with the evidence of a Police Officer and what the Justice of the Peace  must do.
  • What a “Voir Dire” is and how it must be applied by the Justice of the Peace.
  • Cross-Examination of the Police Officer or any other of the Prosecutor’s witnesses.
  • Re-examination of the Prosecutor’s witnesses (after you have cross-examined the Prosecutor’s witnesses).
  • How to put in your case.
  • Rules you must apply to yourself, while being subjected to cross-examination.
  • Closing Arguments.

Reasons for Having My Ticket(s) Dismissed

Information you’ll find on this page:

Conviction Notice

Information you’ll find on this page:

Appealing a Conviction or Sentence

Information you’ll find on this page:

  • The procedures set out for filing an appeal, in accordance with section 135 of the Ontario Provincial Offences Act (the POA).
  • Appeals under Parts 1 and 2 of the POA – sections 135 to 138 inclusive.
  • What is an Appeal?
  • What are the grounds for an Appeal?
  • If you were found guilty and convicted, do you have a right to Appeal?
  • What if I lose my Appeal, does it end there?
  • Links - Provincial Offences Act, Demerit Point System, Insurance Rates.

Non-resident Fighting an Ontario Ticket

Information you’ll find on this page:

  • This applies to anyone living outside of Canada, outside of the Province, outside of the district – you can fight your ticket without even having to physically show up. This page provides the steps and the description of the Legislation.
  • Link – Provincial Offences Act (see section 6).

Set Fines and Victim Fine Surcharges

Information you’ll find on this page:

  • Fines and Community Safety Zone (higher fines) and Construction Zone Areas (higher fines).
  • A chart of typical fines, versus fines in Community Safety Zones and Construction Safety Zones.
  • Speeding ticket fines and how fines are calculated for speeding tickets.
  • A chart of typical fines for bicyclists, with the Victim Fine Surcharges built in, to provide an example of how these surcharges are applied.
  • In addition to fines, there are Victim Fine Surcharges and a section explaining what this means and a link to find out what surcharge will be applied to your ticket.
  • Fee for Late Payment of Fines and the consequences associated with fines not being paid on time (if you request a trial, you don’t have to pay any fine, unless your convicted).
  • When is a fine considered in “default”? Fee when fine is in default.
  • If I don’t pay my fine, can it affect my credit rating?
  • The schedule of all 16 towns, townships, Municipalities, Districts which are considered “Community Safety Zones” 24 hours a day, seven days a week and every month of the year.
  • Links -Highway Traffic Act, Victim Fine Surcharges, Provincial Offences  Act, Victims Bill of Rights, Ontario Regulation 510/99 (H.T.A).

Insurance Rates

Information you’ll find on this page:

  • The Effect of a Ticket on your Insurance Rates.
  • A ticket stays (if convicted) on your Insurance record for three (3) years versus only two (2) years for your demerit points with the Ministry of Transportation.
  • Outrageous profits that are made by private insurance companies in Ontario (ie- 673% in 2003 – Billions of dollars, 61.5% in 2004 or 4.2 Billion dollars).
  • The Insurance Bureau of Canada stopped reporting the obscene profits online after 2004.
  • How to submit a complaint against your insurance company.
  • Links – the Demerit Point System in Ontario, The Financial Services Commission of Ontario, The Insurance Bureau of Canada.
  • Auto Insurance Claims Forms (OCF Forms) – Download Forms.