Fighting Provincial Offences Charges:

Question: What should I do if I’m being charged with a provincial offence in Ontario and want to avoid the worst consequences?

Answer: If you have provincial offence allegations in Ontario, a paralegal at White Owl Legal can help you understand the process under Provincial Offences Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.33 and the Ontario Court (Provincial Division) rules, review your disclosure, assess defences and mitigation options, and prepare you for the matter so you know your next steps and potential outcomes;  although a provincial offence conviction does not create a criminal record, penalties can still be serious, including fines, licence or insurance impacts, and repeat-offender consequences;  for practical assistance and an Ontario-focused plan, call (289) 839-3075 at White Owl Legal today and start right away.

Provincial Offence Allegations as Being Charges Considered as Quasi-Criminal Matters

Provincial offences are quasi-crimes or regulatory offences in that they are violation of laws enacted to regulate individual conduct for the protection of society as a whole and they are prosecuted by a Prosecutor as an agent of the state, meaning as a representative of the people; however, unlike criminal offences, upon conviction of a provincial offence a person avoids establishing a criminal record.  With this said, although conviction for a provincial offence fails to establish a criminal record, the consequences for conviction of a provincial offence may still carry heavy penalties and consequences for the convicted person.

The Provincial Offences Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.33, as well as the Rules of the Ontario Court (Provincial Division) in Provincial Offences Proceedings, R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 200, provide the procedural law that guides the process by which offences within numerous substantive law statutes are prosecuted.  The range in matters falling under the purview of provincial offences is very broad.  Concerns involving provincial offences include: