Traffic Tickets / Highway
Traffic Act, Ontario
The vast majority of people will never step foot inside a courthouse during their life except to attend traffic court. Traffic tickets in Ottawa, Toronto and across Ontario are given out in the dozens (and sometimes hundreds) every day.
Although we often think of traffic tickets as minor nuisances they often have very significant consequences.
Most traffic offences carry fines; some of them carry very stiff fines. However fines are nothing compared to losing your driver’s licence. And this is where traffic tickets in Ottawa (or elsewhere in Ontario) can be very significant.
- You can lose your driver’s licence if your licence is suspended as a result of being found guilty. Many very minor tickets have a 30 day suspension associated with them. When people pay the $200 fine, think that’s it, they are often shocked to learn that they cannot drive for a month. Some suspensions can even be imposed for up to two years.
- Some offences have an automatic suspension of 6 months such as if you are found guilty for a suspended licence.
- Your licence can be suspended for unpaid fines. Even that 45$ ticket that you lost could suspend your licence.
- Your licence can be suspended for too many demerit points. Many people find they need a lawyer to deal with demerit points in Ottawa because once they hit 9 points an automatic interview is triggered where your licence can be suspended.
- You have a G2 or G1 licence and you fail to meet certain criteria when dealing with a minor traffic ticket.
- You can no longer afford (or qualify for) insurance due to previous tickets.
Traffic offences in Ottawa and around Ontario come in two broad forms. There are the less serious “Part 1” offences which come in the form of a traffic ticket with a dollar value. Then there is the more serious “Part 3” offence which is like a criminal charge. For the Part 3 offences normally a person gets a yellow piece of paper that looks like a ticket, but in reality it is a summons to Court. For Part 3 offences you can even sometimes risk going to jail.
Types of Part 1 Offences Are:
- Speeding 49km/h over the limit or less
- Going through a red light without stopping
- Going through an amber light without stopping
- Following too closely
- Careless Driving (where the circumstances are less serious)
- Stop Signs, Seatbelts, Handheld devices, other rules of the road
- Fail to drive in a marked lane, or unsafe lane change
Types of Part 3 Offences Are:
- Careless Driving (where the circumstances are more serious)
- Driving With a Suspended Licence / Drive Under Suspension
- Driving without Insurance / Drive No Insurance
- Stunt Driving and Racing (which includes speeding 50km/h over the limit or more)
If you find yourself going to the Ottawa Provincial Offences Court at 100 Constellation Crescent or to any POA Courthouse in Ontario, you should enlist the help of a lawyer or paralegal with experience fighting these offences.If you are located in Ottawa, Toronto, Brockville, Cornwall, Pembroke or anywhere in Ontario, Dynamic Legal Solutions can help you find a lawyer or paralegal to fight your case.
Click here to ask a question which will be responded to by a lawyer who practices in Ontario and Quebec in this area of the law.