Bill 47, Fairness for Road Users Act (Contraventions Causing Death or Serious Bodily Harm), 2025
Chamber
ontario
Stage
Introduced
This Ontario bill adds fines, jail time, and licence suspension for drivers who commit a traffic offence that causes death or serious injury.
Key Changes
- Creates a new Part in the Highway Traffic Act specifically for contraventions causing death or serious bodily harm
- Sets a minimum fine of $2,000 and a maximum fine of $50,000 for such offences
- Allows imprisonment of up to two years upon conviction
- Allows driver's licence or permit suspension of up to five years
- Applies whenever any Highway Traffic Act offence causes or contributes to causing a fatal or serious injury accident
- Takes effect immediately upon receiving Royal Assent
Gotchas
- The bill does not define 'serious bodily harm,' which may require courts to interpret the term, potentially leading to inconsistent application.
- The penalty of up to two years imprisonment places this offence at the boundary of provincial and federal jurisdiction — sentences of two years or more are served in federal institutions, while under two years are served provincially.
- The bill applies when a person 'causes or contributes to' an accident, meaning partial fault may be sufficient for conviction, which is a relatively broad standard.
- These penalties exist alongside, not instead of, other potential charges under the Criminal Code of Canada (e.g., dangerous driving causing death), so a person could face both provincial and federal charges for the same incident.
- The licence suspension is discretionary ('may be suspended'), not mandatory, meaning judges have flexibility but outcomes could vary.
Who's Affected
- Drivers who commit traffic violations that result in death or serious injury to others
- Victims and families of people killed or seriously injured in traffic accidents
- Ontario courts and prosecutors who will handle these new charges
- Insurance companies that may be affected by conviction records
Vibes
0 responses
Gotchas
- The bill does not define 'serious bodily harm,' which may require courts to interpret the term, potentially leading to inconsistent application.
- The penalty of up to two years imprisonment places this offence at the boundary of provincial and federal jurisdiction — sentences of two years or more are served in federal institutions, while under two years are served provincially.
- The bill applies when a person 'causes or contributes to' an accident, meaning partial fault may be sufficient for conviction, which is a relatively broad standard.
- These penalties exist alongside, not instead of, other potential charges under the Criminal Code of Canada (e.g., dangerous driving causing death), so a person could face both provincial and federal charges for the same incident.
- The licence suspension is discretionary ('may be suspended'), not mandatory, meaning judges have flexibility but outcomes could vary.
Summary
Bill 47 amends Ontario's Highway Traffic Act to create new penalties for drivers who, while already breaking a traffic law, cause an accident that kills or seriously injures someone. Currently, the Highway Traffic Act does not have a specific penalty provision that links a traffic offence directly to causing death or serious bodily harm in this way. This bill fills that gap. Under the new rules, a convicted person could face a fine between $2,000 and $50,000, up to two years in prison, or both. Their driver's licence or permit could also be suspended for up to five years. The penalties apply when a person is committing any offence under the Highway Traffic Act — such as speeding, running a red light, or distracted driving — and that offence causes or contributes to a fatal or serious injury accident. The bill was introduced by MPP Jennifer K. French and is intended to make consequences more proportionate when traffic violations lead to the most serious outcomes — death or serious bodily harm to another person.
Automatically generated from bill text using Claude
Vibes
0 responses