Backgrounder

Bill C-13 - Strengthening and Updating the Criminal Law

Bill C-13 amends the Criminal Code to improve Canada’s criminal procedure and sentencing as well as clarifies court-related language rights provisions. The intent of the Act to amend the Criminal Code (criminal procedure, language of the accused, sentencing and other amendments) is to further modernize the criminal justice system and make it more efficient and effective. Some of the amendments make certain processes more effective through greater use of technology and by consolidating and rationalizing existing provisions.

Criminal Procedure: 

The amendments relating to criminal procedure provides for, among other things:

• the use of telecommunication to forward warrants to another jurisdiction for the purpose of endorsement and execution;
• changes that would assist in preserving the impartiality of jurors; and
• re-classifying the offence of possession of break and enter instruments into a dual procedure offence, which would allow the Crown to prosecute the offence either by indictment or by the quicker procedure of summary conviction. 

Sentencing:

Amendments related to sentencing provides for, among other things:

• greater protection of victims by giving the Court the power to order an offender not to communicate with identified persons while the offender is serving a jail term and making it an offence to fail to comply with the order;
• clarifications with respect to the application of impaired driving penalties;
• an increase of the maximum fine that can be imposed for a summary conviction offence from $2,000 to $5,000, an amount that has not been updated in more than 20 years; and
• the forfeiture of a computer and other things used in relation to the offence when a person is convicted of luring a child by means of a computer system.

Language of the Accused:

Amendments relating to the language of the accused will, among other things:

• improve the means through which an accused is informed of the right to be heard by a judge, or a judge and jury, who speaks his or her official language or both official languages;
• codify the right to obtain a translation of the information or indictment upon request; and
• clarify that when an order is made for a bilingual trial, the accused has the right to have a judge, or judge and jury, as well as a prosecutor who speaks both official languages.

Department of Justice
June, 2008