Ontario Highway Traffic Act Defence Lawyer Alexandria Cornwall Brockville L’Orignal

What are Highway Traffic Offences?

These are non-criminal offences that usually lead to fines rather than imprisonment, but which can have a significant adverse impact on driving privileges due to the administrative consequences of convictions. 

Why is Hiring a Lawyer to Fight your Highway Traffic Ticket Not Overkill?

The defence of highly traffic offences can be more complicated than some criminal charges. And loss of driving privileges for some people could have a more severe impact on their careers than would a minor criminal record.

Any highway traffic charge potentially threatens your continued ability to drive for work and social purposes. The more serious the accusations and more prior convictions on your record, the greater the threat. The Ontario Ministry of Transportation has a lot of discretion over whose licences they decide to pull and under what circumstances. While minimizing points is key, so is avoiding any convictions. 

By hiring a lawyer to defend you on your traffic ticket you'll get at least four key benefits.

1. Minimize your time wasted in court

You don't have to personally show up for court appearances, and don't necessarily even have to show up for your own trial, if you hire a lawyer.

2. Identify all prosecution weaknesses

We'll get complete disclosure for you of the prosecution's case, and conduct a probing analysis for any weakness.

3. Have someone negotiate for you who knows the system

Through negotiation with the prosecutor we may be able to secure the charge being completely dropped, or at least dropped to a lesser offence leading to a much lower penalty. 

4. Have someone fight for you at trial who is qualified to defend offences all the way up to murder

The basic rules of evidence and court procedure applicable to a murder trial aren't dramatically different than those applicable to a speeding trial. Knowing the ins and out of those rules and that procedure gives you a great advantage. You'll be acquitted at trial if the prosecution fails to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

How We Offer Reasonable All Inclusive Fixed Fees for Highway Traffic Tickets

Yes, you'll usually pay more for a lawyer to defend you on a ticket than you will for a non-lawyer agent/paralegal. But you might be surprised at how those lawyer fees can still be quite reasonable as compared to other types of higher court cases because ticket cases are less resource intensive. Highway traffic cases can require a lot of legal knowledge to successfully defend, but not necessarily a huge time commitment. When considering who to hire for your highway traffic defence, you've got to consider what you're getting for your money.

Lawyers will often have 10 years of post-secondary education and qualifying trainee experience prior to be called to the bar. So for those important ticket or other traffic cases, seriously consider hiring a lawyer. We'll give you a fixed fee quote shortly after you first contact us so that you can make an informed decision on what would be best for your defence. 

How to Fight Highway Traffic Act Offences: Top 3 Ticket Defences

1. There's a technical defect on the ticket

Contrary to popular opinion, minor defects like the date or the spelling of a name will not necessarily get a charge thrown out. You need a sophisticated approach to defects, like arguing that the wrong charge was laid, the charge wasn't sufficiently particularized so that you could understand what it is you are charged with, or that there are such a constellation of defects on the ticket that its validity is unsupportable. 

2. I didn't do it

Identification can be a live issue to argue at trial, as can whether any offence was committed at all. This kind of defence won't work where you personally are stopped driving in a speed trap that had working speed detection equipment. But where the allegations are more nuanced like whether you failed to yield or move over, there could be a good defence.

3. The prosecution has insufficient evidence

Betting on the charging officer not showing up at trial is not a sound defence strategy. Sure, there's always a hope, but the prosecution might just get an adjournment to a new date if there is a good reason the officer can't be present. Such a defence relies on luck, not strategy. 

Rather, you want to attack the core of what is in the prosecution's disclosure that you are entitled to receive prior to trial. Are the charging officer's notes detailed enough to credibly support that he remembers you and your offence? Are there third-party witnesses available to contradict the prosecution's evidence?