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 Criminal Law for Legal Professionals, 3rd Edition

CHAPTER 3
The Criminal Code
 Criminal Law for Legal Professionals, 3rd Edition 3

Learning Outcomes
• After reading this chapter, you should be able to:

• Give a brief explanation of the history of criminal law in

Canada and the development of the Criminal Code of Canada
• Demonstrate a basic understanding of the structure of the
Criminal Code
• Describe the general classification of offences in the Criminal
Code and give simple examples
• Explain the limits of a paralegal practice in the representation
of clients charged with criminal offences

Copyright © 2021 Emond Montgomery Publications. All rights reserved.

 Criminal Law for Legal Professionals, 3rd Edition 4

History of the Code

• Originally, as it developed in England, criminal law was
common law
• By the 1800s, common law was being written into legislation
and passed as statute law by the British Parliament
• To date, England has no comprehensive criminal code

• The Criminal Code, 1892

• The first comprehensive code of criminal law in Canada
• Sir John A. Macdonald was adamant that the new country
should have a unified criminal law statute
• It was often still necessary to rely on the common law, but the
Code provided an orderly approach to Canadian criminal law

Copyright © 2021 Emond Montgomery Publications. All rights reserved.

 Criminal Law for Legal Professionals, 3rd Edition 5

Structure of the Code

• The Criminal Code contains both substantive criminal law
and procedural law
• The statute comprises well over 800 sections that are
grouped together according to subject matter
• The parts are numbered in Roman numerals and the
sections in Arabic numerals
• Example: Part III, section 87 provides that it is an offence to
point a firearm at another person without a lawful excuse

Copyright © 2021 Emond Montgomery Publications. All rights reserved.

 Criminal Law for Legal Professionals, 3rd Edition 6

Revisions to the Code

• When new offences are created, they are placed within a
part that contains similar offences
• To avoid renumbering, the new section is given the same
section number as the existing offence, followed by a
decimal point and an additional number
• For example, sections 249.2, 249.3, and 249.4

• If a new amendment cannot be accommodated by simply

adding new sections, a new part will be placed near an
existing part to which it relates
• For example, part II.1

Copyright © 2021 Emond Montgomery Publications. All rights reserved.

 Criminal Law for Legal Professionals, 3rd Edition 7

Classification of Offences
• Indictable Offences
• The most serious offences; carry the highest penalties

• Summary Conviction Offences

• The least serious offences
• Paralegals are permitted by section 802.1 to represent only
those persons charged with some specific summary
conviction offences
• Hybrid or Crown Option Offences
• Offences that may be prosecuted as either summary
conviction offences or indictable offences

Copyright © 2021 Emond Montgomery Publications. All rights reserved.

 Criminal Law for Legal Professionals, 3rd Edition 8

Key Terms

• hybrid or Crown option offences, 30

• indictable offences, 30

• summary conviction offences, 30

Copyright © 2021 Emond Montgomery Publications. All rights reserved.