Speeding Ticket Technicalities

OTT Legal does the work of fighting your speeding ticket for you. In preparing your case for trial we will:

• file any legal arguments or motions on your behalf
• ensure your ticket is properly written without any “fatal errors”
• order the officers notes, including the testing procedures, radar manuals, and disclosure
• check that the ticket was filed properly at the court (also known as the “Filing Date”)
• appear on your your behalf in court (drivers are not usually required to attend for speeding trials)

In traffic court under the Provincial Offences Act of Ontario some errors on traffic tickets are considered “fatal errors” and other errors are considered “fixable”.

Fatal errors are issues on your speeding ticket that the judge will cancel the ticket for such as:

• the wrong date
• missing the officers name
• no jurisdiction listed on the ticket

Many times where the driver appears the justice will rule that once you appear in court that you have “attorned to the jurisdiction”, and the justice will be allowed in law to correct the error.

When you’re represented by OTT Legal we know how to approach these types of situations to have the charge dismissed as result of the error, not fixed.

Speeding is called a “strict liability offence”.

Strict liability means, that once the police and prosecution have made out that the driver was speeding, then the defendant is liable and responsible for the speed.

When fighting a speeding ticket, an explanation of why you were speeding will not get the Justice to cancel the ticket.

There are only two reasons the court will forgive a driver for a speeding ticket;

1. Speeding to rush someone to the hospital to save their life when an ambulance or the assistance of the police was unavailable, or
2. Speeding to get away from a real imminent threat to life. For example, someone is trying to hurt the driver and they were trying to get away. The driver had to be driving towards the assistance, e.g. driving as fast as they could to the police station or an area of safety.

Speeding up to avoid traffic, a hazard, or possible accident is not a valid reason for speeding.

Were we investigate your ticket and learn at your rights have been violated or we believe a legal argument applies to your charge, OTT will file the legal paperwork to present you case the justice.

We understand the legal motions such as:

• 11b Applications,
• the right to full and complete disclosure
• your rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

OTT ensures that where a legal argument applies to your ticket that the proper motion is prepared and filed at the court on your behalf, ensuring that everything is done to win your case.