Ontario Highway Traffic Act

You could ask your insurance company if it was actually insured at the time or not. If they say yes, then you need official letter/documents from them stating that it WAS insured on the day in question.

If they say no, then you better get a really good lawyer.

If you are appearing the very first time for the date on the summons, then that will not be your actual trial date. You can of course plead guilty and be done with it, but I would not recommend that because this is serious offence. The prosecutor MAY offer you a deal at this time, which you could also take but again not recommended.

Best advice at ...

No and yes.

If there were a fatal error on the ticket, it could be corrected ONLY IF YOU HAVE A TRIAL. So when you spot a fatal error on a ticket, you should NOT go to trial. Then either the JP will see the error (which cannot be corrected if there is no trial) and quash the ticket, or if the JP does not see the error and allows the ticket to go ...

You can request disclosure in writing, immediately after you get your notice of trial, so you should do it as soon as possible.
Read this post (http://www.ontariohighwaytrafficact.com/topic7041.html) and their are several websites at the bottom like TicketCombat that will give you an idea how to request disclosure.

Canadian Charter guarantees ...

Just a further thought to this ...

I am not sure when the prosecution can "amend" a ticket, so my thinking above may or may not work. If they can only amend a ticket before the officer starts to give evidence, then the above method may work well. However, if they can amend the ticket anytime during the trial, then it may not be a good way to ...

First of all, good job not telling the prosecutor what the problem is. NEVER tell them their mistakes!

Once you get your notice of trial, make a disclosure request so you can get a copy of the officers notes and see what they say.

I am not sure the best way to fight this as I have not researched this particular problem before, but probably would ...

Lawyers and paralegals can charge what they want pretty much. It's our great Canadian justice system that allows true justice for all that can afford it. Once I paid paralegal $500 for trial then another $1500 for appeal.

I am not sure what "serious error" mean but you should read up on Fatal Errors ... if there is a Fatal Error on the ticket ...

In the United States you might be able to swap a traffic ticket for an equivalently priced bylaw/parking ticket, but highly unlikely in Ontario.

Choose Not Guilty Option 3 Trial with Officer present, once trial date is set ask for disclosure, prepare to fight your case and maybe they will offer you a deal before trial starts.

I spent $2000 one time to win appeal and get speeding ticket thrown out. It was an $80 ticket. Would have been a whole lot cheaper to just pay it, but the point is I was not guilty. Our justice system works great for those that can afford it!

There is no way for me to recover that $2000 though. Even though the prosecutors/crown have basically ...

I base it on experience ... having hired lawyers in the past (before I understood the process), they would literally wait until trial date to get disclosure and then just basically accept the deal the prosecutor offers without putting any time or effort into possible ways to fight it.

A good lawyer would be requesting disclosure ahead of time and ...

@ynotp - That is definitely one avenue to pursue for sure. Makes for a good point on appeal if the jp does not accept it during the trial. But never rely on just one thing... plan as many points and issues as you can, so you have lots of point and issues if it goes to an appeal.

If you hire a lawyer, make sure you get them to go over their ...

@eurobertson - I don't think a solicitor in the UK will be able to help much here in Ontario.

@Sean98 - I don't think a Los Angeles lawyer will help much in Ontario. Also he reported that he has already been found guilty and the 2 years is almost up, so still doesn't need a lawyer for that.

@joeyzen - Best to just go to MTO office and ask all your questions to them and they will tell you whole process.

Just a suggestion but the court system in Toronto is very backed up... If you get any kind of ticket in Toronto (parking, red light, speeding) you should plead Not Guilty and get a Trial date. Most likely the trial date will be outside the "speedy trial" Charter 11(b) and you can then apply to get it dropped because of that.

Most important thing you can do is request disclosure and ask for copies of notes from ALL officers in the helicopter & of the officer that had your vehicle towed & of the officer that showed up at your door (don't assume it was same officer) & of any other officers that end up dealing with you before trial.

You will also want disclosure of all ...