Bill C-431

SUMMARY

This enactment amends the Contraventions Act and the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. It changes the type of proceedings and legal regime governing the offences of possession of, possession for the purpose of trafficking and trafficking in, one gram or less of cannabis resin or thirty grams or less of cannabis (marihuana).

Under this enactment, these offences are deemed to be contraventions within the meaning of the Contraventions Act. Thus, an enforcement authority who believes on reasonable grounds that a person has committed a contravention may complete a ticket in respect of that contravention and cause it to be served on the person. A person may, within 30 days after being served with a ticket,

(a) plead guilty and pay the amount of the fine set out in the ticket;

(b) plead guilty but make representations concerning the penalty, that is, the fine and fees imposed and whether the person ought to be given time to pay them; or

(c) request a trial.

A person who has been convicted of a contravention has not been convicted of a criminal offence, and a contravention does not constitute an offence for the purposes of the Criminal Records Act.