Introduction

• Author: Steve Coughlan
• Pages: 1-7

1

CHA PTER 1

INTRODUCTION

In this book, cri minal procedure will b e taken to mean the body of

rules and principles t hat govern the investigation, prosecution, and ad-

judication of any offence enacted by Parliament for which an accused

person would have a criminal record if found guilty by a court exercis-

ing jurisdiction under the Criminal Code.1 That is, it governs the pro-

cedural aspects rel ating to indictable and summary conviction offences

enacted by Parliament pursuant to its legislative authority in matters

of criminal l aw.

This def‌inition of the subject excludes many procedural a spects

of penal law. For example, it does not include law that is enacted for

1 Unless other wise indicated, al l statutory references in t his book are to the Cri m-

inal Code of Canad a, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46 [Code]. All references to section s of

the Canadian Ch arter of Rights and Freedoms, Part I of the Constit ution Act, 1982,

being Schedule B t o the Canada Act 1982 (U.K.), 1982, c. 11 [Charter] will be

preceded by “Charter.” See Criminal Records Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-47, s. 3, which

refers to a convict ion of an offence under an Act of Parliament or a reg ulation

made under an Act of Parl iament. The procedure prescr ibed in the Code applies

to all indict able offences and all offences pun ishable on summary conv iction

that have bee n enacted by Parliament. Notw ithstanding the bro ad def‌inition of

this book’s scop e, the criminal jur isdiction of the Canad ian military i s exclud-

ed from considerat ion here, but it should be noted that this i ncludes a distinc-

tive body of procedur al and evidentiar y law. Also excluded f rom consideration

is crimi nal procedure as it applies to young p ersons under the Youth Criminal

Justice Act, S.C. 20 02, c. 1. For discussion of the latter i ssue, see Nicholas Bala &

Sanjeev Ana nd, Youth Criminal Justice Law, 2d ed. (Toronto: Irwin L aw, 2009).