Preface to the sixth edition

• Author: Kent Roach
• Profession: Faculty of Law and Centre of Criminology.University of Toronto
• Pages: 23-25

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PREFACE

TO THE SIXTH EDITION

This book is designed to provide a concise and current discussion of

the basic principles of Canadian criminal law. To this end, the heart of

this book examines the principles of the general part of the criminal

law: the elements of offences and the relevant defences. It follows the

traditional conceptualization of the general part, but it examines un-

fulf‌illed crimes and participation in crimes earlier than other works

because of their great practical importance and their effective expan-

sion of the prohibited act. Regulatory offences and corporate criminal

liability are examined together because of their functional and context-

ual similarities.

A few chapters attempt to place the general principles of the cri minal

law in context. Chapter 1 provides an overview of all the topics exam-

ined in the book. Chapter 2 examines the constitutional principles that

affect the investigation of crime, the criminal trial process, and the

substantive criminal law as they relate to fault requirements and de-

fences. This chapter has been extensively re-written in this edition to

ref‌lect the greater clarity about the content of the principles of funda-

mental justice in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision in Canada

(A.G.) v. Bedford1 and Carter v. Canada (A.G.).2

The Court’s welcome reaff‌irmation of common law presumptions

of subjective fault is discussed in Chapter 5. The Supreme Court has

1 2013 SCC 72 [Bedford].

2 2015 SCC 5.