KEEPING YOU LEGALLY INFORMED

If you were stopped for impaired driving, failing to provide a sample, or blowing over, you were likely given a Notice of Administrative Penalty. It’s also known as an N-A-P, also known as a NAP, also known as an Immediate Roadside Sanction, also known as an IRS… and the confusion doesn't stop there. We’re here to give you tips and tricks for how to deal with this situation. Most importantly, do not pay the fine, if you pay the fine you will be cancelling any hearing that was [...]

Normally, when couples decide to end their relationship, there are a number of ways they can do it. If there is a high level of cooperation between the two, they may be able to work everything out themselves. If there is little to no agreement, they can go through mediation, arbitration, collaborative law or go to court. During the pandemic, however, we have seen one method stand out far from the rest – Collaborative Family Law. The courts keep shutting down and adjourning cases with the result that [...]

No Traffic Trials – Who Saw That Coming? There has been a lot of attention lately on traffic ticket trials – or, rather, the disappearance of them[1]: This is not actually new. The NDP brought in the legislation that allowed this to happen. The Conservatives implemented it in three phases. Impaired driving cases were the first to go. The government began by both charging and giving an administrative sanction (also known as a Notice of Administrative Penalty, also known as an Immediate Roadside Sanction and referred to as an [...]

So, you fought against the Notice of Administrative Penalty (NAP) you received, and although you and your lawyer gave your best efforts, the Penalty was, ultimately, confirmed.  Unfortunately, this is the case on a lot of files.  However, the process has not ended and your means of fighting back have not been exhausted!  Our office is filing Judicial Reviews on a regular basis.  So, what is a Judicial Review?  Here is what you need to know: A Judicial Review is a means of appealing the decision you received.  We [...]

Where has the last year gone?  We are already approaching one year since the legislation on Immediate Roadside Sanctions came into effect in Alberta on December 1, 2020. In our firm’s long history of defending clients against driving-related offences, we got really good at taking impaired driving charges to court.  However, fighting an Immediate Roadside Sanction is different.  We are highlighting here the good, the bad and the ugly when it comes to appeals of the Immediate Roadside Sanction (IRS) appeals, also known as Notice of Administrative Penalty. So, [...]

The past year and a half has brought in its share of problems for court-going lawyers.  In our criminal practice we have had to put off numerous trials and court appearances because of court closures due to COVID 19.  However, despite the absence of Chambers sitting in family court, resolutions between parties have been going ahead, perhaps even in a more productive way.  With the various orders to self-isolate and refrain from in-person meetings, our resolution discussions have had to go virtual. Prior to the pandemic, parties in a [...]