In July of 2016 the Supreme Court of Canada revamped the
framework around an accused person's right to a speedy trial in
the case
R v. Jordan. Corporations are considered persons at law and
they too have the right to be tried in a reasonable time pursuant
to section 11(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and
Freedoms. The new framework set out a presumptive ceiling of
18 months for trial in provincial court and 30 months for trial in
the superior court. Once the ceiling is exceeded then the delay is
presumed to be unreasonable and the onus is on the Crown to rebut
the presumption. A more detailed explanation can be found in
another CCP blog
here.
Since the decision in Jordan, lower courts have begun
to apply the new framework, and in a very recent case charges were
stayed against a company due to a 55-month delay. Charges pursuant
to the Occupational Health and Safety Act were laid
against Stephenson's Rental Services following a workplace
fatality on November
