Guindon V. Canada, 2015 SCC 41

Guindon V. Canada, 2015 SCC 41

In this case, the Supreme Court of Canada upheld the constitutionality of administrative monetary penalties. Although the decision arose in the context of the Income Tax Act, it is expected to have important consequences in other contexts, including in environmental regulatory matters where the imposition of monetary penalties is now common practice.

Ms. Guindon was fined more than $500,000 by the Canada Revenue Agency for knowingly making false statements in donation receipts she issued. She argued that the penalty imposed upon her was criminal in nature and that she was a person "charged with an offence" within the meaning of s. 11 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and entitled to the safeguards therein.