Ontario DUI Trial Lawyer: Your lawyer should have a reputation for doing a lot of DUI trials (not just pleading people guilty).

If your lawyer is known by the Crown Attorney to take lots of DUI cases to trial, they are more likely to drop the charges against you if there are problems with your case.

Many charged with a DUI for the first time don’t realize that these are not open-and-shut cases. In Ontario, DUIs are frequently challenged at trial via a not guilty plea if there are “triable issues” (evidentiary problems) that can help the defence. It takes far more than just a high BAC reading or refusal to blow to secure a conviction at trial.

The Crown must prove each and every element of the case, including that the police properly handled their investigation. Problems with DUI cases are often discovered when reviewing the disclosure, including:

1. Breaches of Charter rights
2. Failure to follow proper evidence gathering procedures
3. Improper inferences and gaps in the evidence
4. Reused, copy/paste police notes with errors, inconsistencies or inapplicable wording
5. Technical issues with measurements such as BAC readings
6. Behaviour described by the police that does not match the CCTV and bodycam evidence

Many defendants wrongly assume the case against them is iron clad when in reality there are problems that could have gotten them off (even if they blew way over with a 200+ BAC). In some cases the police can’t even prove that the accused was driving or in care and control of the vehicle.

Our lawyers will find all the triable issues (problems) with your case, raise them with the Crown, and take the case to trial if they refuse to drop the charges.

Sometimes the Crown Attorney changes their mind about the prospect of conviction after a trial date is set.

In cases where there are triable issues, meaning things that could be decided either way (possibly in your favour), the Crown will assess whether there is a “reasonable prospect of conviction (aka RPC)” before continuing. It is your lawyer’s job to find as many problems with the case as possible and then convince the Crown to drop the charges. Crowns don’t want to take cases to trial and lose because it establishes precedents that can make it harder to prosecute others in the future.

If your lawyer has a reputation for taking cases to trial this increases the likelihood that the Crown will not want to take the chance of losing and agree to a deal. If the Crown believes your lawyer won’t run a trial they are less likely to withdraw the charges because of triable issues.

Why does the Crown sometimes wait until the trial date to drop DUI charges?

They may not take a close enough look at the evidence to realize they don’t have a good case until the trial date. Some defendants will plead guilty early on (wrongly thinking there is no hope) just to get it over with. Since a conviction for any form of DUI results in a mandatory criminal record in Canada this is not necessarily in the accused’s best interest. The accused should do everything possible to avoid a criminal record especially if they don’t already have one.

Every Crown office in Ontario operates differently with different decision makers. Some trial arguments and techniques to drop charges are more persuasive in certain jurisdictions than others. In addition to having a reputation for taking cases to trial, your lawyer should also know in advance what arguments are typically persuasive at your courthouse.

We take cases to trial throughout all of Ontario and usually know what will work and what won’t in each jurisdiction.

For most first time DUI accused, a fine + a criminal record is not a good deal, even if it is the lowest possible fine.

The fine rarely differs by much and is quite trivial for most defendants who plead guilty. The problem is the criminal record that comes with the guilty plea. If you are found guilty of impaired driving the Criminal Code forces the judge to convict you and give you a criminal record. For accused who work, travel, or are in the immigration system, a criminal record can harm them tremendously.

These defendants would be much better off if the Crown offered a deal to drop the criminal charges outright or in exchange for a guilty plea to a lesser HTA driving offence like “careless driving” instead.

Agreeing to lesser HTA offences like careless driving in exchange for the Crown dropping the criminal DUI charges

Some Crown offices would rather avoid taking the risk of losing at trial. They instead may offer to drop the criminal DUI charges in exchange for a guilty plea to a non-criminal HTA offence like careless driving as a compromise.

Why would a defendant agree to “careless driving” or some other provincial (HTA) offence if there are triable issues?

It is always up to the accused whether they want to plead guilty or not, but most take deals to virtually guarantee the outcome of their case. Triable issues don’t guarantee a win for the defence. Losing after a trial can attract harsher sentences (like jail). Some defendants prefer to avoid this risk, especially if they are guaranteed no criminal record.

Most accused are not offered the best possible deal at first.

Many defendants without counsel will agree to deals like a fine + criminal record when they could have done better. They may be falsely led to believe pleading guilty or accepting the Crown's first offer is in their best interest when it is not.

In DUI cases often the only way to get the best possible offer is to convince the Crown you will take them to trial and be found not guilty. Setting a trial date may be the only way to get the Crown to make their best possible offer, such as withdrawing the charges outright or in exchange for a plea to careless driving or some other non-criminal HTA offence.

Our defence lawyers run DUI trials throughout all of Ontario and know how to convince the Crown to drop charges because of triable issues and other mitigating factors.

We often have dealt with the exact same Crown Attorneys at the exact same courthouse before in similar circumstances. Knowing what has worked (and hasn’t) in the past gives us a tremendous advantage in negotiating with the Crown to get your charges dropped or reduced down. They know we will take your case to trial if they don’t make us a fair offer.

We defend DUI charges throughout all of Ontario and are familiar with the Crowns in all jurisdictions. Select your DUI charge location below for more specific courthouse information:

Ajax Barrie Belleville Bradford Brampton Brantford Burlington Caledon Cambridge Chatham Collingwood Cornwall Fort Erie Guelph Hamilton Kanata Kingston Kitchener London Markham Milton Mississauga Newmarket Niagara Falls North Bay Oakville Orangeville Oshawa Ottawa Owen Sound Parry Sound Peterborough Richmond Hill Sarnia Sault Ste. Marie Simcoe St. Catharines St. Thomas Stratford Sudbury Thunder Bay Timmons Toronto Vaughan Waterloo Welland Whitby Windsor Woodstock

If you or someone you want to help has been charged with any form of impaired driving (DUI, over 80, or refusal of breathalyzer), give us a call now at 647-228-5969 for a free consultation.

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You don't have to jeopardize your future or waste thousands of dollars on excessive legal fees. We provide effective and affordable trial lawyer representation for those charged with impaired driving related offences throughout all of Ontario, Canada.

Have a skilled criminal lawyer who focuses on DUI defence protect you and your future from the stigma and consequences of a criminal record and conviction.

Are you a lawyer? If you are defending a criminal case and are looking for expert advice regarding possible defences, case strategies, and information release management call us at: 647-228-5969.

Please note: We do not accept legal aid certificate cases. All clients are handled on a private retainer only.

*2025 Results: the percentage of 99% of clients avoiding a criminal record (conviction) stated on this page is based solely on Lawyer Mark Zinck's personal representation of approximately 2000 criminal defence case clients as of the year 2025. Past results are not necessarily an indication of future results.

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