This case concerns an application by the accused, Taiga Building Products Ltd., for a stay of proceedings due to unreasonable delay under section 11(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The trial, related to an Occupational Health and Safety Act charge following a workplace fatality, spanned 11 days over nearly two years.
The court applied the R. v. Jordan framework, calculating a total delay of 23 months and 29 days.
After deducting 80 days for defence delay and 39 days for a discrete COVID-19 related event, the net delay was 610 days (20.05 months), exceeding the 18-month presumptive ceiling for the Ontario Court of Justice.
The court found the case was not particularly complex and that the delay was unreasonable, partly due to the Crown's unsuccessful expert qualification application and late disclosure.
A stay of proceedings was entered.
