One of the most consequential updates to Canada's Criminal Code in generations to better protect victims and survivors is now law
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"Victims and survivors called for stronger protections from intimate partner violence and gender-based violence. Those protections are now law," said the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada. The Protecting Victims Act (Bill C-16) received Royal Assent yesterday, as the Government of Canada continues to move with urgency to better protect victims and survivors, ensure abusers face the full force of the law, and deliver on its commitment to strengthen the Criminal Code.
This is one of the most consequential reforms of the Criminal Code in a generation to protect victims and survivors of sexual violence, gender-based violence, and intimate partner violence. These changes confront the rise in coercive control, respond to the growing violence women are facing, make femicide first-degree murder, strengthen victims' rights, respond to modern threats like non-consensual sexual deepfakes, and address long-standing concerns about court delays that can leave victims without resolution. The law also includes new measures to keep kids safe from predators and strengthen mandatory minimum penalties.
Stop intimate partner violence and femicide
The law gives the justice system stronger tools to intervene earlier to sexual violence, gender-based, and intimate partner violence before that violence turns fatal. More specifically, the changes:
- make femicide first degree murder, the most serious homicide offence
- create a new offence of coercive control in intimate relationships, targeting patterns of threats, isolation, or manipulation before violence escalates
- update criminal harassment provisions to make them easier to prove in court
- make it a crime to threaten to distribute non-consensual intimate images, including sexual deepfakes
- increase the maximum penalty for sexual assault on summary conviction, non-consensual distribution of intimate images, and voyeurism
Strengthen victims' rights and give clear guidance on court delays
For many victims and survivors, the court process itself can be overwhelming and retraumatizing. When cases drag on or are stayed because of procedural delays, victims are left without closure and justice is not served. These changes will help victims feel safer in court, reduce trauma, and ensure they are treated with dignity throughout a process they should never have to endure. More specifically, the changes:
- give courts clearer guidance on how to manage and address court delays, including in sexual assault cases
- strengthen victims' rights to be treated with respect and have their interests in a timely trial considered
- improve victims' access to information about their case
- make testimonial aids more accessible so victims and survivors can participate in the justice process with better support
- strengthen all Mandatory Minimum Penalties (MMPs) of imprisonment in the Criminal Code
In less than a year, Canada's new government has delivered one of the most ambitious criminal justice reform agendas in recent memory, with three major bills to strengthen protections against hate crimes, make bail laws stricter and toughen sentences, better protect victims and survivors, and keep kids safe from predators.
As threats evolve, the Government of Canada will continue to move with urgency to strengthen Canada's laws and keep Canadians safe.
