Case information
Conduct a refined search of the Supreme Court of Canada database to obtain details on the status of a matter before the Court.
38213
Christie Culotta v. Her Majesty the Queen
(Ontario) (Criminal) (As of Right)
Docket
Judgments on applications for leave to appeal are rendered by the Court, but are not necessarily unanimous.
| Date | Proceeding | Filed By (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|
| 2018-12-28 | Transcript received, 68 pages | |
| 2018-12-20 | Appeal closed | |
| 2018-12-14 | Formal judgment sent to the registrar of the court of appeal and all parties | |
| 2018-12-14 | Judgment on appeal and notice of deposit of judgment sent to all parties | |
| 2018-12-13 |
Judgment on the appeal rendered, CJ Abe Mo Row Mar, The appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal for Ontario, Number C63831, 2018 ONCA 665, dated July 25, 2018, was heard on December 13, 2018, and the Court on that day delivered the following judgment orally: MOLDAVER J. — A majority of the Court would dismiss the appeal, substantially for the reasons of Justice Nordheimer. Justices Abella and Martin, in dissent, would allow the appeal, substantially for the reasons of Justice Pardu. Dismissed |
|
| 2018-12-13 |
Hearing of the appeal, 2018-12-13, CJ Abe Mo Row Mar Judgment rendered |
|
| 2018-12-13 | Intervener's condensed book, (Book Form), 14 copies (submitted in Court) | Canadian Civil Liberties Association |
| 2018-12-13 | Respondent's condensed book, (Book Form), 14 copies (submitted in Court) | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2018-12-13 | Appellant's condensed book, (Book Form), 14 copies (submitted in Court) | Christie Culotta |
| 2018-11-29 | Intervener's factum, (Book Form), Completed on: 2018-11-29 | Canadian Civil Liberties Association |
| 2018-11-29 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), (Letter Form) | Criminal Lawyers' Association |
| 2018-11-29 | Intervener's book of authorities, (Book Form), Completed on: 2018-11-29 | Criminal Lawyers' Association |
| 2018-11-29 | Intervener's factum, (Book Form), Completed on: 2018-11-29 | Criminal Lawyers' Association |
| 2018-11-29 | Notice of appearance, (Letter Form), Anthony Moustacalis will be present at the hearing and will present oral arguments. | Canadian Civil Liberties Association |
| 2018-11-29 | Correspondence received from, (Letter Form), Response to the appellant's request for additional time. | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2018-11-28 | Correspondence received from, (Letter Form), Request for additional speaking time at the hearing of the appeal. | Christie Culotta |
| 2018-11-28 | Notice of appearance, (Letter Form), Nader R. Hasan and Carlo Di Carlo will be present at the hearing. Mr. Hasan will present oral arguments. | Criminal Lawyers' Association |
| 2018-11-28 | Notice of appearance, (Letter Form), Dirk Derstine will be present at the hearing and will provide oral arguments. Request to have law student sit at counsel table. | Christie Culotta |
| 2018-11-26 | Appeal perfected for hearing | |
| 2018-11-15 | Notice of appearance, (Letter Form), Mabel Lai and Matthew Asma will be present at the hearing. Ms. Lai will present oral arguments. | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2018-11-15 | Certificate of counsel (attesting to record), (Letter Form) | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2018-11-15 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), (Letter Form), 23B | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2018-11-15 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), (Letter Form), 23A; Amended certificate rec'd 2018/11/15 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2018-11-15 | Respondent's book of authorities, (Book Form), Completed on: 2018-11-15 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2018-11-15 | Respondent's record, (Book Form), Completed on: 2018-11-15 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2018-11-15 | Respondent's factum, (Book Form), Completed on: 2018-11-15 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2018-10-25 | Order on motion for leave to intervene, (BY JUSTICE Côté) | |
| 2018-10-25 |
Decision on the motion for leave to intervene, Côt, UPON APPLICATIONS by the Criminal Lawyers’ Association and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association for leave to intervene in the above appeal; AND THE MATERIAL FILED having been read; IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT: The motions for leave to intervene are granted and the said two (2) interveners shall be entitled to each serve and file a factum not exceeding ten (10) pages in length on or before November 29, 2018. The said two (2) interveners are each granted permission to present oral argument not exceeding five (5) minutes at the hearing of the appeal. The interveners are not entitled to raise new issues or to adduce further evidence or otherwise to supplement the record of the parties. Pursuant to Rule 59(1)(a) of the Rules of the Supreme Court of Canada, the interveners shall pay to the appellant and respondent any additional disbursements resulting from their interventions. Granted |
|
| 2018-10-25 | Submission of motion for leave to intervene, Côt | |
| 2018-10-23 | Response to the motion for leave to intervene, (Letter Form), (CLAO), Completed on: 2018-10-23 | Christie Culotta |
| 2018-10-23 | Response to the motion for leave to intervene, (Letter Form), (CCLA), Completed on: 2018-10-23 | Christie Culotta |
| 2018-10-23 | Response to the motion for leave to intervene, (Letter Form), Completed on: 2018-10-23 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2018-10-18 | Notice of name, (Letter Form) | Canadian Civil Liberties Association |
| 2018-10-18 | Motion for leave to intervene, (Letter Form), Completed on: 2018-10-18 | Canadian Civil Liberties Association |
| 2018-10-18 | Notice of name, (Letter Form) | Criminal Lawyers' Association |
| 2018-10-18 | Motion for leave to intervene, (Book Form), Completed on: 2018-10-18 | Criminal Lawyers' Association |
| 2018-09-20 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), (Letter Form), 23B-amended certificate rec'd 2018/10/11 | Christie Culotta |
| 2018-09-20 | Certificate of counsel (attesting to record), (Letter Form) | Christie Culotta |
| 2018-09-20 | Appellant's record, (Book Form), (3 volumes), Volume 1 amended 2018/10/24, Completed on: 2018-09-20 | Christie Culotta |
| 2018-09-20 | Appellant's factum, (Book Form), Completed on: 2018-09-20 | Christie Culotta |
| 2018-08-29 | Notice of hearing sent to parties | |
| 2018-08-20 |
Appeal hearing scheduled, 2018-12-13 Judgment rendered |
|
| 2018-08-08 | Letter advising the parties of tentative hearing date and filing deadlines (Notice of appeal – As of right) | |
| 2018-07-31 | Letter acknowledging receipt of a notice of appeal | |
| 2018-07-26 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), (Letter Form), 23B | Christie Culotta |
| 2018-07-26 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), (Letter Form), 23A | Christie Culotta |
| 2018-07-26 | Notice of appeal, (Letter Form), service and fees missing (received on 2018-07-30). Amended notice rec'd 2018/08/21, Completed on: 2018-07-30 | Christie Culotta |
Parties
Please note that in the case of closed files, the “Status” column reflects the status of the parties at the time of the proceedings. For more information about the proceedings and about the dates when the file was open, please consult the docket of the case in question.
Main parties
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Culotta, Christie | Appellant | Active |
v.
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Her Majesty the Queen | Respondent | Active |
Other parties
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Criminal Lawyers' Association | Intervener | Active |
| Canadian Civil Liberties Association | Intervener | Active |
Counsel
Party: Culotta, Christie
Counsel
Karen Heath
302 - 559 College Street
Toronto, Ontario
M6G 1A9
Telephone: (416) 304-1414
FAX: (416) 304-1345
Email: derstine@derstinepenman.com
Agent
100- 340 Gilmour Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K2P 0R3
Telephone: (613) 695-8855 Ext: 102
FAX: (613) 695-8580
Email: mfmajor@supremeadvocacy.ca
Party: Her Majesty the Queen
Counsel
Matthew Asma
720 Bay Street
10th Floor
Toronto, Ontario
M7A 2S9
Telephone: (416) 327-9299
FAX: (416) 326-4656
Email: mabel.lai@ontario.ca
Agent
World Exchange Plaza
100 Queen Street, suite 1300
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 1J9
Telephone: (613) 787-3562
FAX: (613) 230-8842
Email: neffendi@blg.com
Party: Criminal Lawyers' Association
Counsel
Carlo Di Carlo
77 King Street West, Suite 4130
Toronto-Dominion Centre
Toronto, Ontario
M5K 1H1
Telephone: (416) 593-1668
FAX: (416) 593-9345
Email: naderh@stockwoods.ca
Agent
130 Albert Street
Suite 1103
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 5G4
Telephone: (613) 702-5573
FAX: (613) 702-5573
Email: mvincelette@powerlaw.ca
Party: Canadian Civil Liberties Association
Counsel
Suite 1000
Toronto, Ontario
M5H 2K6
Telephone: (416) 363-2656
FAX: (416) 363-4920
Email: am@amalaw.ca
Agent
2600 - 160 Elgin Street
P.O. Box 466, Stn. A
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 1C3
Telephone: (613) 786-0211
FAX: (613) 788-3573
Email: matthew.estabrooks@gowlingwlg.com
Summary
Keywords
Charter - Criminal law - Right to counsel - Exclusion of evidence pursuant to s. 24(2) - Whether appellant’s right to counsel was breached - Whether the hospital blood analysis records should be excluded.
Summary
Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.
The appellant was convicted of two counts of operation of a vessel causing bodily harm while having a blood alcohol content that exceeded 80 mg of alcohol in 100 ml of blood, after the boat she was operating on Lake Muskoka collided head on with a rocky island. The four passengers were injured, two of them seriously. The appellant appealed her conviction, arguing among other things that the hospital records derived from her blood samples should have been excluded from the evidence. A majority of the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal. Pardu J.A., dissenting, would have allowed the appeal, quashed the convictions, and remitted the matter for trial. In her view, “[t]he affront to human dignity embodied in a police officer’s ‘co-opting a lab technician’ into taking blood samples for police purposes when the technician was taking blood samples to carry out a physician’s orders is so serious that… the hospital records of the analysis of the appellant’s blood should be excluded, despite the absence of a direct causal connection between the multiple breaches of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the creation of hospital records containing the blood analysis.”
Lower court rulings
Ontario Superior Court of Justice
CR-15-0021
Appellant convicted of impaired driving causing bodily harm
Court of Appeal for Ontario
C63831, 2018 ONCA 665
Appeal dismissed
Memorandums of argument on application for leave to appeal
The memorandums of argument on an application for leave to appeal will be posted here 30 days after leave to appeal has been granted unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of the memorandum by filing out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.
If you have questions about a memorandum of argument or want to use a memorandum of argument, please contact the author of the memorandum of argument directly. Their name appears at the end of the memorandum of argument. The contact information for counsel is found in the “Counsel” tab of this page.
Downloadable PDFs
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Related links
Factums on appeal
The factums of the appellant, the respondent and the intervener will be posted here at least 2 weeks before the hearing unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of factums by filling out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.
If you have questions about a factum or want permission to use a factum, please contact the author of the factum directly. Their contact information appears on the first page of each factum.
Downloadable PDFs
Not available