Legal Services

New Brunswick is one of the safest places in Canada. Statistics show it has one of the lowest crime rates in the country. It’s important to know about the laws followed in New Brunswick and the people who keep the province safe.

The police make sure Canadians obey the law, but that’s not their only job. They may help you in many ways – if you’re hurt, in trouble, or if you simply need directions. Many Canadians teach their children to go to a police officer if they’re lost. Police in Canada may be male or female.

In an emergency, you may reach the police by telephoning 9-1-1. If your situation is not an emergency, you may call the non-emergency police number, which you can look up online.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is Canada’s national police force. The Mounties, as they’re also known, are the main police force in rural areas in New Brunswick. In some communities, the RCMP works with the local police.

Local Police Forces

Larger communities in New Brunswick have municipal police forces.

Dealing with the Police

Important: NEVER offer a police officer money. Canadians don’t bribe police, and to do so is a serious crime.

A police officer is allowed to engage in casual conversation and to ask questions. Sometimes, police carry out highway spot checks to determine if you, as a motorist, have a proper licence, registration, and insurance; and to determine if you are driving with a seatbelt, as required, and are not impaired.

A police officer is allowed to stop you and ask for identification if he or she suspects you are driving a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol or are otherwise impaired. In this instance, you should safely pull over to the side of the road and stop as soon as possible. Stay in your car. Do not get out and walk toward the police officer. Wait for the police officer to come to you. You should roll down your car window and speak politely. The police officer will probably ask you for your driver’s licence, proof of insurance, and car registration. You’re legally obliged to produce these documents if the police officer asks to see them.

If a police officer suspects that you, as a motorist, have been drinking alcohol, he or she may ask you to take a roadside breathalyzer test. If you’re suspected of being under the influence of drugs or are otherwise impaired, you can also be stopped, evaluated, and required to provide a bodily fluid sample at a police station. It’s against the law to refuse any of these tests. Impaired driving is a very serious criminal offence in Canada: a minimum fine of $1,000 for a first offence; one month in jail for a second offence; and four months in jail for a third offence. Those with a blood alcohol concentration exceeding 0.08% face a maximum life sentence if they cause death and a maximum 10-year sentence if they cause bodily harm. Impaired drivers also lose their driving privileges for specified periods. They can expect their car insurance premiums to increase significantly.

If arrested, you have certain rights:

• You have the right to remain silent. Remaining silent does not imply guilt or innocence on your part.
• The officer who arrests you must tell you his or her name and show you his or her badge number.
• The police officer must tell you why you are being arrested (for what suspected offence) and explain the reason for the arrest.
• The police officer must tell you that you have the right to talk with a lawyer of your choice in private before you speak to the police. If you do not have a lawyer, the police must tell you that may use duty counsel (immediate free legal advice) and legal aid (free help for people who cannot afford a lawyer).
• The police must give you the telephone number of a legal aid duty counsel and let you call.

In Canada, the rights of all individuals are protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Basic human rights are protected under law and all law enforcement officers are obligated to follow this Charter when dealing with any person that is being arrested.

For more information about the justice system:

Public Legal Education and Information Service of New Brunswick
P.O. Box 6000
Fredericton, NB E3B 5H1

Tel: 1-506-453-5369
Fax: 1-506-457-7899
Website: Public Legal Education and Information Service of New Brunswick
Email: [email protected]

For more information about the police in New Brunswick:

Department of Justice and Public Safety
P.O. Box 6000 Argyle Place
Fredericton, NB E3B 5H1

General Information: 1-506-453-3992
Reception: 1-506-453-3992
Website: Justice and Public Safety

Legal aid offers two services: duty counsel and certificates. The duty counsel service allows a person accused of an offence to speak with a lawyer before he or she goes to court. If you go on trial and cannot afford a lawyer, you must apply to legal aid to obtain a certificate. Once a certificate is issued, you may be represented in court by a legal aid lawyer for free or for a lower fee. You must pay for a lawyer if you can afford to do so. If you’ve been charged with a crime, you may find a criminal defence lawyer by asking friends or by asking a lawyer you may have used for business or other purposes.

Legal Aid

Legal aid offers two services: duty counsel and certificates. The duty counsel service allows a person accused of an offence to speak with a lawyer before he or she goes to court. If you go on trial and cannot afford a lawyer, you must apply to legal aid to obtain a certificate. Once a certificate is issued, you may be represented in court by a legal aid lawyer for free or for a lower fee.

Legal aid certificates are issued only to those who don’t have the financial means to pay for legal representation. You must provide financial statements and information proving you are unable to pay a lawyer. If you can afford it, you may be expected to pay some of the cost of legal aid.

Legal aid offices in New Brunswick:

• Bathurst 1-506-546-5010
• Campbellton 1-506-753-6453
• Edmundston 1-506-735-4213
• Fredericton 1-506-444-2777
• Miramichi 1-506-622-1061
• Moncton 1-506-853-7300
• Saint John 1-506-633-6030
• Woodstock 1-506-328-8127

For more information:

• 1-506-462-5100
• Website: Legal Aid

You may also contact:

Department of Justice and Public Safety
P.O. Box 6000
Fredericton, NB E3B 5H1

One of the most important principles in Canadian law is that you’re innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. This means that the prosecution must prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that you have broken the law.

For more information:

Public Legal Education and Information Service of New Brunswick
P.O. Box 6000
Fredericton, NB E3B 5H1

Tel: 1-506-453-5369
Fax: 1-506-457-7899
Website: Public Legal Education and Information Service of New Brunswick
Email: [email protected]

Unfortunately, as in any country, there are a few people in Canada who try to fool honest people. These tricks are often called scams, and the criminals are called scam artists. Be careful of the following:

• You receive an email from what appears to be your bank or credit card company asking you to confirm your username and password or submit other confidential information about your bank account. You may be sent to a website that resembles your bank’s website and be asked to enter this information. However, these websites are fake, and the people who set them up may use your username, email address, and password to gain access to your bank account and steal your money. Your bank or credit card company will never email you asking you to submit your confidential banking information.
• Someone contacts you to tell you that you have won a prize – a vacation or a boat – and you only must pay a delivery charge or a fee or give your credit card number to receive the prize. If you send the delivery charge, you will never hear from the scam artist again, and if you give your credit card number, you will soon see large charges on your credit card for things you never bought.
• A contractor (builder or carpenter) will go door to door in a neighbourhood, offering to do renovations or repairs. He or she may claim that he or she has noticed something wrong with your house and offers to fix it for a good price. Some may say they have special discounts for seniors. The contractor will request a down payment from you – and never show up to perform the work.
• A letter will come in the mail, inviting you to call a number that starts with 1-900 to learn about the prize you have won. The call will usually last several minutes before you find out the value of the prize is very small. Meanwhile, you have been paying the scam artist for every minute you have been on the telephone, because 1-900 numbers have a per-minute rate that will be charged to your bill.

Be especially careful with your Social Insurance Number (SIN). NEVER give it to anyone except your employer. If you choose, you may give it your bank when asking for certain financial help. SINs are frequently used in identity theft. This is when a person gets access to someone’s SIN, driver’s licence number, or other personal information and uses it to impersonate the victim and to apply for credit cards or loans in the victim’s name.

If you have given your credit card number to someone, and you are concerned that he or she is going to misuse it, contact your credit card company immediately. The company will cancel the card and watch for any charges made by a scam artist.

The RCMP has a guide to scams and frauds: www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/scams-fraudes/index-eng.htm

Fraud Targeting Immigrants

The government of Canada has a special website all about scams and fraud targeting immigrants: Protect Yourself From Immigration Fraud