If you are a business owner, you will likely encounter overdue debt on a very routine basis. A huge number of customers – both individuals and other businesses – will inevitably forget, not bother, or refuse to pay their bills.
It’s easy enough to deal with the forgetful procrastinators with a couple of firmly worded overdue notices, but for those who still don’t pay, there is a time to turn things over the a debt collection agency.
When it becomes clear that a customer doesn’t intend to pay you of their own free will, turning things over to another party probably isn’t a bad idea. For example, customers that flatly deny owing you money, despite your records, are very difficult to deal with without help.
A customer making repeated, groundless claims and complaints for the sole reason of getting out of a payment, is another tell-tale sign that your business may have a problem on its hands. In cases like this, it is a good idea to send a final warning notice, attempting to create a fair repayment plan. If no action is taken by the other party, it is then time to seek help from professional debt collectors.
Another obvious sign of trouble is when a delinquent debtor changes their address or telephone number without notifying you or providing forwarding information. In cases like this, you should immediately get assistance from an agency that is willing to track down the customer and act upon the debt.
Civil Forfeiture and the Standard of Proof
Unlike criminal proceedings, where an accused person must be presumed innocent until proven guilty and only punished once their guilt has been proven beyond a reasonable doubt, civil forfeiture proceedings operate on the balance of probabilities, meaning that the state must merely demonstrate that an individual has probably done something illegal in order to obtain forfeiture of their property.
The Right to Counsel in Canada
Section 10(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms preserves the right of a detained individual to contact counsel immediately upon arrest or detention, and simultaneously imposes a duty upon police to immediately inform individuals that they have this right.
Democratic Rights: A Broad Charter Guarantee
Democratic Rights, and specifically the right to vote in provincial and federal elections, enjoy broad constitutional protection in Canada, pursuant to Section 3 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This section states that “Every citizen of Canada has the right to vote in an election of the members of the House of Commons or of a legislative assembly and to be qualified for membership therein.”
