Getting “back on track” is generally a good thing. In many cases, it is necessary to get back on track after a career setback, academic difficulties, financial instability, relationship troubles or other challenges in one’s life.
Speaking of life’s challenges, criminal driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol and/or drug charges can significantly disrupt your life, but you can get back on track if you successfully beat the charges. However, if the Government of Ontario has mandated that you get “Back on Track,” it means you were convicted of DUI. A conviction carries additional life-disrupting challenges, including this mandatory enrollment in the government’s remedial alcohol/drug education or treatment program.
If you’ve been arrested for DUI in the Greater Toronto Area, skilled criminal defence DUI lawyers — such as those at Mass Tsang — may be able to beat the charges to get you back on track organically. With a DUI conviction, the Ontario government will force you to get back on track on their terms. Let’s look closer at Ontario’s Back on Track program and what it will mean if an Ontario court convicts you of DUI-related charges.
With legislation added to the Highway Safety Act, The Ontario government initiated the Back on Track program in 1998, with a stated goal to “help people learn to separate drinking and other drug use from driving.” The provincial law mandates that anyone convicted of a Criminal Code DUI offence must enroll in and complete this remedial measures program before their driver’s license can be reinstated. Those who fail to complete all program elements face ongoing license suspension until completed and may be forced to start from scratch with re-enrollment in the program and payment of its associated fees.
The law also mandates that drivers who are cited for two or more alcohol- or drug-related administrative license suspensions are subject to Back on Track enrollment. Additionally, judges can order Back on Track enrollment for those convicted of certain careless or dangerous driving offences. Administrative fees for Back on Track enrollment are $894 for those convicted of DUI and $344 for administrative suspension participants. However, those with three or more administrative suspensions are subject to the full $894 fee.
The Back on Track program is conducted in three stages. The first step in the process for those convicted of DUI is to undergo a one-hour assessment to determine whether they must enroll in the 16-hour treatment workshop or eight-hour educational workshop. Administrative suspension participants with two suspensions can skip this stage, as they are only mandated to take the eight-hour workshop. Those with three or more suspensions must undergo the assessment.
The eight-hour educational workshop is conducted with presentations, exercises, discussions, and breakout group sessions. Primary topics covered include:
The 16-hour treatment workshop involves classroom activities similar to the educational program and a personal planning session. The treatment workshop helps participants:
The last stage requires participants to attend a 30-minute follow-up interview six months after completing the proscribed workshop. The interview assesses the participant’s success in meeting workshop goals and reinforces strategies that can help them avoid drinking, drugs, and impaired driving.
Participants must vigorously follow program rules and requirements while attending Back on Track sessions. These include:
Failure to meet program requirements will force you to re-enroll and re-start the Back on Track program from scratch. If you provide 24-hour notice, you can miss a workshop session and take a make-up one. A death in the immediate family, serious illness, and severe weather are the only justifiable reasons for missing a session without 24 hours’ notice.
Completing the Back on Track program takes time, so participants should begin the process as soon as possible to avoid delays in driver’s license reinstatement. You can register for the program seven days after a DUI conviction or administrative suspension and should do so as soon as possible. Once registered, it can take administrative suspension participants up to 90 days to complete the program and up to 11 months for those with a criminal DUI conviction.
Oh, and don’t forget about all the other aggravations that come with a criminal DUI conviction, such as:
Don’t let the government force you to “Get Back on Track,” rely on the competence of a skilled criminal defence lawyer to help you beat the charges and get back on track organically. With decades of successful Greater Toronto Area DUI defence, the criminal lawyers of Mass Tsang can help you strategize the most effective DUI defence. If you or a loved one is facing impaired driving-related legal issues in the GTA, contact Mass Tsang today .
