Bill C-238 Restitution Orders

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C-238 An Act to Amend the Criminal Code (Restitution Orders)

Bill Type: Private Member’s Bill

Bill Sponsor: Viviane Lapointe (Sudbury)

Status: Introduced — 1st Reading, September 22, 2025. This Bill hasn't passed yet.

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WHO GAINS POWER

  • Sentencing judges gain authority to order offenders to pay restitution directly to community organizations that provide front-line services — not just to individual victims
  • Community organizations (shelters, harm reduction programs, emergency services, victim support services) gain standing to receive court-ordered restitution for the first time
  • Courts gain a defined list of eligible expenses — removing ambiguity about what qualifies for restitution in these cases

WHO LOSES POWER

  • Offenders convicted of human trafficking or drug trafficking offences lose the ability to avoid financial accountability to the communities their crimes damaged
  • ⚠️ Restitution is only available if the amount is "readily ascertainable" — organizations that cannot precisely document their costs may be unable to claim restitution even if the harm is real

WHO GAINS MONEY

  • Community organizations providing emergency shelter, medical services, harm reduction programs, security, mental health supports and increased operational capacity may receive direct restitution payments from offenders

WHO LOSES MONEY

  • Offenders convicted under human trafficking or drug trafficking provisions face additional financial penalties on top of any existing restitution orders
  • ⚠️ Restitution orders are notoriously difficult to collect — the Bill creates the right to restitution but does not create a mechanism to enforce collection if the offender cannot or will not pay

WHAT QUALIFIES

  • Emergency shelter and medical services, including overdose reversal supplies
  • Harm reduction programs, including overdose and infectious disease prevention
  • Security measures, including security services and equipment
  • Counselling and mental health supports for staff who experience workplace trauma
  • Increased operational costs, including hiring additional or specialized personnel and specialized training

THE CATCH

  • This Bill applies only to human trafficking and drug trafficking offences — not to other crimes that may also burden community organizations
  • Only organizations (not individuals) can claim under this provision
  • Expenses outside the five defined categories do not qualify
  • ⚠️ "Front-line services" and "community" are not defined in the Bill — courts will determine which organizations qualify
  • ⚠️ No enforcement mechanism is created by this Bill— if an offender does not pay the restitution order, the organization must pursue collection through civil court at their own expense. The Bill creates the right but not the remedy.

Here's how it works in practice under the current Criminal Code:

  • A restitution order is a court order — but it's civil in nature, meaning if the offender doesn't pay, the organization has to pursue collection themselves through civil court
  • Government does not automatically step in to collect or guarantee payment
  • The offender faces no additional criminal penalty for failing to pay restitution
  • The organization can register the order as a civil judgment and pursue wages, bank accounts or assets — but only if the offender has any
  • There is no mechanism in this Bill to extend the payment period, substitute community service, or convert unpaid restitution into additional sentence time

So the honest answer is: if the offender is broke, incarcerated with no assets, or simply refuses — the organization is largely on its own. The Bill creates the right but not the remedy.

Source: Bill C-238 — An Act to amend the Criminal Code (restitution orders), 45th Parliament, 1st Session