Historic sexual and abortion offences added

Summary#

This is the Order Amending the Schedule to the Expungement of Historically Unjust Convictions Act (SOR/2023-30). It adds a long list of old sex- and pregnancy-related offences (including some military offences) to the schedule of the Expungement of Historically Unjust Convictions Act, marking them as historical injustices and bringing them into the Act’s scope. The order was registered on February 17, 2023 and published in the Canada Gazette on March 1, 2023.

What it does#

• Adds a set of historical offences to the schedule of the Expungement of Historically Unjust Convictions Act. Those added include offences (under old versions of the Criminal Code) about:
  • common bawdy-houses (prostituted premises);
  • doing an indecent act and other public indecency offences (openly exposing or exhibiting indecent shows);
  • immoral, indecent or obscene theatre or performance material;
  • offences relating to nudity;
  • procuring a miscarriage (both by a third party and by a pregnant person);
  • means or methods for preventing conception or causing an abortion/miscarriage; and
  • supplying drugs or instruments to procure a miscarriage.
• Also covers any equivalent offences under the National Defence Act or earlier versions of that Act for the same conduct.
• The listed offences come from historical Criminal Code sections going back to around 1892 through 1985.
• The order took effect on the day it was registered (February 17, 2023).

Who's affected#

• Individuals who were convicted in Canada of the specific historical offences listed above.
• People who received military convictions for the same kinds of acts under the National Defence Act.
• Legal clinics, community groups and lawyers who help with record clearing and applications under the Expungement of Historically Unjust Convictions Act.
• It is not clear from the order itself exactly which past convictions will or will not qualify in every case; eligibility and the process depend on the rules and procedures under the Expungement of Historically Unjust Convictions Act.

Why it matters#

• The government is officially recognizing that criminalizing these activities in the past was a historical injustice.
• For people with such convictions, being on the schedule is a key step toward having those records considered for expungement under the Act. That can matter in everyday life — for example, for job applications, travel, housing or removing the stigma of a criminal record.
• The change focuses on older laws and past prosecutions. It does not by itself create or change current criminal law; it changes which historical convictions the expungement process will look at.