New Civil Forfeiture and Justice Reforms

Summary#

This bill updates several justice laws in Nova Scotia. Its main goal is to replace and expand the civil forfeiture system (taking property linked to crime in civil court) and to streamline some justice services. It also makes changes to child support, jury service, death review committees, probate filings, and the Order of Nova Scotia.

• Creates a new Civil Forfeiture Act with stronger tools to freeze and forfeit property tied to unlawful activity, including “unexplained wealth orders.”
• Allows a faster, notice-based “administrative forfeiture” for seized cash and other personal items valued up to about $125,000 when no one disputes the claim.
• Sets up a Director of Civil Forfeiture and a Forfeiture Account to fund victim services, crime prevention, and police training.
• Lets a provincial child support service calculate or recalculate child support (including some cross‑border and divorce cases) without going to court.
• Lets people with a pardon (record suspension) serve on juries; eases some probate paperwork; updates who can chair fatality review committees; modernizes the Order of Nova Scotia’s rules.

What it means for you#

• Property owners and residents

  • Police-seized cash, cars, crypto, and other property can be frozen and, if linked to unlawful activity, forfeited in civil court. This can happen even if there is no criminal charge, using a “more likely than not” standard.
  • For cash or other personal property worth up to about $125,000, the province can forfeit it by giving notice (mail and a public website). If no one files a dispute by the deadline (at least 30 days), it is automatically forfeited.
  • If you miss the deadline, you may still sue within two years to recover your interest, but you must meet set tests to show you are an innocent owner.
  • The law presumes certain things connect property to crime (for example: cash bundled unlike bank practice or found near illegal drugs; vehicles with hidden compartments, certain guns, or used to flee police; buildings with drugs consistent with trafficking). You can present evidence to rebut these.
  • Innocent co-owners and prior registered interest holders (like banks) can ask the court to protect their share.

• People facing an unexplained wealth order

  • If you own or control property worth over $125,000 and are suspected of ties to unlawful activity without enough lawful income to explain it, the court can order you to explain how you got it and provide records. You can be examined on your answers.
  • Not responding, lying, or giving fake documents can trigger a presumption your property is crime-related and is also an offence (fines and possible jail up to six months).

• Vehicle owners and lenders

  • If a financed vehicle is forfeited, the province will sell it and deduct costs. Any extra can go to qualifying lenders if they file the right claim. Some lender rights are paused during proceedings and can end on forfeiture.

• Parents and caregivers (child support)

  • When only child support is at issue, a Nova Scotia child support service may set or recalculate the amount instead of a judge, including in cases sent from other provinces.
  • Nova Scotia can also agree with the federal government to let the service set or change support amounts in Divorce Act cases using federal guidelines. This is meant to be faster and more consistent.

• People with criminal records

  • A past conviction no longer bars you from jury duty if you have a pardon (record suspension).

• Families dealing with deaths under review

  • After consulting the Chief Medical Examiner, the Minister can name someone else to chair a fatality review committee, if needed.

• People handling estates

  • Some probate documents can be sworn before a commissioner of oaths, which can make filing simpler and quicker.

• Community groups and police

  • Money from forfeited assets can support victims of crime, crime prevention, and police training. An annual report on the Forfeiture Account must be tabled in the legislature.

Expenses#

No publicly available information.

Proponents' View#

• Targets organized crime by taking away profits and tools, which they say improves public safety.
• Unexplained wealth orders focus on high‑value assets without waiting for a criminal conviction, helping to disrupt criminal networks.
• Administrative forfeiture speeds up small cases, reduces court time, and saves costs.
• Includes safeguards for innocent owners and lenders through court “protection orders” and a right to sue if someone missed the notice deadline.
• Directs forfeiture proceeds to victims, prevention, and police training, with annual public reporting.
• Child support decisions by a service can be faster, cheaper, and more consistent across provinces and in divorce cases.
• Lets rehabilitated people with pardons serve on juries, supporting reintegration.

Opponents' View#

• Allows property to be taken without a criminal conviction and uses a lower proof standard; critics say this risks unfairly shifting the burden onto owners.
• Administrative forfeiture can happen by default if someone misses a short deadline or never gets notice; this may harm people with low incomes, language barriers, or limited legal help.
• Broad information‑gathering powers and gag orders for financial institutions raise privacy and transparency concerns.
• Letting forfeiture proceeds fund justice programs could create “policing for profit” incentives.
• Minister’s power to appoint fatality review chairs may reduce the independence of those committees.
• Child support done outside court could make appeals or unique circumstances harder to address; much will depend on clear, fair regulations and notices.