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Statistics Canada - Government of Canada
Appendix 3 Provincial and Territorial domestic violence legislation
Province or Territory
Family violence legislation
Definition of family violence in the legislation
Components of the legislation
Stage in the legislative process
Sask. Victims of Domestic Violence Act Domestic violence is described as (i) any intentional or reckless act or omission that causes bodily harm or damage to property; (ii) any act or threatened act that causes a reasonable fear of bodily harm or damage to property; (iii) forced confinement; or (iv) sexual abuse. The purpose was to improve the immediate and long-term criminal justice response to the victims of domestic violence. There are three components to the Act: emergency intervention orders, victim assistance orders, and warrants of entry. Proclaimed February 1995
P.E.I. Victims of Family Violence Act Family violence includes violence against that person by any other person with whom that person is, or has been, in a family relationship; violence is (a) any assault of the victim; (b) any reckless act or omission that causes injury to the victim or damage to property; (c) any act or threat that causes a reasonable fear of injury to the victim or damage to property; (d) forced confinement of the victim; (e) actions or threats of sexual abuse, physical abuse, or emotional abuse of the victim (Victims of Family Violence Act) The purpose of the Act is to protect the victims of family violence by improving the criminal justice response to family violence. There are two main components of the Act: emergency protection orders and victim assistance orders. Proclaimed December 1996
Man. The Domestic Violence and Stalking Act Domestic violence occurs when a person is subjected by a cohabitant of the person to (a) an intentional, reckless or threatened act or omission that causes bodily harm or damage to property: (b) an intentional, reckless or threatened act or omission that causes a reasonable fear of bodily harm or damage to property; (c) conduct that reasonable, in all circumstances, constitutes psychological or emotional abuse; (d) forced confinement; or (e) sexual abuse. The objective of the Act is to provide quick and simple protection to victims as well as to prevent further occurrences of domestice violence and stalking. The Act has two main components: protection orders by designated justices of the peace, prevention orders by the court of the Queen’s bench. The Act also contains the tort of stalking which allows the victim to sue the stalker for compensation.

Proclaimed September 1999
Amended 2005

Alta. Protection Against Family Violence Act Family violence includes (i) any intentional or reckless act or omission that causes injury or property damage and that intimidates or harms a family member, (ii) any act or threatened act that intimidates a family member by creating a reasonable fear of property damage or injury to a family member, (iii) forced confinement, (iv) sexual abuse and stalking.

The purpose of the Act is to provide protection to victims of family violence and to improve the justice system’s response to family violence.

There are three main components to the Act: emergency protection orders, Queen’s Bench protection orders and other provisions, including warrant permitting entry.

Proclaimed June 1999. Amended 2006. Received Royal Assent March 2006 and comes into force November 2006.
Y.T. Family Violence Prevention Act Family violence includes persons who have been cohabitants. Family violence is identified as (a) any intentional or reckless act or omission that causes bodily harm or damage to property; (b) any act or threatened act that causes a reasonable fear of bodily harm or of damage to property; (c) forced confinement; (d) sexual abuse; or (e) depriving a person of food, clothing, medical attention, shelter, transportation, or other necessaries of life.

The purpose of this Act is to recognize that family violence is a serious problem, to improve legal responses to assist the victims of family violence, to recognize the difficulty that victims encounter when they must leave their home to escape abuse and to prevent family violence. There are three main components: emergency intervention orders, victim’s assistance order, and warrant to authorize entering premises.

 

Proclaimed November 1999

 

Recent additions to the Act but still before the legislature as of November 2005 were increases to the penalties for second and subsequent charges for family violence. Other changes included an amendment to the definition of Family Violence which would include psychological and emotional abuse. Tabled in the Yukon legislature October 2005
N.W.T. Protection Against Family Violence Act Domestic violence is described as (a) any intentional or reckless act or omission that causes bodily harm or damage to property;
(b) an intentional, reckless or threatened at or omission that: (i) causes the applicant to fear for his or her safety;(ii) causes the applicant to fear for the safety of any child of the applicant or any child who is in the care of the applicant, or (iii)causes any child of the applicant or any child who is in the care of the applicant to fear for his or her safety;
(c) sexual abuse
d) forcible confinement; or
(e) psychological, emotional or financial abuse that causes harm or the fear of harm to the applicant, any child of the applicant of any child who is in the care of the applicant.

The purpose of the legislation is to improve the immediate and long-term judicial response to victims of domestic violence. There are three components to the Act:

  • emergency protection orders,
  • protection orders,
  • warrants of entry.
Proclaimed April, 2005
N.L. Family Violence Protection Act
N.S. Domestic Violence Intervention Act Domestic violence is (i) an assault that consists of the intentional application of force that causes the victim to fear for his or her safety, but does not include any act committed in self-defence; (ii) an act or omission or threatened act or omission that causes a reasonable fear of bodily harm or damage to property; (iii) forced physical confinement; (iv) sexual assault, sexual exploitation or sexual molestation, or the threat of sexual assault, sexual exploitation or sexual molestation or; (v) a series of acts that collectively causes the victim to fear for his or her safety, including following, contacting, communicating with, observing or recording any person.   Received royal assent December 2005; came into force July 2006