What is the history of the 1955 Criminal Code Revision?
Last revised June 28, 2024

The first Canadian criminal code was enacted in 1892. The legislation was based on an English bill, drafted in the U.K. in 1878 by James Stephen . The bill died on the order paper following second reading in the House of Commons. By the time the Canadian code was incorporated into the Revised Statutes of Canada 1927, it had grown to 1152 sections. In 1949, a commission was established to revise the code. See below for a chronological history of the revision, from the creation of the revision commission to the draft legislation and eventual enactment of the new code.

Legislative history 1949-1955
February 3, 1949
  • Criminal Code Revision Commission established
  • P.C. 1949 - 527
  • Establishes the commission and appoints members of the committee
September 26, 1950
  • Commission reorganized
  • P.C. 68/4633
May 10, 1951
  • Second commission established
  • P.C. 2275
  • Committee given terms of reference and authorized to prepare draft bill
February 22, 1952
  • Minister of Justice
  • Report of royal commission on the revision of criminal code presented to the Minister of Justice
  • Report contains draft legislation
April 7, 1952
  • House of Commons
  • Report tabled by Minister of Justice
May 12, 1952
  • Senate
  • Bill H-8, An act respecting Criminal Law introduced
  • See comments by Minister of Justice on decision regarding Senate review prior to introduction in House of Commons
May 15, 1952
  • Senate
  • Bill H-8 referred to Senate Banking and Commerce Committee subcommittee
June 20, 1952
  • Senate
  • Report of Senate Banking and Commerce Committee subcommittee
  • “Recommend bill not be further proceeded with at the present session” 
Summer 1952
  • Department of Justice
  • Department of Justice revises bill
November 20, 1952
  • Parliament recalled
  • 7th  session, 21st Parliament
November 24, 1952
  • Senate
  • Bill O (letter), An Act respecting Criminal Law, introduced
  • Identical to House of Commons Bill 93 introduced later in the session
November 25, 1952
  • Senate
  • Bill O referred to Senate Banking and Commerce Committee subcommittee
December 16, 1952
  • Senate
  • Report of Senate Banking and Commerce Committee subcommittee
  • Reported with 116 amendments, see appendix
December 17, 1952
  • Senate
  • Bill O third reading
  • Passed with additional amendments
January 13, 1953
  • House of Commons
  • Bill 93, An Act respecting Criminal Law, introduced
  • Identical to Bill Letter O (Senate)
January 23, 1953
  • House of Commons
  • Bill 93 second reading
  • Text in Hansard summarizes revision process, lists members of committees, contains short discussion on some amendments and acknowledges extensive Senate work on revision
January 23, 1953
  • House of Commons
  • Bill 93 Referred to special committee
February 5, 1953
  • House of Commons
  • First report of the special committee tabled
  • Procedural matters for committee set down
May 1, 1953
  • House of Commons
  • Second report tabled
  • Clause by clause review
May 4, 1953
  • House of Commons
  • Third/final report tabled
Summer 1953
  • Parliamentary session ends
  • Election called.
  • Bill 93 dies on order paper.
November 12, 1953
  • Parliament resumes
  • 1st Session, 22nd Parliament
November 16, 1953
  • House of Commons
  • Bill 7, An Act respecting Criminal Law, introduction & first reading
  • Bill 7 “is the same bill as that which was passed … December 1952 with amendments as recommend by the special committee in May 1953”
December 15, 1953
  • House of Commons
  • Bill 7, 2nd reading
January – April 1954
  • House of Commons
  • Committee of the whole reviews Bill 7
  • Clause by clause debate
April 8, 1954
  • House of Commons
  • Bill 7 passed with amendments
May 1954
  • Senate
  • Bill 7, as amended, referred back to the Senate for approval
  • Debated by Senate and special committee.
  • Passed with “less than a dozen relatively minor amendments”
June 15, 1954
  • House of Commons
  • Bill 7 returned to House of Commons
  • Senate amendments accepted
June 26, 1954
  • Bill 7 receives Royal Assent
  • Criminal Code, S.C.1953-54, c. 51
April 1, 1955
  • Criminal Code, S.C. 1953-54, c. 51 proclamation
  • Sessional paper 66b - 1952
  • Bill missing from our print collection, reprinted Senate Debates, (May 14, 1952) at 226
  • Senate Debates, (May 13, 1952) at 207 (Hon. Stuart S. Garson, Q.C. Minister of Justice)
  • Senate Debates, (June 20, 1952) at 479
  • Senate Debates, (December 16, 1952) at 146
  • Senate Debates, (December 16, 1952) at 153
  • Senate Debates, (December 17, 1952) 161 to 168
  • House of Commons Debates (January 13, 1953) at 931
  • House of Commons Debates (January 23, 1953) 1272 to 1278, 1287 to 1302
  • House of Commons Debates (January 23, 1953) 1272 to 1276, 1301 to 1302
  • House of Commons Debates (January 23, 1953) at 1303
  • Royal Commission Report reprint, p. 47
  • Royal Commission Report reprint, p. 48
  • Royal Commission Report reprint, p.61
  • House of Commons Debates, 1953-54 Session page 32
  • House of Commons Debates, 1953-54 Session page 946 (Hon. Stuart S. Garson, Q.C.)
  • House of Commons Debates, 1953-54 Session p.939-943 (Hon. Stuart S. Garson, Q.C.)
  • House of Commons Debates, 1953-54 Session, p. 3920-3927
  • MacLeod, A.J. and Martin, J. C. The Revision of the Criminal Code, (1955) 33 Canadian Bar Review 3
  • House of Commons Debates, 1953-54 Session, p. 5973-5979
  • Canada Gazette. 1954.I.3297, 1954.10.2, also printed in extra 1954.9.20

 

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