An Ontario court has thrown out nearly 250 appeals of driving offence convictions, ruling they were part of a deliberate effort by a paralegal to exploit the province’s demerit point system and delay convictions long enough to erase points from his clients’ records.
Justice Louis P. Strezos said in two rulings, released in April and August, that Adelin-Bogdan Mocanu, a Newmarket-based paralegal and operator of Ticket Justice, filed 242 meritless appeals over the past two years on behalf of clients charged under the Highway Traffic Act (HTA).
“What is astounding about the notices of appeal is that most of them stated that the defendant was not guilty, wanted a trial or vaguely stated ‘as the transcripts may reveal,’” Strezos wrote. “There was never any intention to proceed with the appeals. Not one of them.”
Prosecutors noticed an “unusual pattern” in January: defendants would plead guilty, file an appeal, then take no further action. On June 11, Strezos dismissed all of the appeals together, ruling the practice was an abuse of process that wasted four days of court time and “countless hours” of staff resources.
Under Ontario’s system, demerit points are recorded from the date of conviction — not the date of the offence — and are removed two years after the offence date. By filing appeals, Mocanu delayed the convictions from taking effect, effectively letting more than half of his clients escape demerit points entirely.
“This never should have happened,” Strezos wrote, adding that public safety was put at risk when driving records remained artificially clean — information crucial to bail and sentencing decisions, particularly in impaired driving cases.
In a separate June decision in Peel Region, Justice Richard Quon said filing appeals “without a reasonable basis” could amount to obstructing the course of justice, hinting at potential criminal liability though no such determination has yet been made.
The Law Society Tribunal has immediately suspended Mocanu’s licence on an interlocutory basis, citing a “significant risk of harm” to the public and the administration of justice. The suspension is not yet a finding of misconduct, but the tribunal is investigating more than a dozen allegations, including a “pattern of deliberate deception” and complaints about possible misappropriation of client funds.
Tribunal records show Mocanu has been suspended twice before for unrelated professional misconduct since becoming licensed in 2008.
Ontario’s transportation ministry said it is reviewing legislative options to prevent future abuse of the demerit point system. “We are working to address this and will be following the necessary processes to do so,” ministry spokesperson Dakota Brasier said.
Mocanu did not respond to requests for comment.