14 lawyers · Hastings County (Belleville), Peel Region, United Counties of Leeds and Grenville and 10 more locations
One of 23 law firms listed in Belleville.
Accepts Legal Aid
Free consultation
Virtual appointmentsClients rate this firm highly on Google.
Aitken Robertson defends people facing criminal charges anywhere in Ontario, and impaired driving and DUI cases make up most of its work. Beyond drinking and driving, its lawyers take on drug charges, sexual and domestic assault allegations, internet offences, theft and fraud, and the firm also handles Highway Traffic Act tickets and other provincial offences.
The practice traces back to Richard Aitken, who earned a history degree at Trent University in 1979 and a J.D. from Osgoode Hall in 1982, then was called to the Ontario bar in 1984. Together, the firm's criminal lawyers have more than 100 years of experience representing clients in Ontario. Some of them are former Crown Attorneys, and some have trained extensively on the instruments used for alcohol breath tests.
Clients are represented by a mix of criminal lawyers and licensed paralegals. A few of the lawyers on the team, Edmund Chan and Edwin Boeve among them, are sole practitioners who practise in affiliation with the professional corporation. The office network is wide: Peterborough's Charlotte Street, Kingston and Cornwall to the east, Hamilton and London to the west, and more in between. The firm covers the whole province as a matter of routine and doesn't bill for travel time or mileage.
Getting started costs nothing, since the first 30-minute consultation is free for anyone in Ontario, and evening and weekend hours are available. There's no hourly billing, payment plans carry no interest, and in some cases a Legal Aid certificate can be considered.
Richard Aitken had no job offers after being called in 1984, and staying in the hometown mattered, so opening a solo practice was the only route. For two decades alongside that practice, the Ministry of the Attorney General retained Aitken as a part-time Assistant Crown Attorney. Over the years the work leaned more and more toward DUI defence, which is still its focus.
By 2003 the firm was practising as Aitken Robertson, Barristers & Solicitors, with two lawyers, Richard J. Aitken and D. Edwin Boeve, and a criminal defence practice at trial and on appeal that centred on drinking and driving cases. It then had offices on Celina Street in Oshawa, Water Street in Peterborough and Kent Street West in Lindsay. The Lindsay office still sits at 189 Kent Street West, and Edwin Boeve continues to practise in affiliation with the firm.
Drinking and driving charges are the core of the practice. Some of the lawyers are trained Breath Technicians who've completed some of the same training as police, and every year the team attends seminars and training sessions to keep up with the changing technicalities of these offences.
The firm defends sexual and domestic assault allegations, drug charges, internet offences, theft and fraud, along with young offender matters and impaired boating. Edmund Chan takes on some of the firm's more serious files, such as criminal negligence causing death and child pornography cases, and Sudine Riley, who joined in 2023, has a particular focus on sexual offence charges.
Aitken Robertson works at every level of court, from provincial offences up to the Supreme Court of Canada. Lawyers at or associated with the office have argued appeals in the Ontario Court of Justice, the Superior Court of Justice, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada.
Highway Traffic Act and provincial offence charges go to the firm's Ticket Clinic, where paralegals defend people who've received a traffic ticket in Ontario.
In certain scenarios there are legal pathways to soften the repercussions of a DUI conviction for permanent and temporary residents. Aitken Robertson negotiates alternate resolutions and plea agreements with the Crown that don't affect a permanent or temporary resident's immigration status. Edwin Boeve has also appeared before the Federal Court of Canada on immigration appeals.
Aitken Robertson's team has developed the know-how to appear for clients in front of several administrative tribunals.
Accessible parking
LGBTQ+ friendly
Virtual appointments
By appointment
In-person services
Flat fee
Free consultation
Legal aidAitken Robertson runs on a team model: every lawyer plays an active part in each case, so a client paying for one lawyer gets the views of several. The firm treats a thorough investigation by qualified specialists as essential, and each file is checked for ways to exclude police evidence or have the Crown's case dismissed on legal or technical grounds.
Lawyers can go to court in a client's place so the client doesn't lose time at work. Fees are set per stage of the matter rather than by the hour, and the total can be spread over instalments from the start of a case to its end.
In Peterborough, the office is at 263 Charlotte Street, one of the city's main commercial streets. Charlotte's eastern end curves north at Water Street, just east of the Otonabee River.
The Belleville office is in Suite 201 at 199 Front Street, and Elise Brass practises in both the Belleville and Kingston areas.
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