Can an admission be withdrawn in a criminal matter?
Alberta, Canada
The following excerpt is from Heikkila v. Apex Land Corporation, 2009 ABQB 12 (CanLII):
The case law indicates that admissions, when legal in nature, can be withdrawn. The portion of the admission primarily relied upon by the defendant is the statement that “any other material steps in order to advance the matter” [have not been taken]. It is a legal conclusion and therefore can be withdrawn. However, even if it could not be withdrawn, the admission does not meet the requirements of rule 244.1, which speak not of “steps” but of a “thing.” Considerable judicial ink has been spent confirming that while a step is a thing, a thing is not limited to a step: See Alberta v. Morasch 2000 ABCA 24 at paragraph 12.
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