The law behind your job

By the end of this lesson you can name the law that governs liquor service in Ontario and say who enforces it. Every rule in this course comes from one of the documents below. Learn their names now and the rest of the course reads as one system.

Ontario's liquor law

The Liquor Licence and Control Act, 2019 is Ontario's liquor law. It came into force on 29 November 2021 (Registrar's Interim Standards and Requirements for Liquor, Introduction). On the same day it repealed the old Liquor Licence Act (Liquor Licence and Control Act, 2019, s. 85).

Regulations under the Act carry the detail, including these two:

• O. Reg. 745/21 (General) covers training courses, the fetal alcohol spectrum disorder warning sign (s. 24), and other general matters.
• O. Reg. 746/21 (Licensing) covers the licence classes and the conduct rules attached to them, including the identification check in section 9.

The third document is the Registrar's Interim Standards. Section 24 of the Act lets the Registrar set standards and requirements, including training. Section 24 (6) says every licensee and permit holder shall comply with them. They bind your employer even though they are not regulations.

How to hear a citation

Rules arrive in a fixed shape: a number, then the document it sits in. "Section 32 of the Act" means section 32 of the Liquor Licence and Control Act, 2019, which bans selling liquor to a person who is or appears to be intoxicated. "Section 9 of the licensing regulation" means section 9 of O. Reg. 746/21, the rule about inspecting identification. A number with a dot, like standard 4.1, points to the Registrar's Interim Standards.

Who runs the system

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (the AGCO) regulates liquor in this province. The Registrar is the official who issues licences and permits, sets the standards, and enforces them. Both the AGCO and the Registrar are defined under the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario Act, 2019 (Registrar's Interim Standards, Definitions).

Section 2 (1) of the Act sets the basic rule. Unless a licence or permit allows it, no person shall, among other things:

• Keep for sale, offer for sale or sell liquor
• Serve or offer to serve liquor in a public place
• Take or solicit orders for the sale of liquor
• Deliver liquor for a fee

Your workplace does those things under a licence or permit from the Registrar. Section 3 (1) of the Act lists the categories a person may apply for, including a licence to operate a liquor consumption premises, a licence to operate a retail store, and a licence to deliver. A bar, a bottle shop and a delivery service each work under a different one.

Permits cover one-off events. Section 16 (1) of the Act lets a person apply for a permit to sell, serve or allow the consumption of liquor on a prescribed special occasion or another prescribed event. Section 23 of the Act lets an inspector or investigator revoke that permit while the event is still running, effective immediately.

The rule that created this test

Standard 4.1 of the Registrar's Interim Standards is the reason you are studying. All licensees shall make sure the following people hold a valid certificate showing they completed a training course approved by the AGCO Board:

• Every person involved in the sale, service, sampling or delivery of liquor or in taking orders for the sale of liquor
• Security staff whom the licensee employs or, in the case of a stadium, uses
• Employees involved in the sale and service of liquor from motorized vending carts, as well as course marshals, for Golf Course Endorsement holders
• Every large quadricycle chauffeur

The AGCO states that valid certification is legally required under this standard (AGCO, Responsible liquor sale, service and delivery training). Read the first bullet again. It covers taking an order and delivering the bottle, not only pouring the drink. The person taking liquor orders by phone needs the certificate too.

Timing and validity

Get certified before you start. Smart Serve states that anyone involved in selling, serving, delivering or offering samples of alcohol, including full-time, part-time, contract employees and volunteers, must complete the training "prior to their first day" (facts.md).

Certificates are valid for 5 years from the date of issue (facts.md). Recertify before your certificate expires. Recertification after expiry costs more, so set a calendar reminder.

Why this matters to you

The AGCO recommends that licensees keep copies of their staff certifications. AGCO inspectors may ask a licensee for proof of a staff member's certification at any time (AGCO, Responsible liquor sale, service and delivery training). Your certificate is your employer's evidence, and an inspector can ask for it on any ordinary shift.

The consequences land on the licence. Under section 13 (1) (b) of the Act, the Registrar may propose to refuse to renew, suspend or revoke a licence if the licensee has contravened the Act, the regulations, the Registrar's standards or a licence condition. An uncertified server is a compliance problem for the business that hired them.

The trap to expect on the test

The test likes name swaps. It may offer the Liquor Licence Act as the current law. The current law is the Liquor Licence and Control Act, 2019, in force since 29 November 2021.

Another swap mixes up the regulator and the trainer. The AGCO makes and enforces the rules through the Registrar. Smart Serve runs a training program that the AGCO Board approved. Smart Serve does not write the law or inspect your bar.

Recap

• The Liquor Licence and Control Act, 2019 is Ontario's liquor law, in force since 29 November 2021. It replaced the Liquor Licence Act.
• The detail sits in O. Reg. 745/21 (General), O. Reg. 746/21 (Licensing), and the Registrar's Interim Standards made under section 24 of the Act.
• The AGCO regulates liquor. The Registrar issues licences and permits, sets the standards, and enforces them.
• Section 2 (1) of the Act requires a licence or permit for several acts, including selling, serving, taking orders and delivering for a fee.
• Standard 4.1 requires approved training for everyone who sells, serves, samples, delivers or takes orders for liquor, plus security staff, vending-cart staff, golf course marshals and large quadricycle chauffeurs.
• Certify before your first day. Certificates last 5 years. Recertify before yours expires.
• AGCO inspectors can ask your employer for proof of your certification at any time.