The Supreme Court of Canada says a reasonable person should foresee the risk of driving almost three times the speed limit towards a major city intersection.
The decision today (March 27) comes in the case of Ken Chung, who hit and killed a driver in Vancouver in November 2015.
Chung, who was driving at 140 km/h in a 50 km/h zone, was acquitted at trial of dangerous driving causing death.
The judge found Chung's speeding was only momentary and therefore amounted to a lapse of judgment rather than a significant departure from the standard of a reasonably prudent driver.
An appeal court overturned the decision and entered a conviction, prompting Chung to take his case to the Supreme Court.
In its decision, the high court says the trial judge's fixation on the momentariness of the speeding was an error of law.
