A former lieutenant-governor of Ontario has been charged with six counts of wilfully exceeding federal political donation limits, including contributing more than legally allowed to Justin Trudeau and a rival candidate during the 2013 Liberal leadership contest.

The charges against Henry N.R. Jackman, widely known as Hal, span a period of five years from 2008 to 2013.

They were laid today by the commissioner of Canada elections, Yves Cote, at the request of the director of public prosecutions.

Cote is not disclosing many details about the charges, including which political parties were involved. A spokeswoman for the commissioner says they involve donations to multiple parties, their riding associations and candidates.

The commissioner has the discretion to deal with infractions of the Canada Elections Act without laying charges. He can issue letters of caution or conclude what's known as compliance agreements, in which the offender publicly admits responsibility for breaking the law but does not wind up with a record of conviction.

Longtime fundraiser for Progressive Conservatives

The commissioner's office would not elaborate on why Cote has chosen to formally charge the 84-year-old Jackman. However, the commissioner's website explains that the choice of how to deal with infractions is based on such factors as the seriousness of the acts, the level of sophistication of the alleged offender, the prevalence of the type of offences involved and the level of co-operation offered by the alleged offender.

Jackman was a longtime federal fundraiser for the Progressive Conservatives. He was appointed lieutenant-governor of Ontario in 1991 by then-prime minister Brian Mulroney and served in that role until 1997.

Elections Canada's contributions database shows he's given generously for years to both the Conservative and Liberal parties, as well as both parties' candidates and riding associations.

Among those donations was a $1,200 contribution to Trudeau during the 2013 Liberal leadership contest and an equal donation to rival leadership contender Deborah Coyne.

That appears to be the basis for the sixth charge against Jackman, which states that between Dec. 1, 2012 and Dec. 31, 2013, he wilfully donated to contestants in "a particular leadership contest," the total of which exceeded the maximum allowable contribution of $1,200.

The other charges include, exceeding the donation limit for a candidate or riding association in 2008 and 2011, and exceeding the limit for riding associations in 2010 and 2012.