Law in Quebec

News about Quebec legal developments

Legal business

  • 73 Quebec lawyers suspended for failing to complete refresher courses

    Bernard Valcourt, federal Minister of Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, was one of three lawyers recently suspended by the Law Society of New Brunswick for failing to meet the minimum requirements for continuing education and professional development.

    In Quebec the number is far more imposing. According to the recently published 2011-2012 annual report by Quebec’s law society 73 lawyers were suspended for failing to complete at least 30 hours of approved training during a two-year compliance period. Seventy-two other lawyers were stricken off the roll for either failing to pay annual membership fees, failing to enroll or pay into the professional liability fund.The disbarred members will now have to pay a fee and submit a formal request to be reinstated, which will be examined by the bar’s readmissions committee.

    The Barreau du Québec’s syndic, or investigating officer, was kept busy. His department lodged a complaint with the disciplinary council against 57 lawyers and dismissed 1,443 others it investigated.

    The Barreau’s disciplinary committee rejected 17 complaints, found 27 respondents guilty and imposed sanctions in 31 cases.

    From April 1, 2011 to March 31, 2012, the disciplinary committee meted out

      • a suspension of three months or less in 30 cases;
      • a suspension of less than a year in 54 cases,
      • a suspension lasting between one and five years in 25 cases
      • a suspension from five to ten years in three cases.

    The disciplinary committee also imposed a fine of less than $1,000 in 10 cases and handed a fine of more than $1,000 in 19 cases.

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  • Another labour dispute strikes Quebec’s justice system

    The list of actors in the Quebec justice system who have grievances against the Quebec government continues to flourish.

    Judges sitting on the (TAQ), a specialized court that deals with administrative decisions, recently walked out for a few hours after labour negotiations with the government reached an impasse. In early May, nine of ten coordinating judges, responsible for ensuring rapid and efficient processing of the proceedings, resigned from their administrative duties.

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  • Face of the profession will change 10 years from now, predicts Quebec law society

    Quebec’s legal landscape, spurred by an ageing population, globalization and rapid advances in information technology, is expected to dramatically change by the turn of the decade, with white male baby-boomers making way for women and minorities battling over an increasingly specialized legal services marketplace, forecasts the province’s legal society in a revealing portrait of the profession.

    Over the next 10 years more than 6,100 new lawyers are expected to join the ranks of the Barreau du Québec for a total of 30,381, up from the current 24,225, representing a 2.3 per cent increase, according to a recently published 122-page report entitled “Lawyers in Private Practice in 2021.”

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  • 70 Quebec lawyers disbarred for failing to complete refresher courses

    When the Quebec law society introduced a mandatory legal education program two years ago, even noted Montreal lawyer Gérald Tremblay and head of the Barreau du Québec at the time admitted that “it was not a natural reflex for me to contemplate sitting behind a school desk.”

    Nor was it for 70 lawyers, more than half based in Montreal, who failed to complete the required training between April 1, 2009 and March 31, 2011. All were disbarred recently, including Montreal-based lawyer  Brent Tyler, best known for his various high-profile legal challenges to Bill 101, Quebec’s French Language Charter.

    Following in the footsteps of the Law Society of British Columbia, the Barreau du Québec introduced the continuing professional development program in April 2009, compelling all of its 23,000 practising lawyers to take no fewer than 30 hours of approved continuing legal education courses every two calendar years to remain in good standing.

    “Law is an evolving discipline, and it is important that people stay up-to-date,” Stuart Cobbett of Stikeman Elliott told me at the time the program was launched. “But life being what it is, some people just don’t pay attention to it. Therefore it is a good idea for any self-regulatory body to establish certain minimum continuing education requirements.”

    The disbarred members will now have to pay a fee and submit a formal request to be reinstated, which will be examined by the bar’s readmissions committee.

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  • High-profile Montreal lawyer wins battle for reinstatement against legal society

    In a decisive setback for Quebec’s law society, a renown Montreal divorce lawyer who was originally disbarred for seven years for professional misconduct was immediately reinstated after a ruling by the Quebec Court of Appeal reaffirmed the appellate powers of an administrative tribunal and clarified the role of the Barreau du Québec’s review committee.

    In a unanimous ruling the appeal court castigated the law society’s review committee for exceeding its mandate and taking on the role of a disciplinary committee while failing to take into account evidence that demonstrated that Micheline Parizeau had the aptitude and qualities to be reinstated into the profession.

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  • Third Montreal defence lawyer beaten up in less than a year

    A criminal defence lawyer who has represented members of organized crime in many high-profile cases, was assaulted outside his home last Friday, making it the third Montreal lawyer who has either been attacked or received death threats over the past year.

    Gilles Doré suffered a serious head injury, and is now reported to be in stable condition, according to The Montreal Gazette.

    Doré gained notoriety within Quebec’s legal community for writing a stinging personal letter to a judge, criticizing him for being pedant, cantankerous, and petty. The letter, replete with insults and personal attacks according to the Quebec Court of Appeal, was handed to Quebec Superior Court Chief Justice Lyse Lemieux, who forwarded it to the syndic (or investigating officer) of the Barreau du Québec. The syndic filed a complaint before the Barreau’s disciplinary committee, accusing  Doré  of writing an disrespectful letter, that lacked objectivity, moderation and dignity, thereby contravening s.2.03 of the Quebec Code of ethics of advocates (Code). The disciplinary committee found Doré guilty of the infraction, and suspended him from practicing for 21 days. Doré appealed the verdict before the Professions Tribunal and Quebec Superior Court, both of whom rejected the appeal.

    In upholding the rulings by the lower courts, the Quebec Court of Appeal found that writing letters is a constitutional right, and that the disciplinary decision violated the appellant’s freedom of expression. “It remains now to determine whether this decision is a reasonable restriction that can be justified in a free and democratic society,” said Justice André Rochon in an 18-page ruling.

    That case is now before the Supreme Court of Canada.

    Last month, another Montreal lawyer was the victim of a series of death threats and intimidation, with two vehicles parked in front of his home were firebombed.

    Last December Joseph La Leggia, a well-respected lawyer,  was attacked and left badly injured in front of his home. His case too remains unsolved.

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  • Quebec Auditor General report questions usage of courthouses

    More than a year after the Quebec auditor general revealed that courthouses in the province are underused and that the provincial ministry of justice fails to analyze readily available administrative and financial data that would help it become more efficient and cost-effective, the justice department is tightlipped over what, if any, progress it has made to remedy the situation.

    Already under fire for its handling of the labour conflict with its Crown prosecutors and government lawyers and castigated by the Quebec law society for failing to provide sufficient judicial resources, legal observers are urging the Quebec government to address the findings made by the auditor general.

    “The Ministry of Justice has not adopted a set of indicators that would help it evaluate the performance of the system as is the case elsewhere in Canada,” observed Gilles Ouimet, the head of the Barreau du Quebec. “It would be beneficial to heed the auditor general’s recommendations.” (more…)

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  • Few number of claimants prompts questions over class actions

    Nearly three decades after class actions made their first appearance in the Canadian legal landscape, little light has been shed over the proportion of class members who make a claim, which hasn’t stopped some from speculating that the numbers are so low that they call into question the need for class proceedings.

    “Where there is money set aside for individual plaintiffs and they have to apply for the funds, anybody who did the research would find that there’s very little uptake and the funds that are unapplied for are given to charitable organizations,” asserts William Vanveen, a former assistant law professor at the University of Windsor’s faculty of law, now a partner with Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP in Ottawa. “The lack of application for relief to the funds by directly affected plaintiffs indicates to me that there isn’t a great social need for these actions.”

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  • Committee recommends a modest salary increase for Quebec judges

    Days before the Quebec government enacted a contentious back-to-work legislation to end an acrimonious labour standoff with its Crown prosecutors and government lawyers, a judicial compensation committee released an inconspicuous report that will likely once again test the government’s rapport with the principle players of the legal system.

    A five-member blue-ribbon panel of legal and financial experts established under the Courts of Justice Act (Act) recommended handing Court of Quebec judges, municipal judges and justices of the peace a modest hike in their remuneration package, but it would be surprising if the provincial government embraces the recommendations, given past history.

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  • New accounting rules making lawyer’s job tougher

    When a slew of Canadian organizations made the transition at the beginning of the year to an international financial reporting standard, lawyers faced almost overnight new ground rules that could prove to be burdensome, endanger solicitor-client privilege, and potentially prejudice defence in litigation cases.

    Misgivings arise from the way that unresolved legal claims, or “contingencies” in accounting speak, must be reported under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). IFRS, quite simply, imposes a higher threshold for identifying claims, takes a different approach to estimating the expected value of a claim, and has more extensive disclosure requirements.

    “I don’t see lawyer’s lives getting any easier with IFRS,” remarked Stephen Kerr, a partner with Fasken Martineau Dumoulin LLP, who practices general corporate and commercial law. “Suddenly we’re going to be asked to do a lot more, with a lot more precision and a lot faster.”

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  • Largest Quebec & Canadian law firms

    Largest firms in Quebec

    1 Ogilvy Renault 234
    2 Heenan Blaikie 228
    3 Fasken Martineau 218
    4 Stikeman Elliot 170
    5 Lavery de Billy 167
    6 McCarthy Tétrault 165
    7 Cain Lamarre Casgrain Wells 161
    8 Borden Ladner Gervais 121
    9 BCF 98
    10 Joli-Cœur Lacasse 96
    11 Langlois Kronström Desjardins 91
    12 Gowling Lafleur Henderson 90
    13 FMC 86
    14 Dunton Rainville 85
    15 Davies 82
    16 Lapointe Rosenstein 80
    17 De Grandpré Chait 71
    18 Robinson Sheppard Shapiro 71
    19 Blakes 67
    20 Osler Harcourt 58
    		Largest firms in Canada

    1 Borden Ladner Gervais 781
    2 Gowling Lafleur Henderson 752
    3 Fasken Martineau 686
    4 McCarthy Tétrault 609
    5 Blake Cassels & Graydon 597
    6 Heenan Blaikie 534
    7 Fraser Milner Casgrain 512
    8 Stikeman Elliott 503
    9 Miller Thomson 464
    10 Osler Hoskin &Harcourt 458
    11 Ogilvy Renault 447
    12 McMillan 395
    13 Bennett Jones 362
    14 Macleod Dixon 268
    15 Torys 249
    16 Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg 240
    16 Davis 240
    17 Goodmans 208
    19 Cassels Brock & Blackwell 207
    20 Lavery de Billy 172

    Sources: Droit-inc.com and Law Times.

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  • Norbourg: Law firms seeking $11 million

    A couple of days after an agreement in principle was reached in the Norbourg class action suit, allowing thousands of investors to recover nearly all the money they lost in one of the biggest investment frauds in the country, a lawyer warned me that the case was far from over.

    That’s because the $55 million settlement against Quebec’s securities regulator, Northern Trust Co. of Canada, Concentra Trust, accountant Rémi Deschambault and accounting firms KPMG LLP and Beaulieu Deschambault did not cover legal fees. “The judge in the case has opened a can of worms,” told me the class action specialist. “It’s unheard of to reach a settlement without agreeing to the legal fees.”

    The lawyer is right. The law firms that negotiated the settlement are seeking $11-million, representing 20 per cent of the $55-million settlement, in legal fees — and the victims are not happy. Three Norbourg victims are expected to be in court today arguing that the amount is far too much, with one saying that lawyers should be receiving up to five per cent while another asserting that 6.5 per cent is reasonable. “It’s disproportionate,” said François Leblanc, an industrial relations consultant whose family lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in the Norbourg scandal. “In my opinion, 6.5 per cent of the settlement is a reasonable remuneration. They’re calculating $400 an hour, which would give them salaries of $700,000 a year.”

    Quebec Superior Court justice André Prévost is expected to render a decision by month end. “I am conscious that the Norbourg investors have lived through difficult times,” said the judge yesterday. “The conclusion is approaching.”

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  • Following back-to-work legislation, mass exodus of Quebec Crown prosecutors is feared

    Several weeks after the Quebec government enacted back-to-work legislation that compelled striking Crown prosecutors and government lawyers, two Quebec Crown prosecutors have submitted their resignation, the beginning of what some fear may prove to a mass exodus.

    Charles Levasseur, a crown prosecutor who handled many high-profile cases, notably the case dealing with former Quebec Court of Appeal judge Jacques Delisle accused of murdering his wife, is stepping down. He said that while other factors came into play, the labour conflict “probably” precipitated his decision to work for the law firm Thibault Roy Avocats. “The last conflict was difficult. It made me realize that the Crown will never be the same, and my motivation will never the same. That is the impact of the back-to-work legislation,” said Levasseur in an interview with a French-language legal website.

    That is likely a sign of things to come, fears Gilles Ouimet, the head of the Barreau du Québec.

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  • Dealing effectively with pro bono clients

    When Mathieu Bouchard was recently faced with a pro bono client who was anxious about an impending court hearing, the Montreal lawyer resorted to a technique he successfully used in the past, and drew a sketch of the courtroom, illustrating where the judge, court officials and the parties would sit, and explained in plain language what to expect.

    “We may laugh but for someone who has never been to court it’s impressive and it can be very intimidating,” remarked Bouchard, a partner with Irving Mitchell Kalichman, at a seminar that explored ways to effectively manage pro bono legal work. “But if we can give them an idea as to what will take place before they set foot in court it can make a difference.”

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  • Law firms embracing project management

    Nearly three years ago, after sensing that clients’ expectations were shifting, with growing numbers becoming far “less patient” with the profession’s billable hour model, McCarthy Tétrault LLP began an unlikely undertaking for a law firm — and started evaluating the use of a discipline that has long been a staple in engineering and information technology to manage budgets and resources.

    Today, a year after launching its legal project management program at the beginning of 2010, McCarthy is beginning to take advantage of its jump start. At a time when many major North American law firms are just starting to explore the possibility of implementing legal project management programs, McCarthy recently unveiled an advertising campaign that seeks both to refresh their brand and enhance their image by rejuvenating their website and promoting its new project management approach, which they hope will draw new business and retain existing clients.

    “We’re highlighting our new brand, our visual identity,” said Richard Higa, the chair of the McCarthy Tétrault’s project management committee. “We think it’s important in our brand to get the message to the market that project management and cost management is something that we’re highly focused on – and we want to be the market leader. We think it’s going to provide us with a competitive edge.”

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Law in Quebec
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