News about Quebec legal developments
A mother has been ordered to pay $44,000 in damages after his 15-year old son slapped a puck that accidently struck a nine-year old boy in the face at an outdoor rink.
In a 10-page ruling, Quebec Superior Court Justice Julien Lanctôt held Yannick Rousseau to be mostly responsible for the accident that knocked out Samuel Bonneville’s three front teeth. Samuel had to undergo more than $40,000 in dental work, and missed a month of school.
On Sunday, January 23, 2005, Detective Sergeant Denis Matteau told his wife that he had to go to the office, even though it was his day off, to prepare his testimony for a high-profile murder trial involving Michel Usereau, a former police officer turned private security firm director accused of shooting a business competitor.
Matteau, who forged over the course of a career spanning more than twenty years a reputation as a perfectionist, led the investigation in the Usereau case. It was a case that “perturbed” him. In the weeks that preceded the trial, Matteau’s manner had changed. He closed up, and concentrated on the Usereau case, day, night and weekends. He avoided family gatherings, no longer worked out, and barely slept. Continue reading “Suicide not a workplace injury, rules tribunal”
Insurance companies who conclude that they have no duty to defend an insurer facing an action, and by extension no obligation to indemnify, risk being surprised with a hefty bill, following a ruling by the Quebec Court of Appeal.
In a ruling that repeatedly hammers the distinction between a liability insurer’s duty to defend with its obligation to indemnify, the appeal court warns insurance companies that it cannot come to the hasty conclusion that it has no duty to indemnify simply because it has no duty to defend.
The Quebec Court of Appeal overturned a ruling that temporarily suspended a civil suit launched by German-Canadian lobbyist Karlheinz Schreiber against former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney until the so-called Oliphant inquiry delivered its final report.
Schreiber filed a suit based on a verbal contract he alleges he reached with Mulroney in Hull, a town located across from the nation’s capital. But the 74-year old deal maker sought to suspend the suit, arguing that his examination before a public inquiry could cause him harm as Mulroney could use information obtained in the course of examination against him. Continue reading “Quebec Appeal Court overturns ruling dealing with Mulroney-Schreiber affair”
In the works for the past two years, the Montreal Municipal Court became the latest jurisdiction in Canada to launch a mental health court even though a coalition of local community organizations sought a moratorium and a study to examine the effectiveness of specialized courts for mentally ill people.
Modelled after the Toronto Mental Health Court, the three-year pilot project has put in place a multidisciplinary team to deal with mentally ill people charged with minor criminal offenses. Based on a therapeutic model of criminal justice that seeks to provide a dignified and compassionate approach to dealing with accused persons afflicted with mental illness or developmental disabilities, the Court sits five days a week during the afternoons.
Continue reading “Mental health court launched, though skepticism lingers”
The Quebec government has wide discretionary powers to issue selection certificates to foreign nationals seeking to settle permanently in the province, according to two rulings issued concurrently in related matters by the Quebec Court of Appeal.
Indeed, the Court points out that under the Act respecting immigration to Québec (the Act), the Quebec Minister of Immigration and Cultural Communities can issue selection certificates to applicants who do not satisfy conditions and selection of criteria established by government policy, or refuse applicants who meet the conditions. Continue reading “Quebec minister has wide powers over immigration rules appeal court”
A legal battle pitting a Brazilian aspiring model against a wealthy Montreal businessman may have all the ingredients of a riveting soap opera but at stake lies a constitutional challenge that strikes at the heart over the financial duties of common-law partners in Quebec.
The 35-year-old woman, who mothered three of the man’s children, is challenging the law that mandates spousal payments for couples who only have been legally married. Before Quebec Superior Court, she is seeking $56,000 in alimony and a share of his wealth. The identities of the protagonists are protected by the court, as is the case in Quebec when family law cases involve children. Continue reading “Alimony rights for common-law spouses at stake in wealthy couple’s battle”
Rules of practice implemented by the Superior Court of Québec three years ago that prohibit media from using cameras and conducting interviews except in designated areas of the courthouse as well as ban the broadcast of recordings of hearings were recently upheld by the Québec Court of Appeal.
Continue reading “Media restrictions in courthouses does not obstruct freedom of expression”
A 93-year old man who sexually abused his daughters nearly fifty years go was condemned to two years less a day to be served in the community due to his advanced age and health problems.
Philippe Hamelin, convicted on a number of charges, including incest, sexual molestation and assault causing bodily harm for incidents that took place between 1956 and 1963, is now deaf and nearly blind, has skin cancer and suffers from a disease akin to Alzheimer’s.
Continue reading “Elderly molester to serve sentence in seniors home”