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Quebec bill grants protections and establishes new obligations to de facto unions

A new proposed Quebec legal framework for common-law couples who become parents after June 2025 will be entrusted with new rights and obligations, and benefit from some protections granted to married couples, a development viewed by family law experts as a step in the right direction. But Bill 56, aimed at providing a better safety net for children, falls short on several levels.

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Insurance suicide exclusion null and void, rules Quebec Appeal Court

Insurers must clearly indicate exclusions or clauses, particularly clauses dealing with suicide, that reduce coverage under an appropriate heading or risk having the exclusion clause declared null and void, ruled the Quebec Court of Appeal.

Quebec law society disbars 84 lawyers

A staggering 84 lawyers have been disbarred by the Board of Directors of the Barreau du Québec.

Class actions over COVID-19 certified against Google and Facebook

Two separate but related class actions were recently certified by Quebec Superior Court against tech behemoths Google and Meta for allegedly breaching Quebecers' freedom of expression by censoring or making content directly or indirectly related to COVID-19 unaccessible.

Law schools falls short of preparing students for practice, survey says

Law schools falls short of preparing students for practice, survey says.

McGill law professors on strike

McGill law professors, asserting that the university is negotiating in bad faith, began an unlimited strike two days ago, demanding better pay and working conditions, a halt towards the growing inclination towards centralization at the university, and the safeguarding of collegial governance at the faculty level.

Quebec looking at electronic surveillance of offenders serving conditional sentences

Nearly two years after the Quebec became the first jurisdiction in the country to introduce an electronic tracking system to thwart intimate partner violence, the provincial government is now considering the possibility of remotely following offenders serving sentences in the community.

Soccer club did not discriminate by refusing to integrate girls into a boys’ team

A Montreal soccer club did not discriminate by refusing to integrate two girls into a boys' team, ruled the Quebec Court of Appeal.

Alleged Darknet Xanax Kingpin faces extradition

The “Darknet Xanax Kingpin,” ostensibly a Quebecer who allegedly sold over 15 million counterfeit Xanax tablets that were mainly exported to the United States, failed to thwart extradition proceedings against him after Quebec Superior Court dismissed his constitutional arguments.

Bill aims to curb delays but stakeholders call for more resources

A new bill that seeks to curb delays in the justice system and rein in stays of proceedings will be conferring new powers to the justices of the peace by allowing them to oversee criminal court appearances and bail hearings, a development that has received lukewarm praise by Quebec’s main legal actors who were longing for more monies into the system.

Notwithstanding clause centre stage in Quebec Appeal Court ruling over controversial secularism law

The Quebec Court of Appeal, handcuffed by the provincial government’s use of the notwithstanding clause, upheld a controversial secularism law that bans religious symbols from being worn by government employees, in a decision lauded by legal observers who endorse the so-called “parliamentary sovereignty clause” while bemoaned by others who deem it to be a “major retreat” from the fundamental principle of the rule of law.

Employers’ obligation to protect psychological well-being of workers expanded by Quebec bill

The Quebec government, in an initiative welcomed by business and labour, is in the final stages of passing legislation that aims to further prevent and fight psychological harassment and sexual violence in the workplace by adding legal presumptions to make it easier to prove an employment injury or illness stemmed from violence at the hands of a co-worker or employer representative.

Quebec government appoints three new judges

14 Jun 2017 / by Luis Millán

The Quebec government is ramping its judicial appointments to ease the growing backlog of cases in the justice system.

Quebec Justice Minister Stéphanie Vallée announced the appointment of three new Court of Quebec judges, making it the 20^th judge the provincial government has appointed this year. Last December the Quebec government announced it was going to pour $175.2 million over the next four years to recruit new judges, prosecutors and support staff to help curb mounting court delays. So far the Quebec government has hired 52 Crown prosecutors and 50 support staff, 38 correctional services officers, 16 special constables, 32 probation officers and more support staff at the Quebec Ministry of Justice. All told more than 300 have been hired.

The new Court of Quebec judges are Nathalie Duchesneau, Peggy Warolin and Patrick Choquette.

Judge Duchesneau, a graduate from the Université de Montréal, was admitted to the Quebec Bar in 1993 and began her career with the Quebec Director of criminal and penal prosecutions (DPCP). She has been a Montreal municipal judge since 2012, and will sit in the criminal and penal division in Montreal.

Judge Warolin, a solo lawyer with experience in litigation, civil law, administrative law, family law, and youth protection, will sit Rouyn-Noranda. Born in France, Judge Warolin moved to Canada for her education and graduated from the Université Laval and was admitted to the Quebec Bar in 2004. She was president of the Bar of Abitibi-Témiscamingue, member of the General Council of the Quebec Bar, and member of the Board of Directors of the Association des avocats et avocates de province (provincial lawyers’ association). As a member of the Quebec Bar, Judge Warolin has been involved in several missions to Inuit communities across Canada’s North and co-authored the report entitled, le Rapport sur les missions du Barreau du Québec auprès des communautés autochtones du Grand Nord québécois.

Judge Choquette, a partner with the law firm Prévost Fortin D’Aoust, began his practice in 1985 as a civil and commercial litigator and focused his career on real estate, construction law, and labour relations. He was appointed chair of the disciplinary committee of the Association des courtiers et agents immobiliers du Québec by the Québec government in 2006 and then vice-chair of the disciplinary committee of the Organisme d’autoréglementation du courtage immobilier du Québec by the Minister of Finance in 2010 – a position he held until 2015. He will be hearing civil matters in Joliette.

The hunt for new provincial judges is not over. The Quebec government is looking for candidates to sit in the criminal and penal division in Trois-Rivières and the youth protection division in Saint-Hyacinthe, More information can be found here.

Quebec government appoints three new judges

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