The Quebec justice system, in crisis following an acute shortage of court personnel and strained labour relations that has led to walkouts and strikes, may face even more serious judicial delays if the Court of Quebec follows through with plans to have judges of the Criminal Division sit every second day as of this fall.
The Quebec justice system, buckling under the weight of years of chronic underfinancing, is stricken by such a serious manpower shortage that hardly a day goes by without a trial, a preliminary inquiry or a sentence being delayed or postponed, an untenable situation that could lead to “significant harm” to the public and undermine faith towards judicial institutions, warn top legal officials.
More than a year after the Quebec auditor general revealed that courthouses in the province are underused, the justice department is still tightlipped over what, if any, progress it has made to remedy the situation.
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.
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.
Days after the Quebec government enacted back-to-work legislation that compelled striking Crown prosecutors and government lawyers, a movement appears to be afoot to mollify the rancorous atmosphere reigning between the principle actors of the province’s justice system.
Québec media restricted from using cameras and conducting interviews except in designated areas of the courthouse.