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Montreal Gazette
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Montreal Gazette
Quebec government ordered to pay $164 million plus interest in ‘historic' class-action ruling for justice denied
News By A person's right to appear before a judge within 24 hours of being arrested and detained is a cornerstone of Canada's criminal justice procedure, and now a judge has ordered the province of Quebec to pay damages of $164 million plus interest for wilfully violating that right thousands of times. 'The (prosecutor's office) and the (Quebec justice department) failed in their obligation to put in place a system that guarantees an appearance that complies with the requirements of the Criminal Code, knowing full well that their faulty appearance system led to the systemic violation of the fundamental rights of those seeking justice by failing to comply with the 24-hour deadline on Sundays and public holidays from 2015 to 2019-2020,' Quebec Superior Court Justice Donald Bisson writes in a 155-page ruling dated May 20 in a class-action lawsuit against the province. 'It was expected that thousands of people seeking justice would be affected, and that is exactly what happened.' The suit was filed by the Montreal law firm Kugler Kandestin on behalf of people whose right to a court appearance within 24 hours was violated between 2015 and 2020. It's estimated there were about 24,000 such incidents during the period covered by the class-action. 'It's a significant judgment and we're extremely proud of it,' lawyer Robert Kugler said on Monday. With the interest accumulated, he estimates the province will pay about $240 million. 'It can never be forgotten that any time an individual is arrested, even if the peace officer thinks that person needs to be detained, those people are presumed innocent. They can't be punished until such time as they are found guilty. That's why there are such strict rules in place in the Criminal Code, to ensure that their rights are respected.' The judge ruled in favour of the class-action lawsuit in its entirety, stating that the Quebec government not only intentionally violated the fundamental rights of thousands of people to have a court appearance within 24 hours of being detained, but also that it did so for budgetary reasons to save the cost of staffing courts on Sundays and statutory holidays. 'The evidence shows that administrative and budgetary considerations led to the withdrawal of Sunday appearances, even though such considerations can never justify the violation of constitutional rights,' Bisson writes. Before June 2015, 'telephone appearances' before a justice of the peace were permitted in parts of Quebec, but these were subsequently ruled to not respect the Criminal Code. The class-action start date of June 2015 represents the date when the Quebec prosecutor's office removed all appearances, including telephone appearances, on Sundays and statutory holidays, Kugler said. The Quebec prosecutor's office had argued in its defence that it was the justices of the Court of Quebec who didn't want to sit on Sundays and statutory holidays, and therefore it wasn't responsible for the rights violations. However, Bisson rejected the argument, stating in his ruling that 'the responsibility for implementing a system that ensures compliance with (the 24-hour rule) belongs to the state and, consequently, to all state actors.' The province only changed its system and began staffing the Court of Quebec on Sundays and statutory holidays after the class-action lawsuit was authorized to proceed in 2020 — a fact that Bisson notes in his ruling. The province sought unsuccessfully to have the class-action lawsuit denied by a judge. 'It suggests this situation never would have been rectified without a class-action,' Kugler said. The class-action initially included City of Montreal and Quebec City because the two cities also did not staff their municipal courts, which treat minor offences of municipal bylaws, on Sundays and statutory holidays, at the time. After the class-action lawsuit was authorized against the province and the two cities, Montreal and Quebec City settled out of court, with Montreal paying $4.3 million and Quebec City paying $412,000 in their settlements, Kugler said. The Quebec government, however, chose to go to trial, which was held over a month earlier this year. Bisson's judgment grants the plaintiffs' damage claim of $7,000 per incident of detention beyond the 24-hour delay between 2015 and 2020, plus interest. However, given the number of incidents, the judge has ordered the government to pay a lump sum of $164 million plus interest within 30 days and to cover the cost of a claims administrator to identify and track down thousands of people who qualify for damages through court and police records. The province has 30 days to decide if it will file an appeal. 'Out of respect for the judicial process, we will not be making any comment,' the justice department said in an email Monday. The Quebec prosecutor's office also said it can't comment, saying in an email: 'We acknowledge the court's decision and are taking the time to analyze the merits of its conclusions.' Numerous court rulings over the years have affirmed the fundamental right of a person to have an appearance before a judge within 24 hours of being arrested and detained, Kugler said, and other provinces allow such appearances on Sundays and statutory holidays. When a police officer makes an arrest, the person may be released from custody after signing a promise to appear in court at a later date to faces charges. However, the police may decide the person should not be released and will detain the person in a holding cell at a police station until they can appear before a judge. Before 2020 in Quebec, that meant a person arrested on, say, a Saturday evening would not appear in court until Monday and would sit in a police holding cell until then. 'A holding cell is nothing like a cell in a detention facility,' Kugler said. 'In a holding cell in a police station, the lights are on all the time. There's zero privacy. There's no ability to take a shower. You don't get really any meals, there's nothing to do. There's no television, there's no one to speak to, there's nothing to read.' The person may need medication or treatment and doesn't have access to that in a police cell, he added. Kugler said he hopes the ruling will serve as a precedent in another class-action lawsuit filed by his firm on behalf of at least 1,500 Nunavik residents. This second class-action claims that the right of people arrested in the North to a timely bail hearing — the next step in the criminal justice process after an appearance before a judge — was systemically violated for years.
CBC
06-04-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Advocates demand changes to Quebec's family tribunal bill to protect victims of violence
Four groups supporting women who are victims of violence joined forces on Sunday to call for amendments to Quebec's Bill 91. The proposed law, which seeks to establish a unified family tribunal within the Court of Quebec, would make family mediation mandatory in the event that a couple with a child separates. The goal of the bill is to simplify the legal process for families, but in its current form advocates say it raises serious concerns for women who are victims of domestic and sexual violence and their children. At a joint press conference on Sunday, Manon Monatesse, head of the Fédération des maisons d'hébergement pour femmes, an organisation supporting women's shelters in Quebec, said mediation often works against victims of family violence. Monatesse explained victims will often negotiate from a position of fear and give up critical rights in exchange for sole custody of their children as they seek to protect them. Other times, she said, victims can feel pressured due to financial constraints or intimidation exercised by an ex-partner. "The state in which [victims] arrive at mediation is not free, voluntary, enlightened, or egalitarian," said Louise Riendeau, of the Regroupement des maisons pour femmes victimes de violence conjugale, adding that power imbalances often lead to conjugal violence. Although the proposed law provides an exemption to the mediation requirement for anyone who claims to be a victim, "many do not identify as victims, or would fear reprisals if they request an exemption," Monatesse added. In addition to making family mediation voluntary, advocates are asking for systematic screening for domestic violence by trained mediators at the beginning of any judicial process. In a French statement to Radio-Canada, the office for Justice Minister Simon-Jolin Barrette, said the government was very sensitive to the reality of people who are victims of sexual, domestic, or family violence and their needs have guided many of its reforms in recent years. The statement continues by adding the same is true for Bill 91. The minister's office said several groups who spoke during special consultations were in favour of mandatory mediation saying it should be used more widely when the best interests of a child are at stake, while others, raised concerns about the mandatory nature of family mediation, particularly when violence is involved. "The bill has been enhanced to allow a victim of violence to avoid mediation by filing a confidential affidavit. In addition, we have removed the ability for a judge to sanction a person who falsely alleges to be a victim of violence," the statement read. "We believe these adjustments will achieve the desired objective of encouraging the use of mediation while protecting victims of sexual, domestic, or family violence." Furthermore, the justice minister's office noted that mediators are required to complete 60 hours of training, at least six of which must focus on the issue of domestic violence.
