Former Montreal mayor Michael Applebaum will be able to keep the transition allowance of $ 250,000 received after his arrest by the Permanent Anti-Corruption Unit (UPAC) in 2013.
The City of Montreal has just failed to convince the Quebec Court of Appeal to order the reimbursement of this premium. A court of first instance had already ruled in favor of Mr. Applebaum last year.
According to justice, the former mayor had the right to receive this check at the time of his resignation. The law was then amended to avoid this type of situation, but it cannot be applied retroactively, explained the Court of Appeal.
Mr. Applebaum “received the allowances to which he was entitled at the time,” the court said in a judgment dated Monday. “The payment of these allowances was part of his remuneration. The amounts were payable even if the elected official resigning during his mandate and were not dependent on his behavior and his integrity. ”
The former mayor received $ 108,000 in severance pay and $ 160,000 in transition allowance.
“In case of conviction of the elected for acts committed within the framework of his mandate, the municipality had no basis to claim the reimbursement of the paid allowances”, continued the judges. The adoption of a law in the following years does not change anything.
The City of Montreal argued that since the new article of law which limits the payment of allowances was drafted in the past in the law, it could be applied retroactively. Justice was not convinced.
In 2017, Michael Applebaum was sentenced to 12 months in prison for government fraud, breach of trust, acts of corruption and conspiracy. A few weeks after receiving his sentence, the City of Montreal ordered him to reimburse the approximately $ 250,000 affected in transition allowance.