(Quebec) Two recent judicial appointments by Minister of Justice Simon Jolin-Barette are causing controversy. He appointed a longtime friend to the position of judge of the Court of Quebec in the capital in addition to choosing a lawyer from Longueuil for a position in Sept-Îles after having canceled an initial call for candidates.
The sun reported Friday that the Minister has appointed Charles-Olivier Gosselin, 36, as a judge of the Court of Quebec, a longtime friend, whose marriage he celebrated. He was admitted to the Bar in 2011.
Simon Jolin-Barrette confirmed daily that he was indeed close to Mr. Gosselin, but said that “Judge Gosselin’s candidacy was considered on merit”. This appointment causes unease within the legal community of Quebec.
Another appointment, which occurred at the same time, also created a stir on the North Shore. Minister Jolin-Barrette has appointed Alexandre Germain, a litigation lawyer from the CISSS de la Montérégie-Est, to the post of judge of the Court of Quebec, in Sept-Îles.
Me Germain will fulfill his duties in the Youth Division and the Criminal and Penal Division in Sept-Îles.
However, this appointment was made following a second call for candidates. According to a document consulted by The Press, a first call for applications was launched last year. The selection committee submitted its report to the Minister on December 12, 2022.
Simon Jolin-Barrette did not make a nomination following this report, he instead launched a second call for nominations for the same position. A selection committee submitted a second report to the minister on April 6. Mr. Jolin-Barette made his choice on May 3 and the decision was made public the next day by press release.
Lawyers who submitted their application during the first notice of competition were not authorized to do so again during the second call for applications, as stipulated in the document.
This reversal caused discontent in Sept-Îles. Mayor Steeve Beaupré, a former Crown prosecutor, criticized the choice of Simon Jolin-Barrette on his Facebook page.
“Mr. Minister, were there not candidates here in Sept-Îles, in our judicial district of Mingan, sufficiently qualified and with knowledge of the environment and our reality to access this new position? “, he wrote on his official page.
Alexandre Germain was called to the Bar in 2008. Since 2020, he has practiced his profession in litigation at the CISSS de la Montérégie-Est. He comes from the Barreau de Longueuil, which was delighted with his appointment on social networks.