The demands of the Chief Justice of the Court of Quebec regarding the bilingualism of new judges must be respected, the court has just ruled.
Posted at 5:55 p.m.
The intervention of Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette to block the posting of several bilingual judge positions in recent months was “illegal”, continues the decision of the Superior Court, handed down on Wednesday.
“The Minister cannot intervene in this process to set aside certain needs identified by the Chief Justice”, decided Judge Christian Immer. ” The Secretary [du comité de sélection des juges] acts unreasonably by following the Minister’s instructions without carrying out his own analysis. »
Chief Justice Lucie Rondeau has been involved for several months in a standoff with the Minister of Justice Simon Jolin-Barrette. The latter refuses to require mastery of English on a large scale for the appointment of new judges to the Court of Quebec, while Mr.me Rondeau sees this as a necessity in several cases.
Concretely, Mr. Jolin-Barrette refuses to require the mastery of English among future judges of the courthouses of Longueuil or Saint-Jérôme, while Mrs.me Rondeau wishes it.