A lawyer goes to meet his client, a homeless man accused of death threats against a police officer, near his tent set up in the parking lot of a supermarket. A lawyer in court helps an abused woman recover her child that her ex-spouse took away from her. Here are two examples of very real cases captured by the camera in the new documentary series In my defence, which takes viewers behind the scenes, little known, of legal aid in Quebec.
The team of director Mélissa Beaudet had very privileged access to the courtrooms, but also to the life, sometimes very hard, of the mistreated of society who benefit from legal aid. “It is a courageous clientele, with a large number of pitfalls in life, which remains dignified and proud”, commented at a press conference Mme Beaudet, well known for other series focusing on social issues, such as CHSLD at the front And 180 daysrespectively in the fields of health and education.
The issues that lead people to consult lawyers legal aid, “the largest law firm in Quebec”, are as diverse as they are complex. There are of course criminal cases, after arrests for drug possession or domestic violence, but other cases are in civil matters: especially in family law, explains one of the lawyers we see in the docuseries, Me Justine Lambert-Boulianne, who works at the Montreal East Legal Aid Office.
It is a courageous clientele, with a large number of pitfalls in life, who remain dignified and proud.
We see her listening with empathy to a woman who has not seen her son for a month, because her ex-spouse left with the toddler. Without telling him where. The woman sobs. The lawyer hands her a box of tissues. We also see M.e Benoit Lépine who congratulates and encourages his client, a homeless man accused of a minor theft, for his rehabilitation efforts. The documentary series allows us to better understand the work of six of these lawyers, but also to see their humanity.
In a cubicle of the Municipal Court, another scene takes place on the sidelines of the court appearance: Me Lépine tries to convince his client to call his family in order to reconnect with her. He hesitates: he is not yet the man he wanted to be before seeing her again.
Me Charles Benmouyal on his motorcycle plays a big role in an episode in which he will spend a lot of time calming his client, a very aggressive 60-year-old homeless man who shouts insults at all winds, so that the outcome of his criminal trial is for him. as favorable as possible. His clients are drug addicts, the homeless and the destitute, he says on screen.
The camera follows them everywhere: in the courtroom in the presence of the judges – rare, because the cameras are not allowed there on a daily basis – and during private meetings, normally behind closed doors. If the judicial world intimidates many citizens, the series helps to partly demystify what is happening there, through the eyes of these legal aid lawyers, a service offered free of charge, or for a contribution, to low-income Quebecers. .
“Our role is essential. We are lawyers who work for the community, for the poorest people, “said Ms.e Elfriede Duclervil, who has been on legal aid for 20 years.
But their work is also unknown. People think we’re “second-rate” lawyers, she says. True, added Me Lambert-Boulianne: in one episode, she deplores the fact of being perceived by some as lawyers who “help people on social assistance to defraud social assistance”.
Absent political issues
The rhythm of the series facilitates understanding, but does not reflect the breathless workload of these lawyers: with nearly 72,000 legal aid applications per year at the Montreal-Laval office alone, they are not idle.
The documentary series does not tackle political issues head-on, such as the financing of the judicial system, replied one of the two producers Hugo Roberge (with Amélie Vachon), questioned on this subject at a press conference. The approach was to make a documentary “of observation and immersion”, which goes beyond the news on a daily basis, he says, believing that one understands their workload by watching the episodes.
The causes are also sometimes upsetting and trying. In one episode, the camera follows Me Duclervil who tactfully represents a man who pleads guilty to a charge of sexual assault on a child. “It takes a shell,” she says.
Customers have died while the series was being filmed. “The street is the jungle”, dropped Me Lépine, stiff, looking away.
Despite these tragedies, “to see that we are making a difference in people’s lives, there is something very gratifying about that,” he says to the camera.
Helping, “it’s a mission they have given themselves”, sums up the director, Mme Beaudet. With their piles of files, “they hold the justice system at arm’s length”.