A committee of inquiry set up by the Canadian Judicial Council recommends that a Quebec judge who has multiplied inappropriate comments and delays be removed from office.
“The conduct of the judge [Gérard] Dugré undermines public confidence to the point of rendering him unable to continue to exercise his role as a judge,” concluded the committee chaired by the Chief Justice of New Brunswick, Marc Richard.
In the past, The newspaper looked at the many lapses in language and the antics of Judge Dugré, of the Superior Court of Quebec, which were the subject of complaints in seven separate cases.
The inquiry committee today accuses him of an “aggressive and unpleasant” attitude towards lawyers, in addition to “condescending, contemptuous and inappropriate” remarks, in its extensive 285-page report.
About 60 witnesses and 46 hours of recordings were heard during the hearings about him, which lasted 38 days.
In the recording of a 2017 trial, the magistrate could be heard asking “isn’t your client charged with sexual assault yet? jokingly to a lawyer, whose client had done contracts for the Just for Laughs festival.
much too long
Beyond his misplaced humour, the committee harshly criticized Judge Dugré’s persistent delays in rendering judgments, despite multiple calls to order.
These unreasonable delays “threaten the integrity of the judge’s office and demonstrate his failure to fulfill his obligations towards the people who appeared before him”, we can read.
The Chief Justice of the Superior Court of Quebec, Jacques R. Fournier, said during his testimony that these delays were a “chronic problem” for him, since he took office in 2009.
In the worst case, Judge Dugré took 660 days (one year and nine months) to render his decision.
Seventeen members of the Canadian Judicial Council must now review the committee’s report and decide on the recommendation that will be made to the Minister of Justice.
Pending a decision, the costs of ensuring the legal defense of Judge Dugré and his annual salary of more than $300,000 are entirely borne by the taxpayers.
– With Jules Richer