Despite several changes made by the Minister of Justice, Simon Jolin-Barrette, to his project for a specialized tribunal, the Liberals fear that they are insufficient for him to come to terms with the demands of the Chief Justice of the Court of Quebec .
• Read also: Court specializing in domestic violence: Jolin-Barrette puts water in his wine
“I did not find that the minister put a lot of water in his wine. On the contrary, there are still a lot of irritants, ”said the member for Verdun, Isabelle Melançon, in an interview with the QMI Agency.
Remember that a rare conflict opposes the Chief Justice of the Court of Quebec, Lucie Rondeau, to the Minister of Justice, Simon Jolin-Barrette.
In order to respond to the recommendations of the “Rebuilding Confidence” report, the latter wishes to set up a specialized court to deal with the causes of domestic and sexual violence, a gesture considered as political interference by the judge.
In the hope of rallying all parties, Simon Jolin-Barrette tabled several amendments to his bill on Tuesday, in the hope of bringing the parties together.
But it is too little too late, believes Isabelle Melançon adding that Judge Rondeau should have been heard in parliamentary committee.
The Court of Quebec is threatening to challenge the bill in court, she recalls.
By counting the two years of the pilot project provided for in the bill and a potential legal challenge, Isabelle Melançon calculates that its implementation could be postponed by seven years.
“Instead of rebuilding trust […], the minister launched a message that we are destroying confidence, ”she lamented.
Contacted by the QMI Agency, the Court and the Council indicated that they did not want to comment on the proposed amendments to the bill.