Quebec Court of Appeal Lunch and Learn Sessions 2019-2020

Overview

Between April 1, 2019 and March 31, 2020, the Quebec Court of Appeal held 41 lunch-and-learn sessions for all of the Court’s judges. The sessions were designed to have speakers come and give presentations on a variety of topics.

Objectives

The objectives of the sessions were to cover various topics for which there are recent developments, in order to ensure that judges are abreast of them; to create a forum for discussing various Court experiences, making it possible to draw inspiration from each other’s methods with the aim of improving Court room actions; and to attempt to ensure some consistency in terms of case management, while maintaining each judge’s independence. The sessions also made it possible to share knowledge in not-so-current matters and benefit from the knowledge of some experienced lawyers in various specialized fields; to inform judges about the operation of the different chambers and various pilot projects for improving access to justice; and lastly, to add to the National Judicial Institute’s training offering, including by providing training sessions that are shorter and easier to take part in, regardless of the assignment of judges.

Summary

The topics covered during the sessions dealt with multiple topics such as the rights of Indigenous peoples; recent case law of interest; the parent/child relationship in Quebec law; paperless trials; modernization and access to justice; AliForm; things to do and and not do in performing one’s duties as a judge; sex, gender and gender identity; the annual review of case law in family law; the rules that apply when tabling technological evidence; the operation of the administrative chamber and the commercial chamber; criminal evidence for civil law judges sitting in respect of contempt of court; the operation of the family chamber; class actions and the ethical matters associated with them; the legal culture of human rights; mandates in the event of incapacity; oppression claims; procedural fairness; matters involving computer security; stays of disciplinary decisions; the transformation of the justice system in the United Kingdom; the new approach to judicial review; resolution of disputes between foreign investors and the status after the NAFTA negotiations; serious separation conflicts and domestic violence; the Divorce Act/Bill C-78; the principles of and recent developments in prior notices of claims against a city or municipality; how to interact with unrepresented parties in family law; the Supreme Court of Canada decision pertaining to police accountability, Kosian v. STM, 2019; and the Le Rucher addiction treatment centre.