Quebec’s justice minister says requiring judges to speak English before being appointed to the bench should not be the standard in Quebec.
The Court of Quebec recently spoke about a particular case in which the presiding judge could not speak English well enough to continue. Simon Jolin-Barrette said he will not comment on that specific case, but said he was in talks with the court about their concerns.
“I have no problem to make nominations with bilingual judges. I have no problem about that, but it has to be necessary,” said Jolin-Barrette.
This issue became a debate at the national assembly. The Parti Québécois (PQ) acknowledged English-speaking judges are needed, but questioned a proposal that would make it mandatory all judges be bilingual.
“Are there operational methods, considerations that will allow that we don’t discriminate against a judge that is competent but would not master perfectly the language in English?” said PQ Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon.
Quebec’s First Nations say the issue is of particular importance in many northern and Indigenous communities like James Bay and Nunavik.
“So what about these communities?” asked Ghislain Picard, the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador chief.
He said he hopes First Nations will be taken into consideration in the discussions between the minister and the Court of Quebec.
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