Bill 104 timeline

October 22, 2009

May 7, 2002 РParti Qu̩b̩cois language minister Diane Lemieux introduces Bill 104, which closes an increasingly popular loophole in Bill 101 that makes a child eligible to attend English public school, and siblings and eventually offspring eligible as well, after as little as a year in a private English school.

June 13, 2002 – Bill 104 receives assent, though it only comes into force in October 2002.

April 24, 2003 – The Supreme Court of Canada agrees to hear three cases connected to Bill 104, among them one involving francophone parents who want the right to send their children to English schools.

Feb. 19, 2004 РThe Tribunal administrative du Qu̩bec rules that an anglophone who went to French immersion classes in Manitoba does not have the right to send his children to English school in Quebec.

March 31, 2005 – The Supreme Court of Canada rules children who have attended French immersion classes across Canada do have the right to attend English public schools in Quebec.

Aug. 22, 2007 – Quebec’s Court of Appeal strikes down Bill 104, in a ruling that specifically applies to 26 families who challenged the clause in a long-running court action, but would open the door to others if it is upheld. However, the Quebec government announces almost immediately after the Appeal Court’s 2-1 verdict that it will seek a suspension of the judgment while it appeals it to the Supreme Court of Canada.

Aug. 30, 2007 РJustice Andr̩ Rochon of the Quebec Court of Appeal grants the Quebec government request to suspend the application of the Aug. 22 ruling while it seeks permission to have the case heard by the Supreme Court of Canada.

March 6, 2008 – The Supreme Court of Canada announces it has granted the Quebec government’s request to appeal the ruling by the Quebec Court of Appeal.

Dec. 15, 2008 – The Supreme Court of Canada hears arguments on all sides of Bill 104, including lawyer Brent Tyler’s argument that the court should send the Quebec government back to the drawing board and tell it to find a different way to deal with the question of people using private schools to gain admission to English public schools.

Oct. 22, 2009 – Supreme Court of Canada rules that Bill 104 is unconstitutional.