Quebec’s Court of Appeal says a provincial court judge overstepped his jurisdiction when he ruled that part of the province’s language law is unconstitutional.

In May 2024, Quebec court Judge Denis Galiatsatos raised a legal question on his own initiative while overseeing a case involving a woman charged with criminal negligence causing the death of a cyclist. The woman had sought a trial in English.

Galiatsatos took issue with a section of Quebec’s language law that was scheduled to enter into effect in June of that year, a few days before the start of the trial. The law requires that a French translation of court decisions be made available “immediately and without delay.”

The judge said at the time that the law would systematically delay English verdicts because of the French transla

See Full Page