Legal Briefs

Until 2010, these legal briefs provide examples of judgments pertaining to everyday situations. Beginning in 2012, they deal with various topics of general interest, such as rental issues, family law, human rights, civil liability, insurance, dealings between spouses and social aid. They are intended to inform and to prevent undesirable situations.

2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2010
2009
2008
All

Legal Briefs 2017

  Month

Number

Legal brief

December

 09

Coming soon

November

 08

Shared custody, so no support to pay?

Raphaël and Maude lived together without being married and a child, Alice, was born from their relationship. When Alice was only 3 years old, her parents separated. Raphaël moved not far from the daycare and, after some discussion, the parents agreed to share custody of Alice equally. Maude agreed t more

October

 07

Police Chases (What You Need to Know)

At the beginning of the year 2000, section 249.1 was added to the Criminal Code, creating the offence of fleeing a police chase while driving a motor vehicle. 

The following are the elements that make up this offence: 

• The accused must be driving a motor vehicle;  more

August-September

 06

What is a quarrelsome litigant?

Jeanne is the mother of a three-year-old girl, Amélie. She decides to consult a legal aid lawyer in order to get a judgment granting her custody of her minor child and fixing rights of access for the father, given that he exercises his rights of access very sporadically. 


George, the more

June-July

 05

Are childcare expenses taken into consideration in determining financial eligibility for legal aid?

Isabelle, a victim of abuse who has one child, is accused of murdering her former spouse. Isabelle works as a nurse’s aide in a hospital at an annual salary of $27,000. She does not own any real estate and has no savings. However, she has to pay $1,250 in annual childcare expenses for more

April-May

 04

Youth Criminal Justice Act and Extrajudicial Sanctions

Ethan, who is 12 years old, is visiting his cousins with his parents. While his parents are playing cards with his uncles and aunts, Ethan takes the opportunity to play various games in the basement with his two cousins, Sam and William, who are 6 and 8 years old, respectively. After more

March

 03

Georges owns a house and has money in his bank account. Is he financially eligible for legal aid?

George is married to Theresa and they have four minor children. George works as a part-time employee for a transportation company. Theresa is a teacher and also works part-time. They have a combined annual gross income of $35,000. George and Theresa own their family residence, which has a value of $ more

February

 02

« You can't search me! » really ?

Contrary to what many people believe, in certain circumstances, school staff can search a student or his personal belongings (such as his knapsack or locker). There are two main reasons for this. First, a school has the obligation and responsibility to protect the students who attend the school, so as to provide an atmosphere conducive to learning. Thus, staff must be able to maintain order and discipline in the school and ensure compliance withschool rules and the law. Second, a student cannot expect absolute respect for his privacy when he is at school.

However, such a search cannot be carried out without a valid reason.

Therefore, school staff cannot search a student without first having reasonable grounds for believing that there has been a breach of school rules or discipline and that the search will provide evidence of the breach.

The following are examples of what may constitute reasonable grounds: information received from a student who is considered credible, information received from more than one student, observations by a teacher, principal or monitor, etc. In addition, the search cannot be carried out in just any manner.

First, a search carried out by school authorities must be reasonable and appropriate in light of the circumstances and the nature of the suspected breach of school rules. Therefore, the acceptable scope of the search will depend on the seriousness of the suspected breach. The existence of an immediate threat to student safety will justify the use of swift, thorough and comprehensive searches. For example, it may be reasonable for a teacher to act immediately and perform any necessary searches when there arereasonable grounds to believe that a student is carrying a shotgun or other dangerous weapon. By contrast, the same type of search might not be justified if, instead, the student were suspected of having chewing gum in his pocket, despite school rules prohibiting it.

Legal brief *
February  2017
Number  02
Text prepared by   Me David Guévin, avocat au bureau d’aide juridique de Trois-Rivières / Lawyer at the Trois-Rivières legal aid office
 
* The information set out in this document is not a legal interpretation.
The masculine is used to designate persons solely in order to simplify the text.

January

 01

Am I liable for my pet

In principle, yes. In Québec, it is the Civil Code that deals with harm caused by a pet’s actions. The article of the Civil Code is very clear to that effect and the rules for pet owners are strict.


Whether the situation involves an injury, such as a bite, or other damage ca more