OTTAWA,
ON, May 1, 2024 /CNW/ - The Honourable Arif
Virani, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, today announced the following
appointment under the judicial application process established in
2016. This process emphasizes transparency, merit, and the
diversity of the Canadian population, and will continue to ensure
the appointment of jurists who meet the highest standards of
excellence and integrity.
Catherine Dagenais,
Partner at Dentons in Montréal, is appointed a Judge of the
Superior Court of Quebec for the
district of Montréal. Justice
Dagenais replaces Justice M.-A. Blanchard (Montréal), who
elected to become a supernumerary judge effective October 31, 2023.
Quote
"I wish Justice Dagenais every
success as she takes on her new role. I am confident she will serve
Quebecers well as a member of the Superior Court of Quebec."
—The Hon. Arif Virani, Minister
of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
Biography
Justice
Dagenais holds a Bachelor of Civil Law from the
Université de Montréal, where she was awarded the Faculty of Law
medal—first in the Faculty—and the Governor General's Award—for the
highest average in her university. She also obtained a Master of
Laws from the University of Oxford. She
was called to the Barreau du Québec in 1997.
Justice Dagenais was a law clerk
to the Honourable Michel Bastarache at the Supreme Court of
Canada. She then practised
litigation and international arbitration at the law firms McCarthy
Tétrault, White and Case (Paris)
and Norton Rose Fulbright. She was
also a legal advisor to the United Nations Mission in Kosovo. Since 2010, she has been working at
the law firm Dentons, where she has acquired versatile experience
in civil and commercial litigation, constitutional and
administrative law, as well as in construction law and alternative
dispute resolution.
Justice Dagenais is committed to
the justice community. She was a legal advisor at the Barreau
du Québec and she was also a member of the Construction and
Infrastructure Section Committee of the Canadian Bar Association.
Throughout her career, she has focused on access to justice and has
been actively involved with Justice Pro
Bono.
Justice Dagenais plays a variety
of sports; she also enjoys spending time with her family and in the
great outdoors.
Quick Facts
- The Government of Canada has
appointed more than 730 judges since November 2015. This includes 103 appointments
since the Honourable Arif Virani became Minister of Justice and
Attorney General of Canada on
July 26, 2023.These exceptional
jurists represent the diversity that strengthens Canada. Of these judges, more than half are
women, and appointments reflect an increased representation of
racialized persons, Indigenous, 2SLGBTQI+, and those who
self-identify as having a disability.
- To support the needs of the courts and improve access to
justice for all Canadians, the Government of Canada
is committed to increasing the capacity of superior courts.
Budget 2022 provides for 22 new judicial positions, along with two
associate judges at the Tax Court of Canada. Along with the 13 positions created
under Budget 2021, this makes a total of 37 newly created superior
court positions. Since Budget 2017, the government has funded 116
new judicial positions.
- Changes to the Questionnaire for Federal Judicial Appointments
were announced in September 2022. The
questionnaire continues to provide for a robust and thorough
assessment of candidates but has been streamlined and updated to
incorporate, among other things, more respectful and inclusive
language for individuals to self-identify diversity
characteristics.
- Federal judicial appointments are made by the Governor General,
acting on the advice of the federal Cabinet and recommendations
from the Minister of Justice.
- The Judicial Advisory Committees across Canada play a key role in evaluating judicial
applications. There are 17 Judicial Advisory Committees, with each
province and territory represented.
- Significant reforms to the role and structure of the Judicial
Advisory Committees, aimed at enhancing the independence and
transparency of the process, were announced on October 20, 2016.
- The Government of Canada is
committed to promoting a justice system in which sexual assault
matters are decided fairly, without the influence of myths and
stereotypes, and in which survivors are treated with dignity and
compassion. Changes to the Judges Act and
Criminal Code that came into force on May 6, 2021, mean that in order to be eligible
for appointment to a provincial superior court, candidates must
agree to participate in continuing education on matters related to
sexual assault law and social context, which includes systemic
racism and systemic discrimination. The new legislation enhances
the transparency of decisions by amending the Criminal
Code to require that judges provide written reasons, or
enter them into the record, when deciding sexual assault
matters.
SOURCE Department of Justice
Canada