Case information
Conduct a refined search of the Supreme Court of Canada database to obtain details on the status of a matter before the Court.
29939
Rita Côté, et al. v. Jean-Pierre Rancourt, et al.
(Quebec) (Civil) (By Leave)
Docket
Judgments on applications for leave to appeal are rendered by the Court, but are not necessarily unanimous.
| Date | Proceeding | Filed By (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|
| 2005-02-21 | Appeal closed | |
| 2005-02-21 | Certificate of taxation issued to, Noel & Ass. | |
| 2005-02-18 | Decision on the bill of costs, taxed at the amount of $7,398.77, Reg | |
| 2005-02-07 | Submission of the bill of costs, Reg | |
| 2004-12-17 | Bill of costs, Completed on: 2005-02-07 | Jean-Pierre Rancourt |
| 2004-09-30 |
Written reasons rendered after oral judgment, CJ Bi LeB De F Dismissed, with costs |
|
| 2004-08-13 | Record returned to the Registrar of the Court of Appeal | |
| 2004-06-29 | Transcript received, (33 pages) | |
| 2004-06-15 | Judgment on appeal and notice of deposit of judgment sent to all parties | |
| 2004-06-11 |
Judgment on the appeal rendered, (Reasons to follow), CJ Bi LeB De F, The appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal of Quebec (Montreal), Number 500-09-009074-998, dated July 4, 2003, was heard this day and the following judgment was rendered: [translation] The Chief Justice (orally) – Despite the eloquent arguments of Mr. Gauthier, the Court does not need to hear from counsel for the respondents. The Court dismisses the appeal, with reasons to follow. Dismissed |
|
| 2004-06-11 | Judgment reserved OR rendered with reasons to follow | |
| 2004-06-11 |
Hearing of the appeal, 2004-06-11, (reasons to follow), CJ Bi LeB De F Judgment rendered |
|
| 2004-06-11 | Acknowledgement and consent for video taping of proceedings, from all parties | |
| 2004-06-11 | Appellant's condensed book, 14 copies rec'd in Court | Rita Côté |
| 2004-06-10 | Respondent's condensed book, Vol . I & II | Jean-Pierre Rancourt |
| 2004-06-02 | Notice of appearance, Bernard Faribault will be attending - confirmed by Noel & Ass. | Jean-Pierre Rancourt |
| 2004-06-02 | Notice of appearance, Martin Gauthier confirmed verbally. | Rita Côté |
| 2004-04-01 | Notice of hearing sent to parties | |
| 2004-03-31 |
Appeal hearing scheduled, 2004-06-11 Judgment rendered |
|
| 2004-03-10 | Appeal perfected for hearing | |
| 2004-03-08 | Respondent's book of authorities, (Original proof of service filed on Mar. 24/04), Completed on: 2004-03-08 | Jean-Pierre Rancourt |
| 2004-03-08 | Respondent's factum, Completed on: 2004-03-08 | Jean-Pierre Rancourt |
| 2004-01-14 | Appellant's record, 24 copies of vol. 1 and 12 copies of vol. 2 to 7, Completed on: 2004-01-21 | Rita Côté |
| 2004-01-14 | Appellant's book of authorities, Completed on: 2004-01-21 | Rita Côté |
| 2004-01-14 | Appellant's factum, Completed on: 2004-01-21 | Rita Côté |
| 2004-01-14 | Certificate of taxation issued to, Me Gauthier (Martel, Brassard) | |
| 2004-01-12 | Decision on the bill of costs, taxed and allowed at the sum of $1,355.41, Reg | |
| 2004-01-12 | Submission of the bill of costs, Reg | |
| 2003-12-15 | Bill of costs, Completed on: 2003-12-15 | Rita Côté |
| 2003-12-03 | Appeal court record, (2 boxes) | |
| 2003-12-03 |
Decision on miscellaneous motion, to conduct business with the Registrar without an agent, Reg Granted |
|
| 2003-12-03 | Submission of miscellaneous motion, Reg | |
| 2003-12-01 | Notice of miscellaneous motion, to be exempted from using an Ottawa agent, Completed on: 2003-12-01 | Rita Côté |
| 2003-12-01 | Notice of appeal, Completed on: 2003-12-01 | Rita Côté |
| 2003-11-26 | Response to miscellaneous motion, (fax) from Bernard Faribault re: does not object to the motion to be exempt from using an agent., Completed on: 2003-11-26 | Jean-Pierre Rancourt |
| 2003-11-21 | Judgment on leave sent to the parties | |
| 2003-11-20 |
Judgment of the Court on the application for leave to appeal, The application for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal of Quebec (Montreal), Number 500-09-009074-998, dated July 4, 2003, is granted with costs to the applicants in any event of the cause. Granted, with costs to the applicant(s) in any event of the cause |
|
| 2003-10-14 | All materials on application for leave submitted to the Judges, Ia Bi Arb | |
| 2003-10-09 | Applicant's reply to respondent's argument, Completed on: 2003-10-09 | Rita Côté |
| 2003-10-03 | Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, Completed on: 2003-10-03 | Jean-Pierre Rancourt |
| 2003-09-15 | Letter acknowledging receipt of a complete application for leave to appeal | |
| 2003-09-10 | Application for leave to appeal, Completed on: 2003-09-10 | Rita Côté |
Parties
Please note that in the case of closed files, the “Status” column reflects the status of the parties at the time of the proceedings. For more information about the proceedings and about the dates when the file was open, please consult the docket of the case in question.
Main parties
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Côté, Rita | Appellant | Active |
| Les entreprises générales Rimo inc. | Appellant | Active |
v.
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Rancourt, Jean-Pierre | Respondent | Active |
| Le fonds d'assurance responsabilité professionnelle du Barreau du Québec, et al | Respondent | Active |
Counsel
Party: Côté, Rita
Counsel
337, rue Dufferin, Bureau 100
Sherbrooke, Quebec
J1H 4M6
Telephone: (819) 563-8888
FAX: (819) 563-2898
Party: Les entreprises générales Rimo inc.
Counsel
337, rue Dufferin, Bureau 100
Sherbrooke, Quebec
J1H 4M6
Telephone: (819) 563-8888
FAX: (819) 563-2898
Party: Rancourt, Jean-Pierre
Counsel
Patricia Timmons
445, boul. St-Laurent, bureau 550
Montréal, Quebec
H2Y 3T8
Telephone: (514) 954-3452
FAX: (514) 954-3454
Email: bfaribault@barreau.qc.ca
Agent
111 Rue Champlain
Hull, Quebec
J8X 3R1
Telephone: (819) 771-7393
FAX: (819) 771-5397
Party: Le fonds d'assurance responsabilité professionnelle du Barreau du Québec, et al
Counsel
445, boul. St-Laurent, bureau 550
Montréal, Quebec
H2Y 3T8
Telephone: (514) 954-3452
FAX: (514) 954-3454
Email: bfaribault@barreau.qc.ca
Agent
111 Rue Champlain
Hull, Quebec
J8X 3R1
Telephone: (819) 771-7393
FAX: (819) 771-5397
Summary
Keywords
None.
Summary
Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.
On August 18, 1989, the Rimo building burnt down. A few days later, Claude Fortin, a Rimo employee, stated that he had set fire to the insured Rimo building at Rita Côté’s request. The Appellant Côté was charged with arson, conspiracy and attempt to defraud her insurer. The Respondent Jean-Pierre Rancourt, a criminal lawyer, agreed to represent Mrs. Côté at her trial. Mr. Jean Leblanc, Mr. Rancourt’s nominal partner, was acting for Claude Fortin, the main Crown witness against the Appellant Côté.
The Appellant Côté appealed against her conviction. The Respondent Rancourt decided then to withdraw from her case and Mr. Marchand took up the appeal.
On May 31, 1994, the Court of Appeal held that the trial judge had misdirected the jury as to the factors relevant to the appraisal of Fortin’s credibility and thus ordered a new trial.
Mr Marchand advised the Appellant Côté that her claim against the insurance company was prescribed. Mrs. Côté was subsequently acquitted of the criminal charges. The Appellant corporation and Mrs. Côté sued Mr. Rancourt in civil liability and for the fees paid to him, alleging a breach of the duty to advise and a conflict of interest from the fact that the same law firm represented the main Crown witness.
The Superior Court dismissed the Appellants’ claims on the ground that the Appellant Rimo had not given Mr. Rancourt a specific or implied mandate to advise it on the insurance claim. According to the Superior Court, there was no breach of the duty of confidentiality since Côté’s and Fortin’s interests were at no time contradictory or in conflict. The appeal to the Court of Appeal was dismissed. The Court of Appeal was of the view that Mr. Rancourt had adequately advised the Appellant Côté. As to the conflict of interest, the Court found a breach by the Respondent Rancourt of the duty of loyalty owed to his client. However, since the Appellant Côté was content with her lawyer’s services, her claim for the fees paid to him was not warranted.
Lower court rulings
Superior Court of Quebec
450-05-001065-966
Action des appelantes en dommages et en remboursement d'honoraires rejetée
Court of Appeal of Quebec (Montréal)
500-09-009074-998
Appel rejeté
Memorandums of argument on application for leave to appeal
The memorandums of argument on an application for leave to appeal will be posted here 30 days after leave to appeal has been granted unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of the memorandum by filing out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.
If you have questions about a memorandum of argument or want to use a memorandum of argument, please contact the author of the memorandum of argument directly. Their name appears at the end of the memorandum of argument. The contact information for counsel is found in the “Counsel” tab of this page.
Downloadable PDFs
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Related links
Factums on appeal
The factums of the appellant, the respondent and the intervener will be posted here at least 2 weeks before the hearing unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of factums by filling out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.
If you have questions about a factum or want permission to use a factum, please contact the author of the factum directly. Their contact information appears on the first page of each factum.
Downloadable PDFs
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