Case information

Criminal law — Appeal — Procedures — Motion for revocation of judgment — Whether Quebec Court of Appeal erred in refusing to grant applicant revocation of judgment rendering him foreclosed from pleading despite clear violation of right to be heard — Whether Court of Appeal erred in denying extension of time in which to appeal in light of interests of justice without considering his status of respondent, irremediable consequence of foreclosure and procedural imbalance created by it — Whether Court of Appeal’s decision infringed principles of natural justice and constitutional rights guaranteed by s. 7 of Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms by depriving applicant of any opportunity to be heard regarding sentence, thus going against fundamental legal principle of “audi alteram partem” guaranteeing fair trial.

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.

The applicant, Normand Dubé, was on trial for criminal harassment and arson to residences and a motor vehicle, all committed on different dates. The only link between the victims and Mr. Dubé is that each victim, in the performance of their duties as a public officer, at separate times and following different events, made or confirmed administrative decisions affecting the applicant’s property rights.

At trial, the judge convicted Mr. Dubé on a number of the counts against him and sentenced him to a global term of imprisonment of nine years. Mr. Dubé sought to appeal that conviction, but the Court of Appeal granted motions for dismissal because he had not complied with his recognizance and had flouted its authority. The Crown also appealed the conviction so that the seven-year sentence be served consecutively to another sentence, imposed a few months earlier. That appeal was allowed by the Court of Appeal. Four years later, Mr. Dubé sought to obtain, among other things, a revocation of judgment. All applications were dismissed. The motion for revocation became moot, and there was no need to expend judicial resources on it.