Supreme Court will hear case about closed Acadian Peninsula courthouses

**Supreme Court of Canada Agrees to Hear Appeal on 2022 Closure of Caraquet and Tracadie Courthouses** The Supreme Court of Canada granted leave to appeal on October 10, 2024, in a case brought by mayors from New Brunswick’s Acadian Peninsula challenging the provincial government’s 2022 closure of courthouses in Caraquet and Tracadie. The applicants argue that the closures limit access to justice in French and breach obligations under the province’s Official Languages Act and section 16.1 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The case consolidates proceedings initiated by the Association des maires de la Péninsule acadienne after the Department of Justice and Public Safety transferred most proceedings to the Bathurst courthouse, approximately 50 kilometres away for many residents.

The Closures and Immediate Effects

The Caraquet and Tracadie facilities stopped handling most criminal, family, and small-claims matters effective April 1, 2022. Provincial officials cited aging infrastructure and annual operating costs exceeding $1.2 million combined. Court services were consolidated at the Bathurst Judicial District, where simultaneous French-English interpretation is available but not guaranteed for every proceeding. Mayor Serge Cormier of Caraquet stated in an October 2024 press release that “residents must now travel farther, arrange childcare, and take time off work, creating barriers that fall disproportionately on French-speaking citizens.” Mayor Paul Robichaud of Tracadie described the change as reducing “the everyday visibility of the French language in the justice system.”

Legal Arguments Advanced by the Applicants

The mayors contend that the closures violate the principle of substantive equality in language rights established by the Supreme Court in R. v. Beaulac (1999). They argue that the province failed to conduct an impact analysis on minority-language communities before implementing the closures, contrary to recommendations in the 2021 report of the Commissioner of Official Languages for New Brunswick. Lawyer Michel Doucet, representing the group, told Radio-Canada on October 11 that “the right to be heard in one’s official language includes not only interpretation but also the institutional environment in which justice is administered.” The applicants seek an order requiring the reopening of at least one full-service French-language point of service in the Acadian Peninsula or equivalent mobile services.

Provincial Government Position

The New Brunswick government maintains that the consolidation preserves access while improving efficiency. In a September 2024 affidavit filed with the Court of Appeal, Deputy Minister of Justice and Public Safety Martine LeBlanc noted that video-conferencing terminals were installed in Caraquet and Tracadie municipal buildings and that French-speaking staff remain available by appointment. Attorney General Kris Austin stated on October 12 that “the department continues to meet its statutory obligations and has increased the number of bilingual judicial officers since 2022.” The province will argue before the Supreme Court that operational decisions of this nature fall within provincial jurisdiction over the administration of justice and do not engage the core linguistic guarantees of the Charter.

Procedural History

The Court of King’s Bench dismissed the initial application for judicial review in January 2023, finding that the government had consulted stakeholders and that inconvenience alone did not constitute a rights violation. The New Brunswick Court of Appeal upheld that decision in June 2024 by a 2-1 majority, with Justice Marc Richard dissenting on the ground that the province had not adequately assessed the linguistic impact. The Supreme Court’s decision to grant leave brings the matter within the national court’s jurisdiction over language rights in the justice system, an area previously addressed in cases such as Charlebois v. Saint John (City) and the 2023 reference on the Official Languages Act.

Broader Context of Bilingual Justice Services

New Brunswick remains the only officially bilingual province. Under the 1969 Official Languages Act and subsequent amendments, criminal proceedings may be conducted in either English or French, and certain civil matters require active offer of service in both languages. The Acadian Peninsula contains the highest concentration of francophones outside Quebec, with approximately 80 percent of residents reporting French as their first official language spoken, according to Statistics Canada 2021 census data. Similar consolidations have occurred in other rural regions, including the Miramichi and Restigouche areas, prompting parallel complaints to the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages. Those complaints remain under investigation.

Next Steps and Potential Outcomes

Written submissions are due by February 2025, with oral arguments scheduled for the fall term. The Court may address whether governments must perform formal linguistic-impact assessments before altering court infrastructure and the standard of review applicable to such administrative decisions. Any ruling will apply directly only to New Brunswick but could influence language-service standards in other provinces with significant official-language minority populations. The province has indicated it will maintain current service levels pending the outcome. Further procedural updates will be issued by the Supreme Court Registry as filing deadlines approach.

This is Alex Thompson for Global1 News, reporting from Toronto. 🇨🇦