My Louis LeBel and François Rolland. Source: Langlois
Do you dream of a career in the judiciary but you don’t know if you have the typical profile? Droit-Inc met two former judges, Mes Louis LeBel et Francois Rolland to talk about it.
Louis LeBel is a retired judge of the Supreme Court of Canada, where he sat from 2000 to 2014. He has been legal counsel at Langlois since 2015 and judge in residence at the Faculty of Law of Université Laval.
François Rolland is currently counsel, mediator and arbitrator in the litigation group at Langlois. He was a Superior Court judge from 1996 to 2015, including Chief Justice from 2004 to 2015.
“He has presided over numerous trials in all areas of law, in commercial matters, class actions, insolvency and corporate reorganization as well as matrimonial disputes”, can be read on the firm’s website.
What questions should you ask yourself when thinking about becoming a judge?
F: We must first ask ourselves if this is a way of life that suits us. When you become a judge, you cannot do the same activities as when you were a lawyer. You cannot be involved or sit on a board of directors of a non-profit organization, for example.
Becoming a judge also means agreeing to work a lot. People sometimes believe that life as a judge is between 9:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., but that is not the case. We don’t stop working at 4:30 p.m.
It is sometimes necessary, in the evening, to prepare a judgment, take notes, revise, it is also necessary to draw up a plan for the next judgment, etc. It is not for nothing that new judges often suffer from overwork. The life of a judge is completely different from that of a lawyer.
You also need to ask yourself if you are ready to move. The job sometimes requires you to travel for a week to another city. If you have a small family, you need to discuss it together to see if this lifestyle is right for you.
How many years of experience does it take to become a judge?
F: The Judges Act provides that you must have been a lawyer for at least 10 years, both provincially and federally. But in practice, you must have been a lawyer for at least 20 years. The appointed judges are on average 45-50 years old.
However, there are exceptions. At the Court of Quebec, for example, judges are appointed much younger. They can be appointed after a dozen years of practice only.
L: We also note that there are more and more judges who access the judiciary after having pursued a university career rather than in the public service.
When I started practicing, the typical profile of a judge was to have a long experience as a litigator in civil matters, in insurance or in business law. You would rarely find someone who came directly from an academic background. Things change!
What qualities do you need to have to be a judge?
F: There are two essential qualities that we must have if we want to be a judge. It’s empathy and listening. You have to show great empathy because we are there to settle disputes. You also have to listen to fully understand each part in order to then make a decision.
You have to remain calm and patient while keeping a certain rigor. Also, you have to be able to make decisions, because our job is to decide between two parties. Sometimes we have more difficult decisions to make and we have to trust our judgment.
L: We need to have some confidence in ourselves. I have observed several times certain judges who were in uncertainty and in anguish when they had to make a decision. You should not enter the judiciary immediately thinking that it will be difficult, otherwise you will have a fairly negative experience.
You also have to be ready to expand your knowledge. When you enter the judiciary, you will sometimes have to work in more specialized courts that you know less about. You must therefore be ready to deal with new situations and new information.
Do we have to have contacts and friends in the judiciary to have a better chance of being appointed judge?
F: In the form you must complete to apply to be a judge, you must enter references. So on that side yes, you must have some contacts in the middle. On the other hand, I would say that it is first and foremost necessary to be known in the legal community.
The committee evaluating your candidacy, for example, will see if it has ever seen you appear before a judge. It will take into account your reputation in the legal community, because when you become a judge, you must set an example. The committee must ensure that you have the respect of your colleagues and a good reputation in society in general.
What should I do to improve my chances of becoming a judge?
F: It’s always good to see a candidate for the bench get involved in the legal community or sit on non-profit organizations. It shows that you care about the well-being of the community as a whole.
Me, it always impresses me to see a candidate set up an organization to help young people or to help immigrants integrate into their community, for example. We can see that these people have good intentions and that they want to help the community in general. That makes good candidates to become a judge.
L: You need to understand how the system works and for that you need to have developed substantial training in several branches of law. Right now you won’t know everything, but you will at least know how the system works. Keep learning and believing in yourself.