Former premier Jean Charest played his last cards on Tuesday in a $2 million lawsuit against the state for invading his privacy in a maturer investigation by UPAC.
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“His family was attacked, he was also attacked, it affects him,” his lawyer, Jacques Jeanson, pleaded in a Montreal court on Tuesday.
Sitting in court, former prime minister Jean Charest listened attentively to his lawyer’s demands for the state to be condemned in civil proceedings over the leaking of information in the Maturer investigation.
In the file, in which he is one of the subjects of interest, the permanent anti-corruption unit sought to shed light on allegations of illegal financing in the Liberal Party of Quebec during Mr. Charest’s leadership.
However, Mr. Charest said that this information was supposed to be confidential and that the entire matter had been revealed in the public square by the Quebecor Bureau of Investigation.
“The publication of the relevant investigation file is clear [à Jean Charest] It stems directly from the casting of a member of the Commissioner’s staff, which amounts to abuse of power in bad faith and negligence,” the court document reads.
Discretionary inquiry
Launched in 2020, Mr. Charest’s civil suit finally began a highly discretionary hearing on Tuesday. The former prime minister also gave a statement where he mentioned, among other things, the harm he suffered.
“He was frustrated and embarrassed to see the information collected about him repeatedly disseminated to the general public,” his lawyers said, adding that the state should be held responsible for the situation.
Personal information
Referring to the “systemic problem of lack of supervision”, Me Jeansonne demanded on Tuesday that steps be taken to “ensure the protection of personal information” of his client.
This should never happen,’ he told the court. Turning heads at UPAC is not enough. »
The trial before Judge Gregory Moore continues this morning, with arguments from Quebec’s attorney general representing the state.
Note that Mâchurer finally ended last March, without any charges, while an investigation to determine the source of the leak was underway at UPAC.
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