Éléments d’explication sociale de l’uxoricide

In this article, we will focus on the frequency and characteristics of conjugal homicides which occurred in Montréal between 1954 and 1962, and compare these crimes with those taking place between 1985 and 1989. The comparison of the main aspects of the phenomenon shows that the number of such crimes has increased steadily from one period to the next. During these two periods, women formed the majority of the victims and men, the perpetrators. The individual factors (mental illness, alcohol, despair) that may trigger the expression of violence do not account for all homicides. In fact, these crimes are often the ultimate demonstration of the control some men have over their wives. We will examine the social implications lying at the root of some men's desire to control their wives to the point of killing them when they fail to meet their expectations

La rémunération excessive des dirigeants d’entreprise et le contrôle judiciaire comme instrument de gouvernance

Depuis les récents scandales qui ont ébranlé les marchés financiers au Canada et aux États-Unis, les observateurs n’ont pas manqué de décrier le caractère excessif et parfois même frauduleux de la rémunération accordée à de hauts dirigeants de sociétés tout en soulignant du même coup le piètre rendement et la déconfiture de certaines d’entre elles. Malgré les efforts faits pour assurer une meilleure gouvernance des entreprises, les mécanismes internes de surveillance et de contrôle sont parfois insuffisants ou inefficaces pour prévenir les abus. En raison de ces défaillances internes, les tribunaux sont appelés à intervenir pour résoudre les conflits qui résultent de la mise en place d’un régime de rémunération prétendument excessif. Comme l’étude qui suit le montrera, l’action judiciaire représente un instrument complémentaire de gouvernance grâce au contrôle que les tribunaux peuvent exercer à l’égard de la direction de l’entreprise en vue de prévenir les comportements déviants. Dans sa recherche portant sur l’exercice du contrôle judiciaire, l’auteure fait ressortir l’importance de tenir compte des différences existant entre les sociétés fermées et les sociétés ouvertes et elle explore ensuite la possibilité pour les tribunaux d’adopter une approche différente qui prendrait en considération la spécificité des unes et des autres dans l’évaluation des régimes de rémunération.Since the recent scandals that have shaken financial markets in Canada and the United States, observers have not missed a chance to speak out against the excessive and sometimes fraudulent character of corporate executives’ compensation packages while concurrently emphasizing the mediocre return and failures of a significant number of companies. Despite efforts made to ensure better corporate governance, internal monitoring and control procedures have on many occasions proven to be insufficient or ineffective in preventing abuses. Owing to these internal failures, the courts have been called upon to intervene by resolving conflicts that result from the implementation of allegedly excessive compensation packages. As the following study demonstrates, judicial action represents a complementary instrument of governance owing to the control that courts can exercise over corporate directorates in preventing such deviant behaviours. In her search dealing with the judicial control, the author highlights the importance of taking into account existing differences between closely-held companies and publicly-held companies ; she then investigates the possibility that the courts adopt a different approach that would consider the specificity of one or another when evaluating compensation packages

Aspects méthodologiques de la jurisprudence québécoise en droit commercial à la fin du XIXe siècle

Dans la présente étude, l'auteure examine la motivation des jugements rendus en droit commercial à la fin du XIXe siècle, soit entre 1875 et 1900. Le corpus étudié est composé de 253 jugements de la Cour supérieure, de la Cour de révision, de la Cour du Banc de la Reine et de la Cour suprême, qui traitent des rapports juridiques des entreprises avec leurs membres, leurs dirigeants, leurs créanciers et leurs débiteurs. Après avoir situé l'étude de cette jurisprudence dans le contexte plus général des recherches sur la pensée juridique québécoise, l'auteure analyse la motivation judiciaire sur la base d'analyses quantitatives et qualitatives, en prêtant attention plus particulièrement à la structure et à la longueur des jugements, à la langue des opinions ainsi qu'aux sources citées dans les jugements.In this study the author examines the reasons underlying decisions in commercial law made towards the end of the 19th century, namely from 1875 to 1900. Her analysis focuses on 253 judgments from the Superior Court, the Court of Review, the Court of Queen's Bench and the Supreme Court, which deal with the legal relationships of business enterprises with their members, officers, creditors and debtors. After situating the study of this case law in the more general setting of research on Quebec legal thinking, the author analyses the legal reasoning on a quantitative and qualitative basis while paying special attention to the structure, length, language, and sources cited in the judgments

L'enquête publique et les critères de contrôle judiciaire des fonctions exercées par les enquêteurs

The public inquiry has long been used to gather information of concern to the State in order that the best decisions may be made according to the information thereby obtained. The Quebec legislator has, therefore, foreseen the need for different laws or particular provisions that would enable the government to make use of this procedure. Among these we find the laws governing commissions of inquiry, police, municipal commissions, coroners and arson investigations. The public often follows closely the proceedings of such inquiries, which, consequently, become a means of informing, educating, and establishing a dialogue with, the public. However, certain public inquiries, such as the Quebec Commission of Inquiry on Organized Crime, the commission of inquiry on freedom of unionization and the Keable Commission, run the risk of affecting the rights of citizens, namely those summoned to appear during such hearings as well as those whose names appear in the testimony given. Hence, some individuals may see their reputations tarnished because of facts brought to light during the inquiry, lose their jobs as a result of commission recommendations or many later have to face either civil or criminal prosecution. It is, therefore, important that such persons be given access to the courts, in order to either challenge the jurisdiction of the commission or demand that the inquiry respect the rules of natural justice.In this area, judicial review depends on the characterization of the method of operation of the public inquiry as a whole, i.e. as the exercise by the commissioners of a recommendatory power, or of interlocutory decisions taken during the course of the inquiry. Depending on the judicial or administrative nature of the activity concerned, the courts will decide whether or not to exercise their superintending and reforming powers. Thus, the courts will intervene only if the function exercised is of a judicial nature. In this regard, the courts deem that an administrative body exercises a judicial function, on the one hand when it determines the rights of individuals and, on the other, when such a body has a duty to act judicially. Apart from some rare exceptions, the courts have ruled that the exercise of the power of inquiry generally does not trench on the rights of citizens and that such a power is therefore administrative in nature. At present, the issue as to whether the inquiry determines the rights of individuals is considered by the courts in the light of either one of two theories, which can be labelled the binary and global theories. Supporters of the binary theory feel that the inquiry and the decisions which may proceed therefrom represent two quite distinct stages and the interference with the rights of individuals can only occur when a decision is made. We find an illustration of this reasoning in, among others cases, Guay v. Lafleur and St-John v. Fraser. Proponents of the second theory are agreed that the decision is an integral part of the inquiry process and that interference with rights occurs at the inquiry level itself. This argument is exemplified adequately by the judgement in Saulnier v. Quebec Police Commission. This paper also examines the characterization of interlocutory decisions made by a commission in the course of its proceedings. In this respect, the courts feel that coercive powers are of a judicial nature, while decisions concerning the administration of evidence are seen as administrative. A study of the abundant jurisprudence in this area leads us to conclude that the Quebec legislator should provide for a specific recourse, similar to that existing presently in Ontario, which would allow citizens access to the courts to challenge decisions made by commissions of inquiry

L'affaire Michaud : la voix d'un « simple actionnaire »

Au cours des deux dernières décennies, le milieu des affaires a été témoin de diverses formes d'activisme au sein de l'actionnariat des sociétés canadiennes. La bataille menée par Yves Michaud depuis deux ans est une manifestation retentissante de cet activisme. Après sa victoire devant les tribunaux contre quelques institutions bancaires canadiennes, cet actionnaire a été en mesure, lors des assemblées annuelles tenues par la plupart des grandes banques canadiennes, de soumettre des propositions visant notamment à limiter la rémunération des dirigeants et à assurer l'indépendance des membres du conseil d'administration. Une telle croisade est intéressante en ce qu'elle a réussi à bouleverser l'ordre établi dans un milieu où normalement ce genre de confrontation est peu prisé. Dans le présent article, l'auteure entend circonscrire la réalité de ce type de manifestation dans le contexte plus global de l'activisme au sein de l'actionnariat des grandes entreprises canadiennes, pour ensuite évaluer l'impact potentiel de cette affaire au regard de l'utilisation du mécanisme des propositions comme outil de participation des actionnaires.Over the past two years, the business world has seen a high level of activism among Canadian shareholders. Yves Michaud's now two year struggle stands out as a prime example of such involvement. In the wake of his victory in court against various Canadian banking institutions, Shareholder Michaud was able to attend annual shareholders' meetings held by most large Canadian banks and table proposals seeking especially to limit officers' remuneration and ensuring the independence of members sitting on their boards of directors. This crusade merits more than passing interest because it has upset the established order at a corporate level quite unaccustomed, albeit ordinarily uncomfortable with such doings. In this paper, the author attempts to depict the reality of this type of manifestation in the wider context of shareholder activism in dominant Canadian corporations, and thereafter to measure the potential impact of such actions on the use of tabling proposals as a shareholders' tool for participation