2015 FC, 2015 FC 1095

Date: 20150918 Docket: IMM-7928-14 Citation: 2015 FC 1095 [UNREVISED ENGLISH CERTIFIED TRANSLATION] Ottawa, Ontario, September 18, 2015 Present: The Honourable Mr. Justice Shore BETWEEN: PRIVA DORLUS JARDE DORLUS Applicants and THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION Respondent JUDGMENT AND REASONS I.

Preliminary [ 1 ] Although the financial dependency criterion is tangible and may be demonstrated by objective evidence, the emotional dependency criterion is intangible and may be difficult to demonstrate except by objective evidence. [ 2 ] In some circumstances, emotional dependency may easily be demonstrated; for example, when adults take care of children as their own. In other cases, it is very difficult, if not impossible, to demonstrate emotional dependency. How can a person demonstrate emotional dependency? How can emotional dependency between individuals be measured?

When has an applicant done enough to discharge his burden of proving emotional dependency? [ 3 ] This case must be considered on its own merits. Why would a person invest so much time, energy and financial resources to have a relationship with the applicants unless an emotional dependency has been created? II.

Introduction [ 4 ] This is an application for judicial review under subsection 72(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act , SC 2001, c 27 (IRPA) of an immigration officer’s decision at Port-au-Prince, Haiti, dated September 16, 2014, refusing the application for permanent residence of Priva Dorlus and Jarde Dorlus. III. Facts [ 5 ] The applicants, Jarde Dorlus, 16 years old, and her brother, Priva Dorlus, 21 years old, are citizens of Haiti. [ 6 ] Their first cousin, Farah Mathurin (the guarantor), 33 years old, is a Canadian citizen of Haitian origins.

She applied to sponsor the applicants. [ 7 ] This story began in 2001, when Ms. Mathurin, who lived at the time in Montréal, took a trip to Haiti to discover her origins and find her biological mother, who she had not met up to that point. Unfortunately, her mother was already deceased. It was during this trip that she met for the first time her biological mother’s brother, Jean Michel Dorlus, and his children: Jarde Dorlus and Priva Dorlus. [ 8 ] On her return to Canada, Ms. Mathurin financially helped the applicants so that they could be adequately sheltered, fed and educated. With Ms.

Mathurin’s financial support, the applicants left their village of Côte-de-Fer to relocate to Port-au-Prince. Since the applicants were not with their parents in Port-au-Prince, support persons were hired by Ms. Mathurin to take care of the applicants. Ms. Mathurin then travelled several times to Haiti to visit the applicants. When she was in Montréal, Ms. Mathurin would telephone the applicants to keep in touch with them. [ 9 ] In 2007, the applicants’ father, Jean Michel Dorlus, died. Then, the applicants’ mother died in 2009.

Following this, the applicants’ grandmother, Théliana Baptiste, came to live with the applicants to watch over them. She died in January 2010 during the large earthquake. On March 12, 2010, Ms. Mathurin obtained, in Haiti, legal tutorship of the applicants when a certain Jean Baptiste Dorlus was named as subrogate-tutor—a title that he abandoned by notarial deed on September 21, 2010. [ 10 ] The applicants filed a first application for permanent residence sponsored by Ms. Mathurin in January 2010.

This application was refused since the applicants were not in the “family class” and there were not enough humanitarian and compassionate circumstances to overcome this defect.

[ 11 ] A second application for permanent residence sponsored by Ms. Mathurin was submitted on November 8, 2011. This application was refused without the officer being able to review the humanitarian and compassionate circumstances. An application for judicial review was submitted in February 2013 (IMM-1388-13), but the parties agreed to abandon the judicial review on condition that the application be reconsidered by a different officer. [ 12 ] Finally, on September 16, 2014, a different officer made a decision in which he refused the application for permanent residence.

It is this decision that is subject to judicial review. IV. Impugned decision [ 13 ] In his decision of September 16, 2014, the officer refused the application for permanent residence under the family class. The officer found that the applicants do not satisfy the requirements of this class and that the humanitarian and compassionate considerations are not sufficient to be exempted from all or part of the requirements of the IRPA .

The application was therefore dismissed. [ 14 ] First, with respect to family class, the officer reviewed subsection 12(1) of the IRPA and subsection 117(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations , SOR/2002-227 (IRPR). The officer found that the applicants were not in the family class under subsection 117(1) of the IRPR by recalling that Ms.

Mathurin had not legally adopted the applicants. [ 15 ] Second, with respect to humanitarian and compassionate considerations, the officer found that the considerations did not justify the exemption, in whole or in part, from the criteria and obligations applicable to the family class. Therefore, although the officer recognized that Ms. Mathurin is a cousin interested in the applicants’ well-being and that she brings financial support, the officer was not persuaded that it was Ms. Mathurin’s intention to [ translation ] “form a parent-child relationship with Jarde and Priva” .

The officer supported his conclusion on the fact that a parent-child relationship or a similar relationship did not exist at the time that he made his decision, recalling that Ms. Mathurin and the applicants had never lived together, that Ms. Mathurin had not visited the applicants for three years and that Ms. Mathurin had never attempted to adopt the applicants. Furthermore, the officer stated that most of the humanitarian and compassionate grounds raised in the applicants’ submissions are the direct result of Ms.

Mathurin’s actions—i.e. that they were moved from their village where they lived with their parents to go to Port-au-Prince and be under the care of support persons. Finally, the officer specified that he considered all the documents that were submitted to him, the interview with the applicants and Ms. Mathurin, and the best interest of Jarde, who is a minor. [ 16 ] For all these reasons, the immigration officer refused the application. The officer reiterated that refusal to accept applicants’ application only perpetuates the status quo, not separate a family. V.

Issue [ 17 ] The Court considers that the application raises the following question: Did the immigration officer err in his assessment of family class with respect to humanitarian and compassionate considerations and in finding that the applicants had not formed a de facto family with the guarantor? VI. Statutory provisions [ 18 ] The statutory provisions of the IRPA and the IRPR are set out below: Family reunification Regroupement familial 12 .

(1) A foreign national may be selected as a member of the family class on the basis of their relationship as the spouse, common-law partner, child, parent or other prescribed family member of a Canadian citizen or permanent resident. 12 .

(1) La sélection des étrangers de la catégorie « regroupement familial » se fait en fonction de la relation qu’ils ont avec un citoyen canadien ou un résident permanent, à

titre d’époux, de conjoint de fait, d’enfant ou de père ou mère ou à

titre d’autre membre de la famille prévu par règlement. Economic immigration Immigration économique

(2) A foreign national may be selected as a member of the economic class on the basis of their ability to become economically established in Canada.

(2) La sélection des étrangers de la catégorie « immigration économique » se fait en fonction de leur capacité à réussir leur établissement économique au Canada. Refugees Réfugiés (3) A foreign national, inside or outside Canada, may be selected as a person who under this Act is a Convention refugee or as a person in similar circumstances, taking into account Canada’s humanitarian tradition with respect to the displaced and the persecuted.

(3) La sélection de l’étranger, qu’il soit au Canada ou non, s’effectue, conformément à la tradition humanitaire du Canada à l’égard des personnes déplacées ou persécutées, selon qu’il a la qualité, au

titre de la présente loi, de réfugié ou de personne en situation semblable. Humanitarian and compassionate considerations – request of foreign national Séjour pour motif d’ordre humanitaire à la demande de l’étranger

25 .

(1) Subject to subsection (1.2), the Minister must, on request of a foreign national in Canada who applies for permanent resident status and who is inadmissible — other than under

section 34, 35 or 37 — or who does not meet the requirements of this Act, and may, on request of a foreign national outside Canada — other than a foreign national who is inadmissible under

section 34, 35 or 37 — who applies for a permanent resident visa, examine the circumstances concerning the foreign national and may grant the foreign national permanent resident status or an exemption from any applicable criteria or obligations of this Act if the Minister is of the opinion that it is justified by humanitarian and compassionate considerations relating to the foreign national, taking into account the best interests of a child directly affected. 25 .

(1) Sous réserve du paragraphe (1.2), le ministre doit, sur demande d’un étranger se trouvant au Canada qui demande le statut de résident permanent et qui soit est interdit de territoire — sauf si c’est en raison d’un cas visé aux articles 34, 35 ou 37 —, soit ne se conforme pas à la présente loi, et peut, sur demande d’un étranger se trouvant hors du Canada — sauf s’il est interdit de territoire au

titre des articles 34, 35 ou 37 — qui demande un visa de résident permanent, étudier le cas de cet étranger; il peut lui octroyer le statut de résident permanent ou lever tout ou

partie des critères et obligations applicables, s’il estime que des considérations d’ordre humanitaire relatives à l’étranger le justifient, compte tenu de l’intérêt supérieur de l’enfant directement touché. Member Regroupement familial 117 .

(1) A foreign national is a member of the family class if, with respect to a sponsor, the foreign national is 117 .

(1) Appartiennent à la catégorie du regroupement familial du fait de la relation qu’ils ont avec le répondant les étrangers suivants : (

a) the sponsor's spouse, common-law partner or conjugal partner;

a) son époux, conjoint de fait ou partenaire conjugal; (

b) a dependent child of the sponsor;

b) ses enfants à charge; (

c) the sponsor's mother or father;

c) ses parents; (

d) the mother or father of the sponsor's mother or father;

d) les parents de l’un ou l’autre de ses parents; ( e ) [Repealed, SOR/2005-61, s. 3] e ) [Abrogé, DORS/2005-61, art. 3] (

f) a person whose parents are deceased, who is under 18 years of age, who is not a spouse or common-law partner and who is

f) s’ils sont âgés de moins de dix-huit ans, si leurs parents sont décédés et s’ils n’ont pas d’époux ni de conjoint de fait : (

i) a child of the sponsor's mother or father, (

i) les enfants de l’un ou l’autre des parents du répondant, (ii) a child of a child of the sponsor's mother or father, or (ii) les enfants des enfants de l’un ou l’autre de ses parents, (iii) a child of the sponsor's child; (iii) les enfants de ses enfants; (

g) a person under 18 years of age whom the sponsor intends to adopt in Canada if

g) la personne âgée de moins de dix-huit ans que le répondant veut adopter au Canada, si les conditions suivantes sont réunies : (

i) the adoption is not being entered into primarily for the purpose of acquiring any status or privilege under the Act, (

i) l’adoption ne vise pas principalement l’acquisition d’un statut ou d’un privilège aux termes de la Loi, (ii) where the adoption is an international adoption and the country in which the person resides and their province of intended destination are parties to the Hague Convention on Adoption, the competent authority of the country and of the province have approved the adoption in writing as conforming to that Convention, and (ii) s’il s’agit d’une adoption internationale et que le pays où la personne réside et la province de destination sont parties à la Convention sur l’adoption, les autorités compétentes de ce pays et celles de cette province ont déclaré, par écrit, qu’elles estimaient que l’adoption était conforme à cette convention, (iii) where the adoption is an international adoption and either the country in which the person resides or the person's province of intended destination is not a party to the Hague Convention on Adoption (iii) s’il s’agit d’une adoption internationale et que le pays où la personne réside ou la province de destination n’est pas

partie à la Convention sur l’adoption : (

A) the person has been placed for adoption in the country in which they reside or is otherwise legally available in that country for adoption and there is no evidence that the intended adoption is for the purpose of child trafficking or undue gain within the meaning of the Hague Convention on Adoption, and (

A) la personne a été placée en vue de son adoption dans ce pays ou peut par ailleurs y être légitimement adoptée et rien n’indique que l’adoption projetée a pour objet la traite de l’enfant ou la réalisation d’un gain indu au sens de cette convention, (

B) the competent authority of the person's province of intended destination has stated in writing that it does not object to the adoption; or (

B) les autorités compétentes de la province de destination ont déclaré, par écrit, qu’elles ne s’opposaient pas à l’adoption;

(

h) a relative of the sponsor, regardless ofage, if the sponsor does not have a spouse, acommon-law partner, a conjugal partner, achild, a mother or father, a relative who is achild of that mother or father, a relative whois a child of a child of that mother or father, amother or father of that mother or father or arelative who is a child of the mother or fatherof that mother or father

h) tout autre membre de sa parenté, sanségard à son âge, à défaut d’époux, de conjointde fait, de partenaire conjugal, d’enfant, deparents, de membre de sa famille qui estl’enfant de l’un ou l’autre de ses parents, demembre de sa famille qui est l’enfant d’unenfant de l’un ou l’autre de ses parents, deparents de l’un ou l’autre de ses parents ou demembre de sa famille qui est l’enfant de l’unou l’autre des parents de l’un ou l’autre deses parents, qui est : (

i) who is a Canadian citizen, Indian orpermanent resident, or (

i) soit un citoyen canadien, un Indien ouun résident permanent, (ii) whose application to enter and remain inCanada as a permanent resident the sponsormay otherwise sponsor. (ii) soit une personne susceptible de voir sademande d’entrée et de séjour au Canada àtitre de résident permanent par ailleursparrainée par le répondant. VII.

Position of the parties [19] The applicants argue that by considering the family class (subsections 12(1) and 25(1) of the IRPA and paragraph 117(1)(h)of the IRPR), the immigration officer did not take into consideration the factors set out in the operational manual (The humanitarian andcompassionate assessment: De facto family members), which enabled him to find that the applicants were members of a de facto familywith Ms. Mathurin, the guarantor (see Massey v Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2011 FC 1382).

Therefore, theimmigration officer did not consider the applicants’ membership in a de facto family, the relationship of dependence of the children withMs. Mathurin, the tutorship assigned to Ms. Mathurin, the emotional relationship between the applicants and Ms. Mathurin and thegeneral situation prevailing in Haiti. [20] As for the humanitarian and compassionate considerations, the applicants argue that the officer had not sufficiently supportedhis finding that Ms. Mathurin did not intend to form a parent-child relationship with the applicants and that there was no similaremotional bond.

The failure of a PRRA officer to set out his findings for which a de facto family had not been formed is, according to theapplicants, sufficient ground to accept the judicial review (Okbai v Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2012 FC 229(Okbai)).

Therefore, the officer breached his duty, as set out in the decision Baker v Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), (SCC), [1999] 2 SCR 817, to support his findings with sufficient reasons regarding humanitarian and compassionategrounds so that the applicants could know why their application was refused (David v Canada (Minister of Citizenship andImmigration), 2007 FC 546). The applicants stated that they have an emotional bond with Ms. Mathurin; their relationship has lastedmore than ten years. Furthermore, Ms.

Mathurin has watched over the applicants and has been attempting for several years to sponsorthem. Therefore, the applicants argue that the officer ignored evidence on file and did not provide adequate reasons for his findings. [21] The respondent argued that the officer’s decision was reasonable since the applicants are not members of the family class asset out in paragraph 117(1)(

h) of the IRPR (see also sections 12 and 25 of the IRPA). The respondent recalls that the power set out atsubsection 25(1) of the IRPA is completely discretionary (Kawtharani v Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2006 FC 162at para 15 (Kawtharani)). [22] In addition, the respondent argued that the officer indeed considered all the evidence provided by the applicants and thatOkbai, above, cited by the applicants, is not applicable.

The respondent argued that the guidelines in the Guides are not binding on theofficer, but serve only as a guide (Maple Lodge Farms Ltd. v Canada, [1982] 2 SCR 2, (SCC); Legault v Canada(Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2002] 4 FC 358, 2002 FCA 125 at para 20, 28; Ha v Canada (Minister of Citizenship andImmigration), [2004] 3 FCR 195, 2004 FCA 49 at para 71).

The respondent argued that the mere fact of being part of a family is notsufficient to be granted a dispensation for humanitarian and compassionate grounds (Liu v Canada (Minister of Citizenship andImmigration), 2013 FC 1090 at paras 8-9 (Liu)). [23] Concerning the officer’s findings that there was no parent-child relationship between the applicants and Ms. Mathurin, therespondent argued that the officer supported this finding. Therefore, the respondent reiterated that the officer found that Ms. Mathurinstill had not acted in the applicants’ best interest, in particular when Ms.

Mathurin relocated the applicants when they were youngminors. Furthermore, the respondent relied on the decision of the Quebec Court of Appeal, Adoption – 152, 2015 QCCA 348 at paras 78to 83, to argue that long-standing financial support is not sufficient in itself to establish a parent-child relationship.

The respondent alsoargued that in his analysis of the humanitarian and compassionate considerations, the officer considered the contradictions as to therelationship that the applicants have with their older brother Guivard Dorlus. [24] Finally, with respect to the applicants’ argument that the officer did not consider the general situation in Haiti, the respondentstated that it is not sufficient to rely only on the general conditions of a country in an application based on humanitarian andcompassionate considerations (Hussain v Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2006 FC 719 at para 12).

In sum, therespondent argued that the officer’s decision was reasonable and that the findings of fact relate to the officer’s expertise (Mathewa vCanada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2005 FC 914 at para 17). VIII. Standard of review [25] An immigration officer’s decisions in relation to the application of the correct test of the IRPA, its home statute, are submittedto the standard of reasonableness (Diaz v Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2015 FC 373 at para 13; Alberta

(Information and Privacy Commissioner) v Alberta Teachers’ Association, [2011] 3 SCR 654, 2011 SCC 61 at para 34). As for thehumanitarian and compassionate considerations addressing issues of fact and law or fact, the standard of reasonableness is applicable(Joseph v Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2015 FC 904 at para 22; Kisana v Canada (Minister of Citizenship andImmigration), 2009 FCA 189 at para 18).

The standard of reasonableness is also applicable for humanitarian and compassionateconsiderations in determining whether a person is a member of the de facto family (Pervaiz v Canada (Minister of Citizenship andImmigration), 2014 FC 680 (Pervaiz); Da Silva v Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2011 FC 347 at para 14). [26] Therefore, the immigration officer’s decision is reasonable if it is justified, transparent, the decision-making process isintelligible and the decision falls within a range of possible, acceptable outcomes which are defensible on the facts and the law(Dunsmuir v New Brunswick, [2008] 1 SCR 190, 2008 SCC 9 at para 47).

IX. Analysis [27] There is no doubt that the officer did not err in his assessment of subsection 12(1) of the IRPA and subsection 117(1) of theIRPR. The Court considered the next question, which was to determine whether the immigration officer should have used hisdiscretionary power provided at

section 25 of the IRPA. This provision allows him to grant permanent resident status to the applicants,by lifting in whole or in part the criteria and obligations provided by the IRPA, for humanitarian and compassionate considerations, giventhe best interests of the child. [28] This Court recognized on several occasions that a request for humanitarian and compassionate considerations, as provided atsubsection 25(1) of the IRPA, is an exceptional and highly discretionary remedy (Gonzalo v Canada (Minister of Citizenship andImmigration), 2015 FC 526 at para 16; Pervaiz, above at para 40).

For such an application to be granted, the decision-maker must assessthe applicable factors in relation to the specific facts of the matter before him (Miller v Canada (Minister of Citizenship andImmigration), 2012 FC 1173 at para 18; Kawtharani, above at para 15). [29] In this case, the applicants argued that the immigration officer had not assessed whether the applicants had formed a de factofamily with Ms. Mathurin.

It is important to recall that although the IRPA promotes family reunification, family reunification is only onefactor among others with respect to humanitarian and compassionate considerations (Liu, above at para 14, cited in Pervaiz, above at para40). [30] For a person to have the status of de facto family member, he or she must be a vulnerable person, not falling under thedefinition of a family member provided in the IRPA, who depends on the financial and emotional support of persons living in Canada(Frank v Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2010 FC 270 at para 29). [31] In his analysis, the immigration officer found that although financial dependence may have developed between the guarantorand the applicants, an emotional dependency had not developed.

Without emotional dependency, a de facto family cannot form. [32] In support of his conclusion that there is no emotional dependency, the immigration officer paid careful attention to the factthat Ms.

Mathurin had not legally adopted the applicants: Mme Mathurin stated at interview that she did not look into adopting Priva and Jarde when they were younger because it had never beenher intention to bring them to Canada, just to supplement their care in Haiti. … Mme Mathurin stated at interview that when she did lookinto adopting Priva and Jarde she was informed it was too late under Haitian law as Priva was already 16 years old and so she droppedthis matter.

The sponsor’s consultant submitted the portion of the Haitian Code Civil relevant to adoption which was procured from theHaitian Consulate in Montreal in June 2011. The consultant has highlighted that the Haitian Code Civil includes several regulations onadoption which would render Mme Mathurin ineligible to adopt her cousins. I note that there is an established legal remedy for theseclauses and exceptions to the Haitian adoption regulations are regularly considered and approved when determined to be in the bestinterest of the children involved by the relevant authorities in Haiti.

I further note that in not pursuing legal adoption, the sponsor wouldbe circumventing oversight by the responsible authorities in Haiti (Institut de Bien Être Sociale) to determine the best interest of anorphaned or abandoned child. [Emphasis added.] (Respondent’s file, Affidavit of Susan Bradley, Exhibit “A”, p 6) [33] The Court noted that the immigration officer paid too much attention to the question of the adoption and neglected to considerother important evidence that contradicted his conclusions.

It should be remembered that the immigration officer must discuss in hisreasons the evidence that seems to flat-out contradict his conclusion (Cepeda-Gutierrez v Canada (Minister of Citizenship andImmigration), (FC), [1998] FCJ No 1425 at para 34). [34] Although the financial dependency criterion is tangible and may be demonstrated by objective evidence, the emotionaldependency criterion is intangible and may be difficult to demonstrate except by objective evidence. [35] In some circumstances, emotional dependency may be easily demonstrated; for example, when adults take care of children astheir own.

In other cases, it is very difficult, even impossible, to demonstrate emotional dependency. How can a person demonstrateemotional dependency? How can emotional dependency between individuals be measured? When has an applicant done enough todischarge his burden of proving emotional dependency? [36] This case must be considered on its own merits. Why would a person invest so much time, energy and financial resources tohave a relationship with the applicants unless an emotional dependency has been created? [37] The relationship between Ms. Mathurin and the applicants dates back to 2001. Since this time, Ms.

Mathurin watched overthem both financially and emotionally:

[ translation ] On my return to Montréal, I made the firm decision to get involved in the lives of these children and to have a transformative impact on their lives … but also by going to see them in Haiti as often as my obligations allowed me to so as to nurture the relationship and let them feel my presence and my attachment to them despite the distance. Although I was not a mother, my attachment to them was similar to that of a mother in the lives of her children.

That is how, by working, sometimes for two shifts, I was able to save enough to be able to provide for them. (Applicant’s record, Affidavit of the Applicant, Exhibit “A”, p 18) [ 38 ] In addition, through her actions, Ms. Mathurin demonstrated that she wanted to take care of the applicants and get closer to them. It appears from the evidence on the record that Ms. Mathurin did her own research into the Haitian civil code with respect to the law on legal adoption and found that it would not be possible to adopt the applicants. Furthermore, she became their legal tutor.

This conduct is not consistent with that of a person who is only seeking to give financial support. [ 39 ] Given this evidence, it was not reasonable for the immigration officer to conclude that there is no emotional dependency between the applicants and Ms. Mathurin.

Humanitarian and compassionate considerations [ 40 ] With respect to the argument of the general situation in Haiti, this argument must be rejected since it is necessary to demonstrate that the risk is personal and specific ( Joseph v Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) , 2015 FC 661 at para 49 ; Lalane v Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) , 2009 FC 6 at para 1 ). X. Conclusion [ 41 ] The Court finds that the immigration officer’s decision is not reasonable. Therefore, the application for judicial review is allowed.

JUDGMENT THE COURT ORDERS AND ADJUDGES that this application for judicial review be allowed and that the matter be referred back before another officer for a hearing de novo . No question is certified. “Michel M.J. Shore” Judge Certified true translation Catherine Jones, Translator FEDERAL COURT SOLICITORS OF RECORD DOCKET: IMM-7928-14 STYLE OF CAUSE: PRIVA DORLUS, JARDE DORLUS v THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION PLACE OF HEARING: Montréal, QuEbec DATE OF HEARING: september 17, 2015 JUDGMENT AND REASONS: SHORE J. DATED: september 18, 2015 APPEARANCES :

Stéphanie Valois FOR THE APPLICANTS Thi My Dung Tran FOR THE RESPONDENT SOLICITORS OF RECORD : Stéphanie Valois Montréal, Quebec FOR THE APPLICANTS William F. Pentney Deputy Attorney General of Canada Montréal, Quebec FOR THE RESPONDENT