This article first appeared in French in the Spring 2019 edition of the Copropriété Plus magazine.
The high season for real estate transactions has begun. Are you thinking of selling your condo in order to pursue another project? Or are you looking for the condo of your dreams? The initial contractual link that will be established between the owner (seller) and the purchaser will be an “offer to purchase”, or “promise to purchase”.
Results and prospects / Consultations on the Quebec government’s Bill 2 on regulating cannabis
The special consultations on Bill 2, An Act to tighten the regulation of cannabis, have now been completed and a report thereon was tabled in Quebec’s National Assembly on February 21, 2019.
Recently, in the matter of Bilodeau v. Directeur des poursuites criminelles et pénales, the Quebec Superior Court pointed out that while the powers of the syndic of a professional order are extensive, they are not limitless. For certain exceptions to the rules of evidence apply to those powers and prevent the syndic from having access to all the documents it may require. This is the case in particular with the police informer privilege, whereby the informer’s identity cannot be revealed, whether in civil, criminal, penal or administrative proceedings, or during a preliminary inquiry or testimony at trial.
On February 28, 2019, the Supreme Court of Canada upheld the Quebec Court of Appeal’s decision solidarily ordering a lawyer, his firm and two fraudsters to pay nearly seven million dollars in damages. This case is a potent reminder to professionals to respect the limits of their mandates and always act in their clients’ best interests.
Currently, the categories of cannabis that can be legally sold by holders of a federal licence and by distributors and retailers authorized by a province or territory are dried cannabis, fresh cannabis, cannabis oil, cannabis plants, and the seeds of cannabis plants. However, the federal government recently confirmed its intention to amend the Cannabis Act in order to authorize the sale of three new categories of cannabis products.
Overview of the first week of special consultations and public hearings on Bill 2: An Act to tighten the regulation of cannabis
The Quebec government is currently conducting special consultations and public hearings on Bill 2: An Act to tighten the regulation of cannabis, and Langlois Lawyers is following the proceedings closely. The main purposes of the draft legislation are to increase the legal age for the consumption, possession and purchase of cannabis to 21, and to prohibit consumption in public places.