August 29th, 2024
Langlois Celebrates Stellar Success in 2025 Best Lawyers in Canada
60 colleagues in the spotlight this year!
Paule Veilleux
Partner
Key practice areas
Education Law, Labour and Employment Law, Public and Administrative Law, Strategic HR Advice, Human Rights and Discrimination
Paule Veilleux focuses her practice on the areas covered by labour-law statutes such as the labour codes, the Act respecting occupational health and safety, the Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases, the Act respecting labour standards, the Employment Insurance Act, the Privacy Act, and the Canadian and Québec charters of rights and freedoms.
Paule also acts as spokesperson for employers at the bargaining table during negotiations for the renewal of collective agreements when charter issues are involved. She has also participated in several mediations in human rights Commission files involving issues of discrimination based on grounds like handicap, age, gender and ethnic origin.
Paule appears before all levels of the civil courts and administrative tribunals, including the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the Court of Québec, the Superior Court, and in grievance arbitrations before the Administrative Labour Tribunal (ALT) and the Tribunal des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse (Québec human and youth rights tribunal).
Paule is regularly called upon to give conference presentations and training sessions in connection with labour and employment law, at which she addresses topics such as psychological harassment, reasonable accommodation, the management of disciplinary files and occupational health and safety files and the allocation of costs in occupational health and safety funding. She has been a presenter at major conferences organized by the firm, the Québec Bar and the Québec School Boards Federation, at which she has addressed various topics involving labour relations, occupational health and safety issues and issues involving the federal and provincial charters of rights.
In addition, she has written several articles on occupational health and safety and labour law for specialized journals. She is also co-author of the book Le harcèlement et les lésions psychologiques (Harassment and Psychological Trauma) (re-edited in 2012). She edited the chapter on the dismissal of public service managers in Règlement sur certaines conditions de travail applicables aux cadres des agences et des établissements de santé et de services sociaux annoté, a book on the law applicable to employment conditions of executives in health and social services agencies written by Eugène Abarrategui and published in 2007. She also revised chapters of the book Le droit du travail (Labour Law), published by Éditions Yvon Blais, and worked on a book on the same subject produced by the Québec Bar School.
Right of association of medical specialists
- Paule was a member of the team of lawyers who submitted a motion for a declaratory judgment concerning medical specialists’ right of association in Québec.
Independence and impartiality
- She made representations to the Superior Court and the Court of Appeal on behalf of the Commission d’appel en matière de lésions professionnelles concerning the independence and impartiality of the CALP commissioners (Montambault case).
- She also represented the intervenor, the Association des commissaires of the Commission des relations du travail, on issues pertaining to judicial independence in the Court of Appeal matter of AJACLP v. Procureur général du Québec.
Freedom of religion
- At the Commission des relations de travail (now the Administrative Labour Tribunal), she obtained a declaration of inoperability and non-invocability for section 7 of the Organization and Management of Institutions Regulation and sections 3 and 4 of the bylaw regarding the provision of pastoral services at Laval Hospital, which bases the right to employment on the religious nature of the institution.
Handicap
- On the basis of her representations, the Québec Human Rights Tribunal recognized that visual acuity is a justifiable professional requirement for employment as an industrial electrician.
Freedom of expression
- She represented major Québec media and succeeded in having Section 487.2 of the Criminal Code declared null, void, and inoperable by the Superior Court and the Court of Appeal.
Mediator confidentiality
- For over 20 years, she has represented the conciliators of the Administrative Labour Tribunal in cases where conciliation confidentiality has been challenged by the parties or by third persons.
Disqualification for public office
- On behalf of a school board, Paule obtained a declaration that parents were not qualified to sit on an advisory board on services for handicapped pupils and pupils with learning and adjustment difficulties.
Challenge to guilty verdict
- She also acted for the Ministère de l’Environnement in the dismissal of a senior public servant in which over 25 legal proceedings were brought by the claimant to Commission de l’accès à l’information, Commission de la fonction publique, the Superior Court, and the Court of Appeal. This case mainly concerned a challenge, as part of the dismissal complaint, to the guilty verdict by a senior government official in the wake of the City of Toronto decision.
Coroner’s inquest
- She acted as co-counsel in the coroner’s inquest into the events leading to the multiple car accident on Highway 20. She represented engineers at the Ministère des Transports and also pled before the disciplinary committee regarding these events.
Disclosure of wrondoing
- In the context of a judicial review, she is defending the procedure followed by a public body responsible for investigating and determining the merits of allegations filed under the Act to facilitate the disclosure of wrongdoings relating to public bodies.
Penal offences
- She represents a major forest-products business in a matter involving the Sustainable Forest Development Act.
Inquiry Committee of the Judicial Council
- She sat on the Canadian Judicial Council Inquiry Committee reviewing the conduct of the Honourable Michel Girouard, S.C.J. in 2017.
Freedom of association
- For a major association of executives of the health network, she had regulatory provisions adversely modifying the employment conditions of managers declared null, as they were adopted contrary to the freedom of association of the members of this association.
Right to impose professional training
- Paule defended the legality of provisions of the Education Act allowing the employer to determine the mandatory professional training of the teachers it employs.
- Best Lawyers in Canada:
- Education Law, 2021-2025
- Workers' Compensation Law, 2016-2020
Memberships
- Québec Bar, Member of the Disciplinary Committee, 2009
- Québec Federation of Chambers of Commerce (FCCQ), Member of the Education, Training and Workforce Committee, since 2017
- Association des femmes de carrière du Québec Métropolitain, 1988-1994:
- Representative at the Canadian Convention of Career Women held in British Columbia, 1990-1991
- President, 1989-1990
Professional activities
- Member of the Governance Advisory Committee of the firm, 2023
- Partner in charge of the Québec City office and Member of the Board of Directors of the firm, 2011-2014
- Member of the Board of Directors of the firm, 2004-2006
Community involvement
- Petit Séminaire de Québec Alumni Association, Member of the Board of Directors, 1996-2000
- Co-author: “L’après-Kativik : les effets de l’arrêt de la Cour d’appel et son application par les tribunaux” [The effects of the Kativik decision and its application by courts], Développements récents en droit du travail, Québec Bar, 2022.
- Co-author: “Le droit du travail du Québec” [Employment law in Québec], 8th Edition, Éditions Yvon Blais, 2022.
- Author: “Work-Related Emails and Union Messaging: Are They Compatible?”, September 26, 2019.
- Co-author: “No Double Compensation During the Summer for Teachers Entitled to Income Replacement Benefits”, June 3, 2019.
- Author: “Adapting to New Communications Tools in the Workplace”, April 27, 2016.
- Author: “Alcohol and Drug Abuse – Irving”, February 4, 2014.
- Co-author: “Social Networks, Defamation and Privacy: Internet Provides No Immunity”, November 27, 2013.
- Co-author: “Can an Employer Use for its Own Purposes the Information Stored in its Employee’s Personal Email Box?”, November 27, 2013.
- Author: “Harassment and Psychological Injuries”, 2nd Edition, Éditions Yvon Blais, Cowansville, 2012.
- Co-author: “Le harcèlement et les lésions psychologiques” [Harassment and Psychological Injuries], Éditions Yvon Blais, Cowansville, 2005, 364 pages.
- Author: “Les parvovirus et le retrait de la travailleuse enceinte” [Parvoviruses and Preventive Leave for Pregnant Women], Revue du Barreau, under Les développements récents.
- Labour and employment case-law analysis for the online publication La Référence R.H. (Éditions Thomson).
- Co-speaker : L’après-Kativik : les effets de l’arrêt de la Cour d’appel et son application par les tribunaux [The effects of the Kativik decision and its application by courts], Développements récents en droit du travail en éducation, Québec Bar, May 19, 2022.
- Co-speaker: Droit scolaire – Revue jurisprudentielle 2021 [Education Law – Review of the 2021 Case Law], Langlois Knowledge, webinar, April 26, 2022.
- Co-speaker: Droit scolaire – Revue jurisprudentielle 2019 [Education Law – Review of the 2019 Case Law], Langlois Knowledge, webinar, November 20, 2020.
- Co-speaker: Droit scolaire – Revue jurisprudentielle 2018 [Education Law – Review of the 2018 Case Law], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, April 5, 2019.
- Co-speaker: Développements récents et nouveautés législatives en 2018 [Recent development and legislative news in 2018], as part of the Colloque 2019 – Droit du travail et de l’emploi : composer avec des personnalités atypiques, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, February 27, 2019.
- Co-speaker: Jurisprudence récente en matière d’ordonnances de sauvegarde [Recent case law on safeguard orders], Développements récents en droit du travail en éducation, Québec Bar, November 15, 2018.
- Co-speaker: Défi de la tolérance zéro en matière de harcèlement [The Zero-Tolerance Challenge for Harassment], as part of the workshop series Droit du travail et de l’emploi 2018, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, April 26, 2018.
- Co-speaker: Droit scolaire – Revue jurisprudentielle 2017 [Education Law – Review of the 2017 Case Law], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, March 28, 2018.
- Co-speaker: Harcèlement psychologique : vers l’infini et plus loin encore [Psychological Harassment: From Here to Infinity and Even Beyond], as part of the workshop series 360o de l’emploi, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, October 16, 2017.
- Co-speaker: Droit scolaire – Revue jurisprudentielle de 2016 [Education Law – Review of the 2016 Case Law], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, April 4, 2017.
- Co-speaker: Harcèlement psychologique, allié ou ennemi: comment interagir avec la CNESST? [Psychological Harassment: ally or foe: How to interact with CNESST?], as part of the Colloque de droit du travail et de l’emploi : 360o de l’emploi, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, February 13, 2017.
- Co-speaker: Lumière sur le processus décisionnel : du Conseil des commissaires à l’arbitrage [Light on the decision making process: from the Council of arbitration commissioners], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, November 14, 2016.
- Co-speaker: Droit scolaire – Revue jurisprudentielle de 2015 [Education Law – Review of the 2015 Case Law], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, March 16, 2016.
- Co-speaker: Adaptation générationnelle aux nouveaux outils de communication au travail, as part of the Colloque de droit du travail et de l’emploi, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, February 9, 2016.
- Co-speaker: Droit scolaire – Revue jurisprudentielle de 2014 [Education Law – Review of the 2014 Case Law], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, April 21, 2015.
- Co-speaker: Colloque de droit du travail et de l’emploi [Symposium on employment and labour law], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, February 10, 2015.
- Co-speaker: Les aspects juridiques des moyens de pression en milieu scolaire [The legal aspects of pressure tactics in schools], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, January 22, 2015.
- Co-speaker: Revue jurisprudentielle du droit scolaire de l’année 2013 [Jurisprudential review of school law of the year 2013], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, March 26, 2014.
- Co-speaker: Toxicomanie et alcoolisme, as part of the Symposium on Labour and Employment Law, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, February 7, 2014.
- Co-speaker: Réseaux sociaux, diffamation et vie privée : Internet n’offre aucune immunité [Social Networks, Defamation and Privacy: Internet Provides No Immunity], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, December 10, 2013.
- Speaker: Les antécédents judiciaires et les conséquences sur l’emploi [Impact of a criminal record on employment], Langlois Knowledge, 2010.
- Speaker: Les obligations en matière d’accommodements raisonnables [Obligations Regarding Reasonable Accommodation], Québec City and Montréal, 2006-2007.
- Speaker: Le harcèlement psychologique [Psychological Harassment], Québec City, Montréal and Drummondville, 2004-2008.
- Speaker: La responsabilité pénale des administrateurs, [Penal Liability of Directors], Québec City and Montréal, 2004-2005.
- Speaker: La gestion des infractions pénales en vertu de la Loi sur les forêts [Managing Penal Infractions Under the Forestry Act], Québec City, Baie-Comeau, Senneterre and La Tuque, 2003-2007.
- Speaker: La gestion des dossiers accidents de travail [Managing work-related injury cases], Québec City and Montréal, 2002-2004.
- Speaker: Les parvovirus et le retrait préventif de la travailleuse enceinte [Parvoviruses and Preventive Leave for Pregnant Women], to Québec Bar members and education network managers of the School Boards Federation, Québec City and Montréal, 1998.
- Speaker: L’injonction comme moyen de réintégrer un salarié [Using Injunctions to Reinstate Employees], The Canadian Institute, 1996.
LL.B., Civil Law, Université Laval, 1985