Dress code in court

Anyone appearing in court is required to be appropriately dressed.

For example, sunglasses, caps, hats, short or light clothing should be avoided in courtrooms.

Culture and religion are, on the other hand, factors more and more often invoked to derogate from the standards of dress adopted by the courts, which will have to find a fair balance between the freedom of religion guaranteed by the charters and the respect of the values of transparency and fairness.

Thus for religious reasons the courts will generally accept the wearing of the turban (Sikh man) or the veil (Muslim woman) as long as the face is uncovered.

To this end, in 2012, the Supreme Court, called upon to rule on the wearing of the full veil (niqab, burka) in criminal matters, raised the delicate arbitration between two constitutional rights: the freedom of religion of a witness and the right of the accused to a fair trial.

In short, what must be remembered is that transparency remains the characteristic and an immutable principle of our judicial system.

Source: Journal du Barreau du Québec, April 8, 2015

Me Lucie Chartrand, Lawyer
AUMAIS CHARTRAND AVOCATS INC.
89, boul. Don-Quichotte, Suite 10 (2nd floor)
l’Île-Perrot (Quebec) J7V 6L7
Tel. (514) 425-2233 # 224
Fax (514) 453-0977
lchartrand@aumaischartrand.com

Area of Expertise

Family mediation and law

– Cohabitation contracts
– Separation and divorce
– Child custody
– Support fixing
– Division of matrimonial property
– Adoption
– Procedures for parentage (paternity, deprivation of parental authority)