François Carrier
François Carrier
MUNICIPALITY OF PONTIAC A Québec court recently rejected the request of resident Alain Goulet, who filed a $15,000 lawsuit against the municipality following his forced evaculation during the spring flood of 2017 which badly affected his home. Goulet maintained that the municipality was at fault by forcing him to leave his priorities and that, according to him, he was not personally at risk and evacuation caused him inconvenience.
In her judgment, Judge Patsy Bouthillette recounted the main events. On May 6, 2017, a few days before Goulet’s evacuation, the water level was rising everywhere in Québec, and the Municipality of Pontiac was carefully monitoring the
situation. She added that the Tribunal understands that Goulet, who is not a layman in this domain, had a different perception of the level of dangerousness of
the waterways. The judge said the municipality made decisions and took the
necessary measures based on the well-being of all citizens and could not proceed on a case-by-case basis.
In the copy of the Judgment dated July 12, 2018 the court concluded that the flooding certainly had an impact on the life of the claimant, but the municipality did not commit any fault in the way they handled the situation. The court dismissed Goulet’s claim and each party was held responsible for their own legal fees.
