Held annually at the University of Ottawa, the Competition enables students from faculties across the country to acquire advanced skills in French oral arguments, while enhancing their training in language rights.
Named after the Honourable Michel Bastarache, one of Canada's foremost jurists, defender of language rights and former justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, the competition is one of the most prestigious events for French-speaking law students in the country.
Participating teams included the University of Calgary, the University of Saskatchewan, the University of Manitoba, McGill University, the Université de Moncton and the University of Ottawa, Common Law Section.
The uOttawa team, coached by Professor François Larocque and Maxine Vincelette, distinguished themselves by winning the prize for best pair (Camille Pélet and Émilie Dagenais-Roberge), and second place for the Pierre-Foucher prize for best dissertation. The team was made up of Katie Bolger, Camille Pélet, Emilie Dagenais-Roberge, and Martin Kreiner. Martin Kreiner came 3rd in oral argument for the entire competition.
"The 6th Michel-Bastarache competition marked the culmination of my studies in the French Common Law Program," enthused student Camille Pélet. "The gathering in Ottawa of students from Western and Eastern Canada created a sense of belonging to the French legal community. I'm grateful to have been able to develop my knowledge of language rights in an environment of camaraderie and community."
Student Martin Kreiner said "the Michel-Bastarache Moot Court Competition allowed me to immerse myself in the study of language rights, with excellent coaching from my coaches, criticism from my teammates and exchanges with my competitors. I've had the opportunity to hone my oral arguments, even enough to plead before real judges, including the Honourable Michel Bastarache."
The finals were overseen by an elite panel of judges, including Justice Bastarache (Supreme Court of Canada Justice from 1997-2008), the Honorable Constance Hunt (Alberta Court of Appeal Justice from 1995-2014), and the Honorable Julie Thorburn (current justice of the Ontario Court of Appeal). The first two rounds of the competition were judged by a number of experienced jurists from across Canada.
The Competition organizing committee would like to thank Justice Bastarache and law firms, McLennan Ross and Juristes Power for their significant contributions to the event. Also, thanks to the final judges, the jurists and future jurists who took part in the event as judges, the clerks and all those who made the 6e edition of the Bastarache Competition a true success.
Congratulations to all the participants for their outstanding performance this year. The winners can be proud of their achievement, and we look forward to seeing what the future holds for them in the legal world.
Competition results
Best pairs - chosen by the judges during the final matches
- 1st place - Camille Pélet and Emilie Dagenais-Roberge, University of Ottawa
- 2nd place - Jacqueline Sirois and Dalia Tarchila, McGill University
Best oral arguments
- 1st place - Matthew Gray, University of Calgary
- 2nd place - Luther Mourinet, McGill University
- 3rd place - Martin Kreiner, University of Ottawa
- 4th place - Brent Trichon, University of Manitoba
Prix Pierre-Foucher - best memoirs
- 1st place - McGill University: Jacqueline Sirois, Dalia Tarchila, Luther Mourinet, Ordren Deko
- 2nd place - University of Ottawa: Camille Pélet, Katie Bolger, Martin Kreiner, Emilie Dagenais-Roberge
Michel-Bastarache Award - for fair play, camaraderie, and dedication to the French language
- Combined team from the University of Calgary and the University of Saskatchewan:
- Mikel Gega, Matthew Gray, Ryland Petrick, Ryan Collins, Michèle Ramirez, Nathan Van Besealere