Quebec Court Affirms that French Language Laws Apply Online

A Quebec provincial court decision will force websites advertising to Quebec customers to make their content available in French. In his May 23, 2002 decision in Procureur General du Quebec c. Waldie-Reid (no. 760-61-026203-019), Mr. Justice Boyer rejected the defendant's contention that the Internet is beyond the scope of the Charte de la langue francaise (L.R.Q., c-11), Quebec's French language law. The website in question (a unilingual English website advertising a Quebec farm and its products to Quebec customers) had been charged with violating section 52 of the Charte which requires "catalogues, brochures, folders, commercial directories, and any similar publications" to be made available in French. The charge carries a minimum fine of $250. Justice Boyer concluded that the language of the section was not limited to printed publications, but extended to commercial websites accessible within Quebec. In his jurisdictional analysis, the judge found that the location of the target customer (not the location of the website server or the location of the business) was determinative. He found that the legislation properly binds an Internet publication addressed to Quebec residents. For a copy of the decision (in French), visit: http://www.jugements.qc.ca/c2/200205fr.html