Yes, that was the situation in the Potvin case. There was a trial order. I think it was a bilingual trial order, but I am not absolutely sure. It may have been for a French trial. For the purposes of this argument, let us presume that it was supposed to be a bilingual trial. The judge spoke English, except when he spoke to the accused. In the same way, the crown attorneys made their submissions in English, except when they were addressing the accused. This case went all the way to the Ontario Court of Appeal, where the court ruled that the accused had been denied the right to stand trial in his own language.
In other words, a French trial must take place primarily in French, rather than in English with rare moments in French when someone is speaking to the accused. It must take place in French, but with accommodation, particularly when some witnesses do not speak French.