Official Languages committee  I'm not sure whether you're a lawyer, but—

Official Languages committee  —when the judge asks a question, it is much easier to make sure you have understood properly. You can check with the judge.

Official Languages committee  If you were a lawyer, you would know that, very often, judges remain silent during—

Official Languages committee  Oh, oh!

Official Languages committee  Yes. A judge who listens to my argument with the help of an interpreter will understand something different from what I'm trying to say. I have no way to correct this.

Official Languages committee  I don't even have a way to know about it, short of listening, after the fact, to both versions of the arguments, which, in the Supreme Court's case, are available on its website. Nevertheless, it's a difficult process to put in place.

Official Languages committee  I'm not an expert on language testing, so I don't have any specific techniques to suggest. I would say, though, that there are cases when it is clearly not necessary to test the person's language's skills. When someone says they are bilingual but their claim is not based on crite

Official Languages committee  I'm not saying they have to be perfectly bilingual.

Official Languages committee  This is a very important consideration. Now, I think the assumption behind the question is that aboriginal persons do not speak French. This is an assumption that is not borne out in many cases. I would say, without going to much into detail, that several of the names of first na

Official Languages committee  That's a very good example.

Official Languages committee  Yes. We're not talking about Supreme Court judges, but about superior court and appeal court judges. Is that correct?

Official Languages committee  My research mainly concerned the Supreme Court.

Official Languages committee  Yes, exactly.

Official Languages committee  It must be determined whether sections 41 and 42 of the Constitution Act, 1982 prevent Parliament from adopting legislation that requires Supreme Court judges to be bilingual.

Official Languages committee  It's a power given to the federal government. You must suggest that cabinet pass an order that refers the question to the Supreme Court.