Introduction

• Author: Nathalie Des Rosiers; Louise Langevin
• Pages: 17-21

Introduction

Representing Victims

of

Sexual

and

Spousal Abuse

In

recent years, some victims

of

sexual

and

spousal abuse

in

Canada have sought compensation

before

the

civil courts. These

civil

proceedings

are

evidence

of a

growing social awareness

and

condemnation

of

violence against women

and

children.

The

laws

on

civil

liability

and

torts

must

be

able

to

respond adequately

to the

expectations

of

people seeking such redress.

The

objectives contemplated

in our

original work

in

French

were

based

on

this

conclusion.

Our

first objective

was to

provide

replies

to the

many questions raised

by the

recent emergence

of

this

remedy

in

Quebec civil

law.

The

development

of

this

remedy

pr

sented,

and

still presents, serious challenges

to our

legal system:

among

the

considerations

to be

addressed

are

specific

substantive

questions

relating

to

prescription,

assessment

of

damages,

and the

scope

of

liability

for

others. Certain aspects

of

this

remedy—for

example, evidence

of

past,

intimate,

hidden

acts—have

created

ten-

sion

in a

procedural system originally

defined

within

a

different

context.

We

therefore attempted

to

identify

potential problems

as

well

as

corresponding solutions.

Both

the

French version

and the

English translation address

the

needs

of

diverse legal communities. Given

that

our

book

is the

sole

study undertaken

in the

area

of

civil remedy

for

victims

of

sex-

ual and

spousal abuse both

in

Canada

and

internationally,

we

felt

that

an

English

translation

was

indispensable

if we

were

to

reach

Canadian

common

law

jurists.

Such

jurists

can

benefit

from

our

solutions: although

our

work

is

based

on the

Quebec

law of

civil

lia-

bility,

this

law

resembles torts. Case

law has a

large role

to

play

in

the

Quebec

law of

civil liability,

and the

Supreme Court

of

Canada

rulings

in

torts

are

often

applied

in

Quebec civil

law.1

The

English

Here

we

refer, among others,

to the

trilogy

on

damages, Andrews

v.

Grand

and

Toy,

Alberta

Ltd.,

[1978]

2

S.C.R.

229;

Thornton

v.

Prince

George

School

Board,

[1978]

2

S.C.R. 267; Arnold

v.

Teno,

[1978]

2

S.C.R.

287.

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