DJENEBA DOSSO

LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE

CAMPBELL’S BAY – A lawsuit against the Municipality of Litchfield for moral, financial and punitive damages, filed by Colleen, Michael and Mary Ellen McGuire, stemming back to a dispute over land ownership, was dismissed by a judge last week.

The case started in 2007 when a re-survey of the property in question determined the lot belonged to the Municipality instead of the father of the plantiffs, Aloysius McGuire. In 2015 the family learned of an “intent to sell or grant servitude” to the lot which started the process of proving their ownership. In August 2021, a reconsideration of the 2007 survey report determined the property did belong to Mr. McGuire. However, the plantiffs took until March 2023 to file their claim for damages.

On September 19, their first day sitting in court, the three plaintiffs presented a nearly 300-page file prepared by Mary Ellen. The documents included email correspondence involving municipal Director General Julie Bertrand, Mayor Colleen Larivière, and several property owners adjacent to the disputed lot.

The defense, represented by Director General Julie Bertrand, warned the McGuire’s case might be inadmissible in accordance with Quebec’s municipal act (section 1112.1) due to their failure to file their claim within six months of the “date of harm”, deemed to be August 10, 2021. The plaintiffs disputed the date, claiming the municipality breached its code of ethics, abusing its power well beyond August 10. The judge, Honourable Serge Laurin, who had taken several weeks to consider the submitted material, ultimately decided to dismiss the case, awarding the family no legal costs.