Official languages commissioner to intervene in N.B. French courthouse closure case

Canada’s official languages commissioner says she intends to intervene in a case about the closure of courthouses that served francophone communities in New Brunswick.

Kelly Burke said in a statement Monday that she is intervening in the case before the Supreme Court of Canada because she wants to emphasize the importance of equality for minority language communities.

In 2022, the New Brunswick government reorganized court services in the predominantly francophone Bathurst region, closing the Caraquet courthouse and designating the Tracadie courthouse as a satellite court.

A group of mayors from the Acadian Peninsula in northeastern New Brunswick challenged the government decision, arguing it would infringe on language rights.

Burke says the case could have implications on the interpretation and application of language rights across Canada.

“It is therefore essential for me to seize this opportunity so that I can make a concrete contribution to the protection of official language minority communities and to the advancement of language rights jurisprudence,” Burke said.