不良研究所

Assistant Director

Mariana Romanello Jacob

mariana.romanellojacob [at] mcgill.ca (Mariana Romanello Jacob) became the Assistant Director of the Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau Centre for Private and Comparative Law in February 2024. Prior to taking on this role, she worked there as Researcher-Project Coordinator. She completed her studies in Law in Brazil at the Faculty of Law of the Pontif铆cia Universidade Cat贸lica de Campinas. Throughout her course, she won two awards in undergraduate legal research to undertake studies in private international law as well as two honorary distinctions for her research results presented at conferences of the American Association of Private International Law (2014/2015). She was also a judicial intern at the Chambers of Judge Carlos Ortiz Gomes at the Court of Justice of the State of S茫o Paulo (Brazil) during the 2012-2014 academic years.

After successfully completing the Brazilian Bar in 2015, Mariana worked as an associate attorney at the law firm Carvalho, Machado e Timm Advogados from 2016 to 2019. She was part of the civil law advisory team, with a focus on commercial contracts. As part of her experience as a contract lawyer, she had the opportunity to temporarily assist in-house legal teams inside multinational companies, obtaining a unique vision from the legal practice inside and outside large corporations.

In parallel to her legal practice, Mariana continued to chart her path in legal research, becoming a member of the 鈥�Direito, Globaliza莽茫o e Cidadania鈥� [Law, Globalization, and Citizenship] Study and Research Group in Brazil, where she engaged in relevant studies in private and public international law. As a result, she has published and co-authored articles and book chapters on these subjects, especially in Latin America. She was the President of the Diversity Committee of this Research Group from 2020 to 2023. Mariana is also a member of the American Association of Private International Law (ASADIP) and of the International Civil Procedure Network (Rede-PCI).

In 2023, Mariana completed her master's degree in law (LLM-thesis) at the Faculty of Law of 不良研究所. She focused her thesis on the proximity principle in the jurisdictional aspect of cross-border disputes, undertaking comparative research between Canada and Brazil. During her studies at 不良研究所, she worked as a research assistant for Prof. Genevi猫ve Saumier (2021-2023), conducting legal research on various facets of private international law. She was also engaged in different student activities, such as serving as Vice-President Finance of the Graduate Law Students Association during the 2020/2021 academic year and integrating the 不良研究所 Graduate Law Students Association Research Series editorial board in 2022 as a peer-reviewer.

Mariana has a strong interest in comparative law, which is at the c艙ur of the domain of private international law, the legal branch she has been researching for the past years. She is especially fascinated by the bilingual and bijuridical context of Quebec and is honoured to be a part of the research team of the Cr茅peau Centre.

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Associates

Val茅rine Pinel

valerine.pinel [at] mcgill.ca (Val茅rine Pinel) is the Researcher-Project Coordinator at the Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau Centre for Private and Comparative Law. Trained in civil law in France, Val茅rine has a bachelor鈥檚 degree in private law and a master鈥檚 degree in criminal law from Toulouse Capitole University. Alongside her studies and numerous student jobs, she worked at the Genepi student association for four years. As a volunteer, Val茅rine taught incarcerated women, hosted a radio program, and participated in civil society awareness events on prison issues.

She discovered bijuralism in Quebec in 2018 thanks to a double degree between Laval University and Toulouse Capitole University, allowing her to obtain two master鈥檚 degrees in law from each country. Her research essay focused on the repercussions of preventive detention on fundamental rights.

Thanks to her experience in Quebec, Val茅rine developed a love for research, which pushed her to work as a research assistant at Laval University, in criminal and civil law with several professors from the Faculty of Law. She coordinated the Louis-Philippe-Pigeon Chair in Legal Writing for a year, before returning to France during the pandemic. During this transition period in France, Val茅rine worked for the Ministry of Justice as a probation officer. She also worked as a schoolteacher for a few months before returning to Quebec.

From 2022 to January 2024, Val茅rine was the coordinator of the Antoine-Turmel Research Chair at Laval University. Her research work has mainly focused on gender and age biases during the sentencing trial concerning older women, as well as on end-of-life care in Quebec.

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L茅a Decaster

lea.decaster [at] mcgill.ca (L茅a Decaster) is a researcher at the Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau Centre for Private and Comparative Law as part of a project to develop a dictionary on the law of persons.She is also a PhD candidate at the Faculty of Law at Laval University and the Faculty of Law at Le Mans Universit茅, under the supervision of Professors Christelle Landheer-Cieslak and Val茅rie Lasserre. Her thesis is titled 'Sex Identity and the Person in French and Quebec Civil Law.' Her research focuses on the identification of individuals by the mention of sex in civil status records and on the protection of fundamental human rights through this mention of sex.

At Laval University, she is a member of the Research Ethics Committee. She has been a mentor for the Graduate Student Support Center in Law, as well as a teaching and research assistant, from January 2021 to December 2023. She lectures at the University of Le Mans on contract law, family law, civil enforcement procedures, and family patrimonial law.

As a member of the Institut d鈥櫭塼hique Appliqu茅e de l鈥橴niversit茅 Laval and the Th茅mis-UM laboratory, L茅a is interested in comparative law, civil law, fundamental rights, and鈥攎ore specifically鈥攑ersonal and family law. She has published articles in several collective works on the topics of legal education in France and Quebec and the procedure for changing the mention of sex in civil status records. She has also organized and participated in numerous conferences and scientific seminars in Quebec and France.

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Tiphaine Dourges

tiphaine.dourges [at] mcgill.ca (Tiphaine) joined the team at the Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau Centre for Private and Comparative Law as a researcher in April 2024. After a Bachelor鈥檚 degree in law at the University Bordeaux 4 Montesquieu in France, Tiphaine continued her studies at the听University of Bordeaux. She holds a research-based Master's degree in private law, with a specialization in criminal law. This training allowed her to explore the criminal law regimes of several foreign jurisdictions during a week of seminars presented by professors from Europe and Canada.

Driven by her desire to conduct academic research in comparative criminal law, Tiphaine completed a joint doctoral program between 2014 and 2022 under the co-supervision of professors Olivier D茅cima (University of Bordeaux) and Simon Roy (University of Sherbrooke). Her thesis, titled 鈥淧enal and extra-penal repressions in French and Canadian comparative law. Contribution to the general theory of repression鈥�, seeks to respond to issues of the qualification of punitive sanctions in French and Canadian law by proposing a prospective legal definition of the term 鈥榬epression鈥�. At the end of her defense, the jury unanimously awarded her a mark of excellence. She also received authorization to publish her thesis without revisions, was encouraged to apply for thesis prizes, and was advised to publish her work. Tiphaine is also the recipient of the 2023 Ch茅nier-Picard Fund Prize for the best law thesis from the University of Sherbrooke.

Alongside her doctoral research, Tiphaine had the pleasure of lecturing at the University of Bordeaux on various subjects of civil law (contracts and civil liability), criminal law (general principles, offenses, and comparative law), and legal methodology. She also had the chance to participate for several years in the training of judges at the 脡cole de la magistrature (France), as a tutor specialized in the law of obligations.

Before moving to Montreal in 2024, Tiphaine worked for a year as a researcher and editor in the Direction des affaires civiles et du sceau of the French Ministry of Justice. The main part of her mandate was to collaborate on the drafting of regulations for the legal and judicial professions. She found this experience very enriching and complementary to her academic training.

Tiphaine is particularly interested in civil liability, criminal liability (especially from the point of view of legal sanctions), and comparative law. The issues raised by the use of artificial intelligence in law are also part of her research interests.

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Kayley Laura Lata

kayley.lata [at] mcgill.ca (Kayley Laura Lata) has been a researcher at the Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau Centre for Private and Comparative Law since May 2024.

Kayley Laura is interested in the interconnection between law and the humanities. She is also interested in legal exceptionalism, specifically as it applies to pharmaceutical policy. In the past, she has also shown interest in the reasons and legal reasoning animating administrative and judicial decisions.

Kayley Laura completed her LL.M. at 不良研究所 under the supervision of Daniel Weinstock. She wrote her master's thesis on the notion of medical necessity underlying the coverage of health care services in Quebec and Canada. Her thesis traces the genealogy of medical necessity while inquiring into the methods and epistemology of law.

During her studies, she was a fellow of the Department of Equity, Ethics and Policy at 不良研究所's School of Population and Global Health.

She also completed her Quebec Bar exams.

Scholars

Students

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Nazim Ait Ourdja

1. What prompted you to become a researcher at the Centre Cr茅peau ?

During my first semester in law at 不良研究所, I realized how crucial a legal term鈥檚 meaning could be, even to the point of determining the outcome of a trial. Therefore, contributing to the definitions in the Private Law Dictionary represents an invaluable opportunity to familiarize myself with the various legal interpretations of legal terms and to trace their evolution over time and across linguistic contexts. Besides, I firmly believe that a good jurist is primarily a good researcher, and what better place than the Center to sharpen one's research skills?

2. How does bilingualism influence your approach and understanding of the law and its issues ?

Being bilingual allows us to contextualize a legal question within both the Quebec civil law and the Canadian common law, thereby highlighting its multiple facets and enabling a plurality of perspectives. This fosters a more fertile and nuanced understanding of the issue at hand, empowering legal professionals to conceive innovative and holistic solutions. More broadly, this approach reminds us that鈥攊n the legal field鈥攖here is no absolute answer, but rather a range of possibilities. It all hinges on one鈥檚 ingenuity and flexibility.

3. Is there a jurist that inspires you, and why ?

I admire Gis猫le Halimi for her anti-colonial activism and her tireless fight for women鈥檚 rights.

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Elora Deering

1. How does bilingualism influence your approach and understanding of the law and its issues ?

Early in my law school career, I came to understand that the Quebec and Canada we know today are built upon a multilingual foundation (which sees itself officially as bilingual). To properly understand Quebecois and Canadian law, one must at a minimum know that this bilingual foundation exists; better yet it should be understood. To understand it, simply speaking English and French without an accent is not sufficient. Bilingualism is more than the ability to speak two languages perfectly; it demands a detailed comprehension of the diverse anglophone and francophone cultures across Canada. When I find a legal scenario that does not make sense in a unitary system, my first reflex is to see if the affair is explained if I see it by the light of the other language, or in another legal system (with its associated history and culture).With this bilingual way of thinking and acting, my understanding of legal systems 鈥� how and why they work 鈥� is thoroughly enriched.

2. What in your past experiences or achievements marked your choice to pursue a career in law ?

I remember well a debate I had in high school; it clearly made me realize that our words, and the arguments we make, have the power to influence others. Since that time, I considered pursuing the study of law, so that I could better understand this power and properly handle it. Also, written words 鈥� including doctrine 鈥� sometimes have a greater impact than simple spoken words, because writing lasts for centuries. With my research at the Cr茅peau Centre, I personally see the effects of dialogues that were begun centuries ago, and I am witness to the effects that can be produced with small changes in wording. I am lucky to have the opportunity to work on projects that consider the impact that words within legal doctrine have on people.

3. How would you describe the Centre Cr茅peau community ?

I am excited to be able to work with a team as charming as the Cr茅peau Centre community! Everyone works hard, but with a gentleness that puts newcomers quickly at their ease. I am surrounded by people who are, like me, detail-oriented, so no question I ask is too small or insignificant. The community builds itself, quietly growing while we work together in character-infused rooms, or while we eat together outside. Each one helps the other, and everyone freely shares their knowledge. We tend to keep our books close, but one cannot expect anything else from those who are the guardians of a law dictionary and doctrine.

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Nicholas Duguay

1. Is there a jurist that inspires you, and why ?

I鈥檓 inspired by the life and work of F.R. Scott. A renowned poet and jurist, F.R. Scott was a major contributor to the protection of civil liberties in both Quebec and Canada. While primarily known as a constitutionalist, F.R. Scott also had great admiration for the private law of Quebec, claiming that its regime of extracontractual liability 鈥渦nderpins the basic human rights. His insights on the interconnectedness of public and private law鈥攁nd, more generally, on the rootedness of law in language鈥攁re always in the back of my mind.

2. How does bilingualism influence your approach and understanding of the law and its issues ?

On a practical level, bilingualism is integral to the study of law in Quebec because it allows for the complete exploration of doctrinal and jurisprudential sources. On a more conceptual level, thinking bilingually about law has made me reflect on the indeterminacy of legal concepts. The more I notice that the English and French versions of a legal concept fail to correspond, the more I suspect that the legal term itself fails to correspond with its intended object.

3. What prompted you to become a researcher at the Centre Cr茅peau ?

I applied as a research assistant at the Cr茅peau Centre to immerse myself in the epistemology and culture of the civil law. I was, moreover, intrigued by the role of lexicography in the production of legal knowledge. As a writer of poems and a lover of language, the meticulous exercise of defining legal terms appealed to me.

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Charles Lefran莽ois

1. What prompted you to become a researcher at the Centre Cr茅peau ?

When I heard about the Centre Cr茅peau, I was immediately interested in the work it offered to students. Taking part in the legal dictionary project as a researcher is a great learning opportunity. Working at the Centre not only teaches us about the different sources of Quebec civil law and how to navigate them, but also鈥攕ince our research leads us to the essence of legal terms鈥攈elps us understand how the law articulates itself.

2. How does bilingualism influence your approach and understanding of the law and its issues ?

Bilingualism is a remarkable tool in our study of law. When approaching a question or subject of Quebec law, being able to consult an equivalent source in the other language, such as the English version of an article of a codal provision, is a considerable asset. This bilingual approach allows us to discover nuances or details that are only apparent when the two similar, but never identical, versions are superimposed. The use of two languages to tackle a single legal subject thus enriches the possibilities of understanding. Indeed, one cannot claim to understand Quebec law in its entirety without navigating it in both French and English.

3. What in your past experiences or achievements marked your choice to pursue a career in law ?

My previous studies in history led me to study law. In studying history, I quickly realised that, rather than being a mere subject of study, it is often used as a tool in the construction of a society's values and customs. The law, which at first sight appears objective and detached, in fact reflects the same dynamics. By studying the law, we also observe the values that a society seeks to promote within itself.

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Thomas Lessard

1. What prompted you to become a researcher at the Centre Cr茅peau ?听

In my first year of law school, I had the opportunity to participate in multiple workshops and seminars, explore numerous doctrinal texts and legal articles, and engage in a variety of discussions with professionals from different fields. Every time I found myself interested in a particular assignment or project, the Centre was always involved in one way or another. I recall reading family law texts by Professor Christine Morin and attending a presentation by Professor Micha毛l Lessard, noticing that all these jurists who intrigued me were either directly or indirectly connected to the Centre's activities. Consequently, I too wanted to get involved in this "epicentre" of private and comparative law research.

2. How does bilingualism influence your approach and understanding of the law and its issues ?

"To imagine a language means to imagine a form of life," said Wittgenstein. Some see bilingualism as a simple tool for translation. However, a word represents much more than its letters and pronunciation, which is why words evolve and definitions change. Between French and English, we realize the influence that human "creations," like forms of law or types of languages, have on their own "creators." It is through this lens that law and its issues must be considered鈥攏ot as a simple tool of justice, but as one of those living machines, whose parts have been assembled through trial and error. Certainly, some of these parts are rusted or broken, but we will continue to change and improve them, for鈥攍ike our language鈥攖his machine needs us as much as we need it.

3. What are the qualities or shortcomings of a good legal researcher ?

In my view, the foremost quality of a good legal researcher is an awareness of their interests. Identifying what sparks our curiosity and drives us to delve deeper transforms a simple research topic into a personal quest for knowledge. Whether through the perspective from which one addresses a legal issue or through the choice of approach, a good legal researcher will find a way to become passionate. This not only makes the process more personal and enriching but also results in a final product of superior quality. However, this attribute can become a drawback when the interest invested in a task causes us to lose track of time and overlook the typically demanding schedule of legal research.

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Charlotte Ruffo听

1. What prompted you to become a researcher at the Centre Cr茅peau ?听

When you study law, you learn a new language. As I've always loved words, writing and reading, I must admit that this year, more than ever, I've discovered their power. I wanted to work at the Centre because I think that the work being done here is essential. Legal dictionaries are invaluable tools that enable a dialogue between French and English within the same legal tradition. I believe that this project contributes to dismantling certain barriers that language creates for law students, jurists and citizens.听

2. How does bilingualism influence your approach and听understanding of the law and its issues ?听

The issues of translation and linguistics touch me deeply as a Francophone who doesn't want to witness French disappear from the 不良研究所 community, and who certainly does not want to see English-speaking colleagues hindered in their study of Quebec civil law due to a lack of sources in English. In this sense, bilingualism is a real advantage in my eyes. It is very rewarding to work in a team made up of people whose mother tongue is either French or English. The Centre's researchers are always helping each other out, which I think encourages wonderful exchanges! I learn tremendously from my colleagues.听

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Hiba Saji Eddine

1.听In your opinion, what is the quintessence of Quebec private law ?

I believe that the quintessence of Quebec private law lies in its peculiar interaction with bilingualism, as well as its exchanges with the French civil law and English common law traditions. Quebec private law is shaped by the linguistic cohabitation of English and French, which profoundly influences its content and form. I believe that this interaction between languages and legal sources contributes to the maturity and autonomy of Quebec private law, clearly distinguishing it from its historical influences while affirming its own identity.

2. What are the qualities or shortcomings of a good legal researcher ?

A good legal researcher has the curiosity of a cat (and hopefully more than nine lives), the precision of a Swiss watch, and the creativity of an artist trying to draw a straight line. Their flaw ? That same curiosity can get the best of them鈥攖hey can get so engrossed in a footnote that they forget about the main text. But, hey, that鈥檚 where the real gems are hidden !

3.听What is the strength of law ? Its weakness ?

For me, the law鈥檚 strength lies in its ability to promote social justice. However, its weakness is its tendency to stick to tradition. This paradox is what I find fascinating to study. At the Cr茅peau Centre, there is a real effort to integrate changes into a discipline that is often perceived as rigid, in hopes of fairly reflecting contemporary legal and societal issues.

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Fatoumata Tounkara

1. What prompted you to become a researcher at the Centre Cr茅peau ?

I was fascinated by the Dictionary project and saw it as an opportunity to broaden my knowledge on private law and improve my legal research methods. I was enthusiastic about working with experts dedicated to promoting a deeper understanding of Quebec law. Furthermore, I saw this project as an important opportunity to influence the legal field, fostering greater accessibility for a diverse range of persons / more people.

2. How does bilingualism influence your approach and understanding of the law and its issues ?

Bilingualism enables me to grasp the legal subtleties and nuances specific to each language, which directly influences my interpretation of legal texts and concepts. It gives me a multicultural perspective that feeds my curiosity and facilitates my understanding of the interactions between different legal systems, while helping me to better understand global issues. In short, bilingualism enables me to approach the law with a more open and inclusive vision.

3.听How would you describe the Centre Cr茅peau community ?

I find the community at the Cr茅peau Center particularly supportive. Each member demonstrates attentive listening and naturally inspires others to strive for excellence in their legal research. Despite the individual nature of our research projects, I never feel isolated; I am consistently aware of how my work aligns with that of my colleagues and trust in their willingness to help deepen my understanding of the subject matter.

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