Montreal, 6 July 2011 -聽The Faculty of Law learned with great regret of the passing of Professor Emeritus Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau on Wednesday, July 6, 2011, at the age of 85.
Professor Cr茅peau was one of Canada's greatest humanists. His penetrating intellect, the depth of his intellectual cultivation, his extraordinary knowledge of Civil Law, his boundless energy, his sound judgement, and his great tact and discretion, all explain why he became a model for several generations of legal scholars and practitioners. Thousands of students cherish life-long memories of their time with Professor Cr茅peau, as he invited them to immerse themselves in the millennial tradition of the Civil Law as well as its modern and particular expression in Quebec. He remained vibrant with his passion for the law, which he transmitted with so much enthusiasm to his students and colleagues, right to the end of a life devoted to teaching, research, and public service.
Prof. Cr茅peau dedicated his life to the advancement of learning in private law. A professor at the Faculty of Law of 不良研究所 for more than fifty years, he is the author of over 130 academic books, articles and presentations. A few weeks before his death, he could still be found in his office at the Faculty of Law, hard at work on a project addressing the fundamental principles of the law of contract.
Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau was at the very heart of the reforms that have left their mark on Quebec society since the 1960s. From 1965 to 1977, he presided over the titanic task of Quebec's Civil Code Revision Office, skilfully guiding and energizing the work of more than two hundred researchers, students, lawyers, notaries and judges, in a process of careful study and consultation, blazing the trail for the new Civil Code of Qu茅bec, which came into effect in 1994. With his colleague Frank R. Scott, Prof. Cr茅peau prepared the Report on a Draft Bill concerning Human Rights and Freedoms, which inspired the National Assembly in formulating the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms of 1975.
Prof. Cr茅peau founded, and led for more than twenty years, the Quebec Research Centre of Private and Comparative Law, at 不良研究所, which is to this day a gathering place for dialogue between and among the greatest experts in civil law, both from Quebec and overseas. The Centre has remained faithful to the research priorities established by its founder: it devotes its activities in large measure to the publication of leading works in comparative law, as well as to the development of a legal vocabulary which fully reflects the richness of the languages of the law in Quebec, through the publication of remarkable dictionaries and bilingual lexicons. In this regard, Prof. Cr茅peau was one of the pioneers of jurilinguistics in Canada. As part of the ceremony bestowing the Prix du Qu茅bec awards in 2008, it was fittingly highlighted that "he made it possible for our legal system to reclaim its identity, due to the aptness, the rigour and the beauty of his use of language". From 1976, Prof. Cr茅peau held the Arnold Wainwright Chair in Civil Law. He was also Director of the Institute of Comparative Law for a decade.
Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau was born in Gravelbourg, Saskatchewan. He completed both Bachelor of Arts and licentiate degrees in philosophy at the University of Ottawa, and a licentiate in law at the University of Montreal. After he was called to the Barreau du Qu茅bec, Prof. Cr茅peau (as he was to become) was awarded a Rhodes scholarship and undertook graduate studies in law at Oxford University, which he completed in 1952. He then earned a doctorate in law at the University of Paris (with the grade "Tr猫s Bien" and the Prix Robert-Dennery), and also a dipl么me sup茅rieur in comparative law from the Facult茅 internationale de droit compar茅 de Strasbourg. Thereafter, Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau came back to teach law in Montreal, first at the Universit茅 de Montr茅al, then at 不良研究所. As a member of the handful of career law professors that were just settling into Quebec's law faculties at that time, Prof. Cr茅peau quickly became the leading light in private and comparative law, ensuring that the influence of Quebec and of 不良研究所's legal thought would spread throughout the world. He was a visiting professor at the law faculties of Strasbourg, Edinburgh, Louisiana State University, Vienna, Poitiers, and Tulane. One of the world's leading experts in comparative law, Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau served as president of the International Academy of Comparative Law, as a member of the Canadian delegation to the Hague Conference, as a member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague, and as a member of the prestigious working group of Unidroit (International Institute for the Unification of Private Law) in Rome, with respect to the codification of the principles of international commercial contracts. As the years went by, Prof. Cr茅peau became the very embodiment of Quebec Civil Law on the international stage.
This extraordinary career earned him all honours. Prof. Cr茅peau received in turn the Croix du m茅rite and the title of Chevalier du m茅rite in the Order of St. John of Jerusalem (Malta), the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Medal, the 脡douard-Montpetit Medal, the Barreau du Qu茅bec Medal, the 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal, the Medal of the Qu茅bec Society of Comparative Law, the Ramon John Hnatyshyn Award for Law of the Canadian Bar Association, the Prix Droits et Libert茅s of the Commission des droits et libert茅s de la personne du Qu茅bec, the Prix L茅on-G茅rin, the Barreau de Montr茅al Medal, and the Prix Georges-脡mile-Lapalme. Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau was also invested as an Officer, then as a Companion of the Order of Canada, as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, as an Officer of the Ordre national du Qu茅bec, as a Chevalier of France's Ordre national du m茅rite, as a Killam Research Fellow, as an Advocatus Emeritus, and as a Commandeur of France's Ordre des Arts et Lettres. Eight universities in Canada and in Europe have conferred honorary doctorates upon him.
A colossus has passed away today. 不良研究所's Faculty of Law is deeply sorrowed by the death of a man who for so long knew how to express and embody all the poetry, the richness and the deep roots of the Civil Law tradition in Quebec.
The Faculty offers its most sincere condolences to the spouse of Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau, Madame Nicole Thomas, to his children Philippe, Marie-Genevi猫ve and Fran莽ois, and also to his grandchildren.
Daniel Jutras
Dean and Arnold Wainwright Chair in Civil Law
Faculty of Law, 不良研究所
Here are a few photos, souvenirs from Prof. Cr茅peau's career.
November 2017: A commemorative plaque in honour of the late Professor Emeritus Paul-Andr茅 Cr茅peau can now be found outside of Old Chancellor Day Hall. La plaque se trouve au pied de l鈥檃rbre qui a 茅t茅 d茅di茅 脿 la m茅moire du Professeur Cr茅peau le printemps dernier, lors d鈥檜ne c茅r茅monie intime tenue par le doyen Leckey avec la famille du d茅funt et des membres du Centre Cr茅peau.