They will sit as judges for the district of Montreal
Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Arif Virani, announced the appointments of Mathieu Piché-Messier, Lysane Cree, and Horia Bundaru as judges of the Superior Court of Quebec for the district of Montréal.
Justice Mathieu Piché-Messier, previously a partner and national business leader in commercial litigation at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP in Montréal, will replace Justice P.H. Bélanger, who resigned on May 24.
Justice Piché-Messier earned his Bachelor of Civil Law from Université de Sherbrooke in 1997 and was admitted to the Barreau du Québec in 1998. He has spent over two decades in commercial litigation, focusing on anti-fraud, privacy, international arbitration, and intellectual property. His practice focused on extraordinary remedies and commercial litigation in the fields of anti-fraud, high technology, industrial espionage, privacy and identity theft, international arbitration, aeronautics, defamation, as well as intellectual property.
As a litigator, author, and lecturer, he was inducted as a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers in 2018 and a fellow of Litigation Counsels of America in 2021. In 2022, he also received the Advocatus Emeritus (Ad. E.) distinction from the Barreau du Québec.
Justice Lysane Cree, an administrative judge at the Tribunal administratif de déontologie policière in Montréal, will replace Justice M. Lachance, who was elevated to the Court of Appeal on June 17.
Justice Cree comes from the Kanien’kéhaka (Mohawk) Nation and has an extensive background in indigenous law. She obtained civil and common law degrees from McGill University in 2000 and was admitted to the Barreau du Québec in 2003. After 16 years practising indigenous law at Hutchins Legal Inc., Cree transitioned into judicial roles, first with the Comité de déontologie policière and later as a full-time administrative judge at the Tribunal administratif de déontologie policière. She has also contributed to tribunal excellence and reconciliation efforts through her involvement with the Canadian Council of Administrative Tribunals.
Justice Horia Bundaru, a partner at Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP in Montréal, takes the seat vacated by Justice K. Kear-Jodoin, who elected to become a supernumerary judge on July 16.
Justice Bundaru immigrated to Canada at eleven years old and earned his law degree from McGill University in 2005. He spent his entire legal career at Norton Rose Fulbright, specializing in commercial litigation, construction law, and energy law. Since 2016, he has taught civil procedure and drafting at the École du Barreau.
Justice Bundaru has chaired the Quebec branch of the Canadian Bar Association, the liaison committee of the Montreal Bar with the Superior Court of Quebec in the Civil Division, along with the Salon VISEZ DROIT. At the time of his appointment, he was president of the liaison committee with the Court of Appeal and a member of the Conseil de la magistrature du Québec.
Minister Virani congratulated the new appointees, stating, "I wish Justices Piché-Messier, Cree, and Bundaru every success as they take on their new roles. I am confident they will serve Quebecers well as members of the Superior Court of Quebec."
