Claude Villeneuve (judge)
Canadian lawyer and judge
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Claude Villeneuve (born 30 June 1969, in Bécancour, Quebec) is a Quebec lawyer, judge, and teacher.
Claude Villeneuve | |
|---|---|
| |
| Judge of the Superior Court of Quebec | |
| Assumed office June 2015 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 30, 1969 |
| Education | Université de Sherbrooke |
| Occupation | Lawyer, judge, teacher |
Biography
Claude Villeneuve is the second son of Jean Villeneuve, a notary, and Nicole Demers, and the brother of Quebec filmmakers Denis Villeneuve and Martin Villeneuve.[1][2] While his two brothers pursued careers in filmmaking, Claude Villeneuve chose a career in law instead. In 1991, he earned a bachelor's degree in law from the Université de Sherbrooke, followed by a master's degree in health law in 1992.[3][4] He became a member of the Bar of Quebec and the Saint-François Bar in 1993.[3][4]
Around 1997, he took a position with the legal affairs department of the City of Sherbrooke.[5]
In 2006, Claude Villeneuve was hired by the firm Heenan Blaikie, and then by the Lavery firm in Sherbrooke in 2014, where he specialized in litigation, commercial law, and labour law.[3][4][5]
He received a tribute from the Bar of Quebec in 2013 for his involvement in the aftermath of the Lac-Mégantic rail disaster.[5]
In 2014, Claude Villeneuve was elected bâtonnier (president) of the Saint-François Bar for the 2014–2015 term.[6] He was re-elected to the position for the following term in 2015.[6] In June 2015, while serving as bâtonnier, Claude Villeneuve was appointed as a judge of the Superior Court of Quebec, an appointment he accepted while having to give up his position as bâtonnier.[4][6]
Claude Villeneuve's name has appeared sporadically in Quebec legal news, as he has presided over a number of cases that received media attention.[7][8][9][10][11][12] Over the course of his career, he has also taught at the Quebec Bar School and at the Faculty of Law of the Université de Sherbrooke.[4][5] In the course of his duties, Judge Villeneuve has sat at the Drummondville and Sherbrooke courthouses.[13]
Controversy
On January 29, 2026, Judge Villeneuve was caught in a scandal after being charged with "communicating with a person for the purpose of obtaining sexual services for consideration," in connection with an incident reportedly occurring on 12 December 2025.[14] Due to the seriousness of the charges, he was relieved of all his duties that same day, and his first court appearance was scheduled for February 12, 2026.[14][15] Claude Villeneuve was absent from his hearing but was represented by his lawyer, Patrick Fréchette, who entered a not-guilty plea in a courtroom where his client once presided as judge.[16][17]
Judge Villeneuve's arrest took place in Sherbrooke as part of the Changement de comportement, conscientisation, éducation et sensibilisation sur l'exploitation sexuelle program (C3ESSES; roughly, "Behaviour Change, Awareness, Education and Sensitization on Sexual Exploitation"), which aims to reduce the purchase of sexual services and the risk of reoffending.[18] In this program, police officers pose as escorts, and a person who falls for the ruse is offered an alternative to criminal prosecution.[18] The program consists of one day of awareness training on the dynamics of sexual exploitation and eight meetings with a sexologist.[18] To take part in this extrajudicial process, Claude Villeneuve was required to acknowledge the truth of the facts alleged against him and paid $1,500 to the Crime Victims Assistance Fund.[18] As a result of his participation in the C3ESSES program, the charge against Claude Villeneuve was dropped on 22 May 2026.[18]
Separately, the Canadian Judicial Council opened its own disciplinary inquiry into Claude Villeneuve, since it is this body that is responsible for determining whether he will be able to preside as a judge once again.[18][19] The Canadian Judicial Council is notably mandated to ensure the irreproachable conduct of judges under its authority.[18][19]
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