The organization representing English-language school boards in Québec is pleased with a court decision issued on Thursday, April 3, which ensures the English school boards remain in place.

The Québec English School Boards Association (QESBA) appealed Bill 40, which was adopted by the legislature in 2020 and dissolved the province’s school boards, replacing them with school service centres. However, at that time QESBA challenged the legislation and the courts awarded a stay, which meant the elected English boards would remain in place. In 2021, the Québec Superior Court heard the case on its merits and ruled that many provisions of Bill 40 are unconstitutional because they breach section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms which protects minority language rights. On Thursday, April 3, 2025, the Québec Court of Appeal ruled in QESBA’s favour. The decision reinforces the English-speaking community’s rights to manage and control institutions.

“We are thrilled that our rights have been recognized once again with this decision. We truly hope that the Government will decide not to take this crystal-clear decision of the Québec Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada in Ottawa,” said QESBA President Joe Ortona.

The Court of Appeal concluded:

  • Bill 40 severely limits the ability of members of the linguistic minority to choose the individuals who will act as its representatives. In a way, it neutralizes their right to choose their representatives.
  • Funding must be the responsibility of minority language representatives and can no longer be micromanaged by the government,
  • What is more, the Court firmly rejects, once again, the Government’s argument that only parents with children presently in English schools are rightsholders pursuant to section 23 of the Canadian Charter.

English-language public schools in Argenteuil include Grenville Elementary School, Laurentian Elementary School in Lachute, and Laurentian Regional High School in Lachute. Those schools are under the jurisdiction of the Laval-based Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board.

Québec’s former French-language school boards have been dissolved and are now school service centres. French-language schools in Argenteuil are under the jurisdiction of the Centre de services scolaires de la Rivière-du-Nord, headquartered in Saint-Jérôme.