Gilbert Rozon’s civil sexual assault trial to resume in Montreal

The civil sexual assault trial of Just pour rire founder Gilbert Rozon will resume next week after the Court of Appeal rejected his appeal regarding the scope of questions his lawyers could ask in his defense.

In a brief hearing today, the province’s highest court dismissed the former Quebec producer’s appeal filed in the middle of his civil trial last month.

In March, an Appeal Court judge said a new provincial law limiting the types of questions that can be asked of victims or witnesses could affect his trial.

Amendments to the Civil Code, adopted just days before the start of Rozon’s high-profile trial, restrict questions that suggest an alleged victim’s sexual history or their decision to maintain contact with an alleged attacker, thereby undermining their credibility.

But since the Court of Appeal’s initial ruling, the nine plaintiffs in the case have waived their rights under the new Civil Code provision and have requested that the comedy mogul’s appeal be dismissed. The Court of Appeals said Friday that, given that the plaintiffs had waived their rights and that the defendant’s legal team was not required to comply with the new law, the three-judge panel dismissed his appeal.

The Quebecer is being sued by nine women for nearly $14 million in damages for allegations of sexual assault and misconduct.

–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews