What is conciliation?

The purpose of conciliation is to resolve, through a settlement agreed upon by both parties, the complaint filed against one or more persons subject to the Code of Ethics of Québec Police Officers. Its purpose is to settle a disagreement or dispute that arises between a complainant and persons subject to the Code of Ethics of Quebec Police Officers. 

During the conciliation meeting, the parties exchange their point of view in order to reach an agreement and thus agree on a settlement that is satisfactory to all.

These exchanges are facilitated by the presence of a conciliator appointed by the Commissioner. The meeting enables the parties to express their point of view frankly and freely. 

As part of this process, both parties must agree to respect the confidentiality of the meeting. 

Decree of a conciliation

The Police Act stipulates that all complaints must be submitted to conciliation, with the following exceptions:

• When a complaint alleges discriminatory conduct by a person subject to the Code and the complainant has notified the Commissioner in writing of their choice to refuse a conciliation.
• When a complaint has been rejected after the preliminary analysis stage.
• When a complaint is deemed to be in the public interest and is directly referred for investigation (e.g. in the case of death, serious injury, recidivism or the commission of a criminal offence).

In addition, the Commissioner may order a conciliation following an application for review, or, with the agreement of the parties, during or at the end of an investigation. The Commissioner may also return the file to conciliation despite the failure of an initial conciliation, if they believe the complaint could be settled and all parties agree.

Conciliation is mandatory for the person against whom the complaint is made.

Complaint alleging discriminatory conduct

When a complainant alleges that a person subject to the Code has engaged in discriminatory conduct towards them, the Bill grants the complainant the right to decide whether or not to participate in the conciliation process.  

The complainant must notify the Commissioner of their choice of whether or not to participate in a conciliation session within 30 days of filing the complaint. If the complainant fails to provide this notice within the allotted time, they are presumed to have agreed to conciliation. 

If the complainant agrees to participate in the conciliation process, but conciliation is unsuccessful, the Commissioner must conduct an investigation into the complaint. They must also conduct an investigation when the complainant refuses to participate in the conciliation process. 

Opposition to conciliation by the complainant

If the complainant considers conciliation to be inappropriate in their case, they may object by submitting written reasons to the Commissioner within 30 days of filing the complaint. 

After analyzing these grounds, the Commissioner may :

• decide to order an investigation if they deem valid the reasons for not holding a conciliation meeting;
• reject the reasons and uphold the decision to hold conciliation;
• decide to reject the complaint following the complainant's refusal to participate in conciliation. This measure is used only as a last resort, after trying to convince the complainant to participate in the conciliation.

The role of the conciliator

Once the complaint has been referred to conciliation, a conciliator takes charge of the file.

This person must:

• obtain and maintain the confidence of the parties and, to this end, exercise courtesy, reserve, dignity, integrity and impartiality;
• conduct its work with speed and flexibility;
• ensure that the proceedings of the session are kept in good order and remain calm;
• avoid pressuring a party to agree to a settlement;
• suspend, continue separately or terminate the session, after notice to the parties, when:
  • the good order of the session is compromised;
  • the continuation is likely to be detrimental to a party;
  • the conclusion of an agreement appears illusory;
  • a reason of public interest requires referral to the Commissioner.
• avoid interfering in a dispute that is within the jurisdiction of an administrative, civil, criminal or criminal court;
• ensure the confidentiality of the exchanges that took place during the conciliation work
• have taken the relevant training on racism and discrimination when dealing with a complaint alleging discriminatory conduct by a person subject to the Code. 

Planning and conduct of a conciliation meeting

The conciliator sees to the organization and holding of the conciliation meeting within 45 days of their appointment. This period may be extended following a formal request to the Commissioner and for justifiable reasons under the Police Act.

Following the analysis of the complaint, this person determines, taking into account the schedule of the persons concerned, a date, a time and a place that suits everyone. A written notice of meeting is sent to all parties confirm the holding of the conciliation.

The conciliation meeting is held in the presence of both parties, except where the Commissioner deems it necessary, in view of the circumstances, for the session to be held remotely (using the Teams platform, for example). When the Commissioner intends to use such a means, they will inform the parties within a reasonable time before the start of the session.

The presence of the persons concerned by the complaint at the conciliation meeting is mandatory, and they cannot attend the meeting in uniform.

During the session, the complainant and the persons concerned may be accompanied by a person of their choice. The complainant may also be accompanied by a member of the Commissioner's staff (Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Advisor) to provide assistance.

In addition, the conciliator may meet with each of the parties in order to reach an agreement.

The settlement or the failure of a conciliation meeting

Conciliation requires the active participation of all parties. In good faith, with the support of the conciliator, the parties discuss to try to settle their disagreement. If the parties agree together, a written settlement will be signed by the complainant, the parties to the complaint and the conciliator, and approved by the Commissioner.

The conciliation settlement results in the closure of the police ethics file. Under the Bill, the complaint is deemed to have been withdrawn. Consequently, no mention of the complaint or the conciliation settlement is to be made in the individual's personal file. However, the complaint will still be recorded in the Commissioner's internal register.

A settlement in conciliation is not an admission of guilt by either party. In order to foster a climate of understanding conducive to frank discussions, the bill guarantees that the answers or statements provided by the parties during a conciliation session cannot be used, nor are they admissible as evidence in criminal, civil or administrative procecutions. They may, however, be used in the case of a hearing before the Tribunal administratif de déontologie policière (Administrative Tribunal for Police Ethics) concerning an allegation that a person subject to the Code made a statement or answer that they knew to be false, with intent to deceive.

If the conciliator terminates a conciliation session or finds that the parties are unable to reach an agreement, a report is submitted to the Commissioner. Upon receipt of the report, the Commissioner analyzes the file and decides whether to launch an investigation or close the file. However, when a conciliation session held in the context of a complaint alleging discriminatory conduct by a person subject to the Code fails, the Commissioner must order an investigation.

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