Can I tell the judge what someone else told me?
Short answer
As a rule no: in Quebec, testimony covers the facts of which the person has personal knowledge (art. 2843 of the Civil Code of Quebec), and the statement of a person who does not testify is admitted only where the court authorizes it, on the conditions set out in article 2870.
In detail
This is what is called hearsay. The Tribunal administratif du logement (TAL, Quebec's rental board) puts it bluntly: “Having heard that events occurred or that words were spoken proves neither those events nor those words. Only a person with direct knowledge of the facts can testify to them.”
Article 2870 opens a narrow door. The court may authorize the statement of a person who does not appear, on application and after notice to the other party, but it must be satisfied “that it is impossible to obtain the appearance of the declarant as a witness, or unreasonable to require it”, and that the circumstances in which the statement was made offer “sufficiently serious guarantees to be relied on”. The TAL adds that the impossibility must be real — a witness who has died, a witness who lives outside the province — and not a mere inconvenience such as a witness who is working that day or who does not want to come.
Article 2869 also points out that such a statement is admitted if the parties consent to it. Many files are handled this way: the other side simply does not object.
What to document
The name and contact information of the person who saw or heard the events, the date they told you about it, and what they observed themselves. It is that person, not you, who will be able to testify to it.
Put your facts in writing, free. Writing your version down early, keeping your documents dated and preparing your questions for a lawyer: the tool is there to document, never to advise.
Open the application Up to 3 files, no card · see the plans
Official sources
- Civil Code of Quebec, arts. 2843, 2869 and 2870 (Légis Québec)
- Preparing for a hearing (Tribunal administratif du logement)
Related questions
- I have nothing in writing can I prove a verbal agreement?
- The other party admitted something in writing does that count?
- Who has to prove what in court?
- What does proving on a balance of probabilities mean?
- Can the judge refuse evidence that I bring?
See all the answers · the full guide collection · Lire en français
What this page is not
This is general legal information about the law of Quebec and Canada, dated and sourced. It is not legal advice, not a strategy, and not a prediction about the outcome of a case. In Quebec, only lawyers and notaries may give legal advice (Act respecting the Barreau du Québec, ss. 128 and 133). Laws and amounts change: the official source always prevails over us.