Disciplinary law : when a delay exceeding that provided by the Professional Code exists between the date of the hearing and the date on which the sanction is decided, the Professions Tribunal cannot modify said sanction unless the professionnel succeeds in demonstrating a prejudice suffered or the existence of exceptional circumstances

Disciplinary law, the modification or the reduction of a sanction, unreasonable delay: In a decision rendered in July 2013, the Professions Tribunal established that even if a disciplinary council neglects in rendering a sanction within the delay of 60 days provided by section 150 of the Professional Code, the sanction in question cannot be modified nor reduced unless the professionnel proves that he has suffered a prejudice due to the tardiness of the sanction or that the circumstances in which the sanction was first imposed have changed. Furthermore, the Professions Tribunal emphasized the fact that the sections of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and of the Québec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms concerning the right of all accused persons to be tried within a reasonable time do not apply in disciplinary law. The delay of 60 days provided by the Professional Code only indicates a reasonable time frame in which the sanction should be rendered (Girouard v. Infirmières et infirmiers auxiliaires (Ordre professionnel des), 2013 QCTP 67).