Thursday, 22 April 2010

When Lawyers Get All Lawyeristic ... with update

you know they must be working hard for Harper's New™ Government.

When you read this, a certain quote from Henry VI (Part 2) does come to mind - 'The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers'.

A government lawyer yesterday disputed the Military Police Complaints Commission’s right to see certain government records on the matter and refused to even set a date for handing over others.

“The documents will be given to your counsel when they are good and ready,” Justice Department lawyer Alain Préfontaine told the inquiry. The tone of Mr. Préfontaine’s response prompted astonishment from Glenn Stannard, the acting chair of the commission.

“I find that to be close to offensive, not only to this panel but also to the public,” Mr. Stannard said. “The government of Canada can’t tell us how long it’s going to take to get the documents?” [...]

The Justice Department official refused several times to say when documents might be released, first saying this was a secret between him and the government of Canada. “That is not something I am at liberty to discuss with you. That is covered by the solicitor-client privilege.”

When Mr. Stannard asked for the name of someone in government who could come before the panel and give a date for the documents’ release, Mr. Préfontaine replied: “I do not perceive that it’s my obligation to answer that question.”

Mr. Préfontaine said numerous requests from the commission are making life difficult for government record keepers because they have to keep screening more of them as new demands are made.

What MASSIVE nerve! A Commission established by Parliament requests documents in order to meet its mandate! How dare it defy a flunky lawyer from the Justice Department?

Is Alain Préfontaine is auditioning for interested in a future in public service as an arrogant politician in the ReformaTory Con Party - and thus performing for his real boss?

Grand merci to our dawgy friend for the tip.
Update: Dr Dawg continues to sniff out more of Prefontaine's stinky business. Apparently, when you deal with Justice Dept. lawyers, you can get screwed coming and going.

1 comment:

thwap said...

Maybe he got his job through the harpercons, and maybe the harpercons place political loyalty over loyalty to the rule of law (or brains) like the bush II regime's Justice Department?

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