Québec Superior Court suspends provisions of Bill 21

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CALGARY, Alberta, Jan. 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Questerre Energy Corporation (“Questerre” or the “Company”) (TSX,OSE:QEC) reported today on the ruling by the Québec Superior Court (Civil Division) on the Company’s application to stay certain provisions of the Act ending exploration for petroleum and underground reservoirs and production of petroleum and brine (the “Act”), for the duration of the judicial proceedings.

Michael Binnion, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Questerre, commented, “This exceptional ruling in our favor preserves our legal rights as we continue to work for a political and business solution to the situation in Québec. We remain hopeful for a solution that will materially reduce Canadian greenhouse gas emissions while improving energy security.”

In the ruling issued yesterday, the Justice assessed the key criteria for a stay and deemed that our application met these criteria. This included the existence of a serious legal matter and the serious or irreparable harm if the request for a stay is refused.

The Attorney General argued that Civil Code of Québec and the Québec’s Charter of human rights and freedoms provisions, while protecting the right to property of citizens and companies against unreasonable use of Government powers, do not apply if the Government choses to use those same powers to override them. The Justice noted that the circular nature of the Attorney General’s argument gave rise to a serious legal matter.

Mr. Binnion added, “The argument of the Attorney General is, in effect, that the powers of the legislature are supreme even over laws intended to limit the powers of the legislature. This would, in effect, nullify the provisions of the Civil Code and Charter protecting citizens from abuse of Government powers. It is a hallmark of constitutional democracies that the Government has limits on its power and the disguised expropriation of our assets in Québec should be compensated for.”

Recognizing that this is an exceptional measure, the Justice also ruled that the judgement be enforced even if the Attorney General files an appeal, also known as ‘provisional execution’. He noted that Questerre and the other plaintiffs run the risk of serious and irreparable harm in the absence of this order for provisional execution.