Canada: Canon lawyer advised destruction of religious archives

La Croix International - September 25, 2024


Montreal, QC - A law firm claims religious archivists destroyed documents related to abuse to avoid lawsuits. Legal advice from a canon lawyer led to reducing sensitive records. Investigations later uncovered widespread document destruction, raising serious concerns about transparency and accountability within the Church.


There is no mention in the archives of the Archdiocese of Montreal “of any aggression towards women or any malicious act by once-renowned French Capuchin priest Abbé Pierre — accused of committing sexual assaults in his lifetime — during his visits to Montreal,” concluded retired judge André Denis this summer. There is also no such mention in the archives of the Archdiocese of Quebec, confirmed Auxiliary Bishop Marc Pelchat to Présence. Are documents missing or destroyed? Several observers are now asking this question.

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Brampton priest charged with sexual assault, removed from ministry

By Patricia Grell • January 9, 2026
Bishop Accountability - December 23, 2025 Brampton, ON - A Catholic priest in Brampton, Ont., has been charged with sexual offences and removed from the ministry, the Archdiocese of Toronto says. It says the man is accused of one count of sexual assault and one count of sexual interference, an offence that applies when the victim is under 16 years old. It says the decision to remove the man from the pastoral ministry was made in accordance with its protocols and procedures relating to allegations of misconduct.

Archdiocese denies sex claims in latest historical lawsuit involving late priest

By Patricia Grell • September 25, 2025
Free Press - September 23, 2025 Somerset, MB - The Archdiocese of St. Boniface has denied a man’s claims he was sexually abused by one of its priests in rural Manitoba decades ago. The man, who’s in his late 60s, claimed in a lawsuit filed in the Court of King’s Bench earlier this year that he was sexually abused by now-deceased Catholic priest Rene Touchette in the village of Somerset, about 150 kilometres southwest of Winnipeg. In a statement of defence filed in late July, the archdiocese argued the lawsuit should be tossed out — and that the man has provided no proof of the alleged abuse.
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