Use of the French language in Quebec is primarily governed by the Charter of the French Language (the Charter), which was amended in 2022 by the Act respecting French, the official and common language of Québec (Bill 96) so as to “ensure the vitality and preservation of the French language.”1 These changes, however, prompted the Quebec government to prepare and publish, on January 10, 2024, a draft regulation (the Draft Regulation) the main objective of which is to amend the Regulation respecting the language of commerce and business (the Regulation) and to specify certain linguistic obligations of enterprises doing business in Quebec.2
Inscription on products – Sections 51 and 51.1 of the Charter
The basic rule enacted by the Charter is that “[e]very inscription on a product […] must be drafted in French.”3 However, a French text may be accompanied by a translation, provided it is not given greater prominence than the French inscription.4 A few exceptions allow for derogations from this principle, notably the new exception for registered trademarks within the meaning of the Trademarks Act (the TA).
Registered trademarks
Given the changes introduced under Bill 96, the Charter should soon allow trademarks appearing in a language other than French to be used without requiring a translation, provided they are registered in accordance with the TA and the enterprise has not registered a corresponding French version.5 This exemption will be coming into force on June 1, 2025, and be expanded by the Draft Regulation to extend not only to registered trademarks, but also to trademarks in respect of which an application is pending.6 This exception does not, however, extend to any “generic term” or “description” included in a trademark, concepts that are now defined in the Draft Regulation.7
“Integrated software”
The Draft Regulation also provides that the obligation to post in French will now extend to inscriptions on a product displayed for the user using an integrated software.8
Public signs and posters and commercial advertising – Sections 58 and 58.1 of the Charter
When it comes to public signs and posters and commercial advertising, the Charter provides that all text must be in French, although it may be accompanied by a translation provided that the French is markedly predominant.9 The Draft Regulation includes certain amendments and specifications regarding this obligation.
Registered trademarks
Here, too, Bill 96 amends the Charter so as to allow for the use of registered trademarks where no corresponding French version appears in the register kept in accordance with the TA.10 In the case of public signs and posters, however, trademarks in respect of which an application for registration is pending will not be exempted.
This new flexibility does not extend to public signs and posters that are visible from outside premises. In such cases, the obligation that the French be “markedly predominant” is imperative,11 and any slogan, generic term or description of the product must be translated.12
Definition of the notions of “premises” and “markedly predominant”
The Draft Regulation will bring certain specifications to the obligations regarding public signs and posters and commercial advertising. First, the notion of “premises” will be defined as any public sign or poster on an immovable, a bollard or other independent structure.13
The Draft Regulation also revokes the Regulation defining the scope of the expression “markedly predominant” for the purposes of the Charter of the French language.14 Once the Draft Regulation is enacted, this obligation will be met where the text in French has a much greater impact than the text in another language. French text has a much greater visual impact where it is at least twice as large as the text in another language and the French text’s visibility is at least equivalent to that of the text in another language.15
Commercial publications — Social media and websites
The Draft Regulation amends section 52 of the Charter to explicitly subject social media and websites to the commercial publications regime.16 This addition should not affect the obligations relating to this section, seeing as the Office québécois de la langue française already supports a similar position,17 but this specification should dispel any doubt as to the regime’s scope.
Contract of adhesion
Section 55 of the Charter stipulates that the French version of a contract pre-determined by one party must have been given to the adhering party before that party may adhere to a contract of adhesion drawn up in a language other than French. The Draft Regulation now defines the expression “document related to a contract of adhesion”18 and specifies the obligations pertaining to contracts entered into by telephone19 or any technological means.20
Conclusion
Although it does not substantially increase French-language obligations, the Draft Regulation does specify the terms and conditions that apply to enterprises interested in doing business in Quebec. At the moment, the Draft Regulation is merely a proposal from the Quebec government and is therefore likely to change between now and the time it is enacted. Anyone who is interested may submit their comments on the Draft Regulation to the Ministry of the French Language before February 26, 2024. No specific timeline exists as to when it will come into force, but the Draft Regulation does stipulate that the above changes should all come into force on the fifteenth day following the date of its publication in the Gazette officielle du Québec.21
The author would like to thank Simon Mayrand and William Lavigne, articling students, for their contribution to preparing this legal update.
