Quebec Court Records: Difference between revisions

Court records are seldom used in Québec genealogical research.

There are other legal records that are useful. Notarial records include wills, deeds, and marriage contracts that often give family information. They are filed in the judicial archives. See [[Quebec Notarial Records]], [[Canada Court Records]], and [[Canada Notarial Records]]. Most legal records are notarial and are found in the individual notary’s ''greffe'', which, after 80 to 100 years, is usually in the appropriate regional branch of the ANQ.

Since the 1760s, criminal law in Québec has been based on the English common law. The civil law is based on French law. Many revisions have been made to the old coûtume de Paris (Custom of Paris), the code of laws in effect during years of French government. Court records date from about 1651 and will give the names and residence of persons who engaged in litigation in the courts: ''Registres du baillage'' (Bailiff’s Court),''Plaidoyers communs'' (Court of Common Pleas), and ''Conseil Supérieur'' (Superior Court). Some transcriptions of notable cases during the French régime are useful. They have been published in some genealogical periodicals (see [[Quebec Periodicals]].