Executive Summary: Key Legal and Evidentiary Issues

• Nasreddine Ouadria filed the principal action against Badreddine Cheraitia and Centre Kawtar Laval inc. (CKL), which was later dismissed as an abuse of procedure.
• Ouadria submitted false documents to the Québec enterprise registrar, falsely claiming approval by two-thirds of members at an extraordinary general meeting that never took place.
• Defamatory statements made by Ouadria targeted Cheraitia's probity, accusing him of adultery and other moral failings, none of which were substantiated.
• Unauthorized resolutions signed by Ouadria — after the president had already resigned — purported to remove Cheraitia from his position and appoint a new administrator.
• Actions taken by Ouadria caused Caisse Desjardins to freeze CKL's funds, forcing CKL to seek an injunction to access its own accounts.
• Punitive damages were awarded under Article 49 of the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms for intentional interference with honour, dignity, and reputation.

Facts of the case

Centre Kawtar Laval inc. (CKL) is a non-profit corporation incorporated under Part 3 of the Companies Act, operating under the name Centre culturel islamique de Sainte-Rose inc. Its activities include a mosque, a school, and various charitable and community integration programs. A dispute between Badreddine Cheraitia and Nasreddine Ouadria over the administration of CKL arose in 2020. At the time, Ouadria served as vice-president and Cheraitia as treasurer.

On April 9, 2022, a general assembly of members was held, during which two new board members were elected to fill vacancies, and membership regularization was carried out by allowing attendees to become or renew as members upon paying $20. Ouadria was dissatisfied with these decisions but did not formally contest them in the minutes. As of that assembly, the board of directors comprised five members, including both Ouadria and Cheraitia.

On May 4, 2022, board president Adda Yanouri resigned. Cheraitia promptly convened a board meeting for the following day to address the resignation; neither Yanouri nor Ouadria attended. On May 8, Cheraitia learned of two purported resolutions — one dated May 5 removing him from his position, and another dated May 8 appointing Mostafa Mansi as administrator — both signed by the former president Yanouri, who was no longer in office, and by Ouadria. Cheraitia notified Ouadria on May 13 that the May 5 resolution was not compliant with CKL's charter. Through his lawyer, Ouadria replied on May 17 that the charter had been revoked by unanimous board resolution on July 1, 2020, purportedly including Cheraitia. In fact, no such resolution was ever passed and the charter remained in force.

Separately, on May 12, Ouadria submitted an application for letters patent to the Québec enterprise registrar, signed by him, falsely stating it had been approved by two-thirds of members at an extraordinary general meeting held on May 6. Ouadria admitted in an out-of-court examination that no such meeting had taken place. On June 19, the board resolved to remove Ouadria as a director and appoint Cheraitia as board president. On June 26, at the request of more than 50% of members, an extraordinary general assembly was convened for June 30, at which Ouadria was excluded as a member of CKL. On August 7, Ouadria filed the principal action against Cheraitia. The principal action was dismissed on May 2, 2023 by Justice Daniel W. Payette, with Ouadria declared foreclosed from presenting a counterclaim defense. The matter proceeded by default on May 20, 2026, with evidence limited to Cheraitia's testimony, a sworn declaration, and various exhibits.

Governing legal framework

The dispute engaged several provisions of Québec procedural and civil rights law. Article 51 of the Code of Civil Procedure was invoked with respect to the abuse of procedure claim, targeting the bad-faith filing of the principal action. Article 49 of the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms grounded the claim for punitive damages, addressing the intentional infringement of honour, dignity, and reputation.

Court's reasoning and analysis

On the abuse of procedure claim, the court found the evidence clear and uncontradicted: Ouadria's principal action was part of a series of acts designed to harm Cheraitia and CKL in the course of a power struggle driven by bad faith. The court accepted in bulk the legal fees and disbursements incurred by Cheraitia and CKL up to the judgment dismissing the principal action, totalling $27,864.93, as compensable damages for the abusive proceeding. Costs incurred after that date, being tied exclusively to the counterclaim, were held to be non-compensable under the abuse of procedure head.

On defamation, the court found that Ouadria conducted a campaign to cause Cheraitia to lose the respect and esteem of CKL members and the broader community, making unfounded accusations regarding his probity, accusing him of adultery and other moral failings. Cheraitia testified that he was compelled to take a work leave of nearly one year as a result. The court noted that the claim of $30,000 in moral and punitive damages was excessive relative to awards in comparable cases, particularly given the limited and imprecise evidence, and further observed that Cheraitia's continued re-election demonstrated he had retained the esteem of a significant number of CKL members despite Ouadria's efforts.

Regarding CKL's moral damages claim, the court recognized Ouadria's wrongful conduct — including his refusal to abide by general assembly decisions, submission of false documents to the enterprise registrar, false claims that CKL's charter had been revoked, and interference with CKL's operations — but found the evidence of damages limited. Notably, Ouadria's actions caused Caisse Desjardins to freeze approximately $50,000 in CKL's accounts, requiring CKL to obtain an injunction to pay accumulated invoices. The court awarded punitive damages to both Cheraitia and CKL under Article 49 of the Charter, characterizing Ouadria's faults as intentional and committed with intent to harm, while calibrating the amounts to account for the totality of condemnations imposed.

Ruling and outcome

The court partially granted the counterclaim in favour of Badreddine Cheraitia and Centre Kawtar Laval inc. Ouadria was ordered to pay Cheraitia and CKL jointly $27,864.93 in compensatory damages for legal fees and disbursements incurred in defending the abusive action; $5,000 in moral damages to Cheraitia; $5,000 in moral damages to CKL; $5,000 in punitive damages to Cheraitia; and $1,000 in punitive damages to CKL — bringing the total monetary awards to $43,864.93, plus legal interest at the legal rate from the date of judgment. The court also issued declaratory relief: declaring Ouadria's usurpation of the title of president of CKL from May 4, 2022 onward, nullifying all acts performed by him on behalf of CKL after that date, declaring his expulsion as member and administrator effective June 30, 2022, ordering him to return all property, documents, and access codes belonging to CKL within thirty days, and directing Caisse Desjardins to release the funds held for CKL. Costs of justice were also awarded against Ouadria.