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Prime Minister Mark Carney has appointed Justice Geneviève Cotnam as the new Chief Justice of Quebec, elevating a judge with a notably poor record in cases involving freedom of expression and religion.

Carney announced Cotnam's appointment Wednesday. She replaces Chief Justice Manon Savard, who elected to become a supernumerary judge effective Aug. 10.

Cotnam has served on the Quebec Court of Appeal since 2016, where she was part of the majority in one of Canada's most closely watched freedom-of-expression cases.

In 2019, Cotnam and Justice Claudine Roy upheld a Quebec Human Rights Tribunal decision ordering comedian Mike Ward to pay $35,000 in damages to Jérémy Gabriel, a young singer with Treacher Collins syndrome whom Ward had mocked as part of his comedy routine.

The majority concluded Ward's remarks concerning Gabriel's disability infringed his right to dignity and could not be justified by Ward's freedom of expression.

Ironically, Justice Savard, whom Cotnam is now replacing as chief justice, dissented.

The case eventually reached the Supreme Court of Canada, where Ward won.

In a 5-4 decision in 2021, the Supreme Court overturned the judgment against Ward, finding the Human Rights Tribunal did not have jurisdiction because Ward's comments did not amount to discrimination under Quebec's Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms.

The majority found that a reasonable person would not consider Ward's comments capable of inciting others to detest or vilify Gabriel's humanity.

Cotnam's record also includes a significant religious-freedom dispute involving the Chabad Lubavitch Youth Organization and the resort town of Mont-Tremblant.

Chabad had been using a condominium unit as a synagogue for years before the municipality moved against the congregation over zoning rules that did not permit a place of worship at the property.

The dispute resulted in an $800 fine and a lengthy court battle. Chabad argued that preventing the congregation from continuing to worship at a location it had used for years substantially interfered with the religious freedom of its members.

The case also raised questions about unequal treatment. Chabad argued that a Catholic church was permitted to continue holding religious ceremonies despite its own zoning issues while the Jewish congregation was prevented from continuing to worship at its longtime location.

In 2022, Cotnam sat on the three-judge Quebec Court of Appeal panel that rejected Chabad's appeal.

Cotnam took a particularly restrictive position on Chabad's Charter argument. While the other judges concluded there had been an infringement of religious freedom but found it justified, Cotnam concluded that Chabad had not established an infringement of freedom of religion in the first place.

The decision left Chabad unable to continue operating its synagogue at the property. The organization sought leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, raising questions about freedom of religion and alleged religious discrimination. The Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal in 2023.

Cotnam will now lead Quebec's highest court.