Former Quebec tourism minister Caroline Proulx has been ordered to personally pay more than $60,000 in damages after a Quebec Superior Court judge ruled she unlawfully cancelled a Christian conference because of its pro-life message.

In a decision released Friday, Justice Alain Trudel found Proulx acted "in an arbitrary and abusive manner" when she ordered Quebec City's convention centre to cancel a rental agreement for Harvest Ministries International's "Faith, Fire, and Freedom" conference just 10 days before it was scheduled to begin.

The British Columbia-based Christian ministry had booked the Quebec City Convention Centre for a 10-day event in June 2023, expecting approximately 1,200 attendees each day as the culmination of its "Battle for Canada" tour.

The controversy erupted after Radio-Canada asked Proulx about the conference. After reviewing the organization's website and discovering its opposition to abortion, Proulx directed her chief of staff to instruct the convention centre to terminate the rental agreement.

In a written message cited by the court, the government stated it had "serious reservations" about allowing the event in a public venue because its views conflicted with Quebec's values, while suggesting organizers could find a private venue instead.

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Despite efforts to relocate the conference, organizers were unable to secure another venue on such short notice. About 200 supporters ultimately gathered elsewhere in Quebec City for prayer meetings and public events.

Justice Trudel rejected the government's argument that it could refuse to host speech with which it disagreed.

"Preventing a message that displeases the minister or causes deep unease within the government from being conveyed in the public sphere does not constitute an urgent and genuine objective that justifies a restriction on freedom of expression," he wrote.

The judge concluded Proulx's intervention was motivated by political considerations rather than any lawful authority governing the convention centre's bookings. He found her actions infringed Harvest Ministries' Charter-protected freedom of expression.

The court ordered Proulx to personally pay $30,636.92 in compensatory damages, despite the lawsuit also naming the Quebec government and the Société du Centre des congrès de Québec. Justice Trudel further awarded $30,000 in punitive damages against Proulx personally.

Nous prenons acte du jugement rendu aujourd'hui par la Cour supérieure quant à l’annulation d’un événement antiavortement au Centre des congrès de Québec. Nous analyserons attentivement la décision avant de déterminer les prochaines étapes. Toutefois, le gouvernement du Québec…

— Caroline Proulx (@caroaubureau) July 31, 2026

In a statement posted after the ruling, Proulx defended Quebec's commitment to abortion access and said she was reviewing the judgment before deciding whether to appeal. She emphasized the government "will NEVER back down" from defending women's right to abortion but declined further comment because of the possibility of additional legal proceedings.

Proulx announced earlier this year that she will not seek re-election in Quebec's provincial election this October.