Dominique Goubau

Dominique Goubau is considered an authority in his field and has done much to enhance the reputation of Université Laval and its Faculty of Law. His expertise is recognized well beyond the borders of Québec and Canada and has led to a number of legislative reforms.

An academic of renown

Dominique Goubau’s 30-year career has involved research and teaching in family law, child and youth law, physical person law and bioethics. He has authored or co-authored 8 monographs, 46 chapters in multiauthor volumes, and 24 articles in peer-reviewed journals.

His work has been cited more than 1,000 times by Québec courts and has often been taken up by the Supreme Court of Canada. Two of his books are essential references in Canada and are used as textbooks in physical person and family law.

Professor Goubau has actively contributed to the advancement of knowledge. He has been a member of Université Laval’s Centre de recherche Jeunes, familles et réponses sociales and Centre jeunesse de Québec – Institut universitaire, a corresponding member of the Cambridge Family Law Centre’s network of experts from 27 countries, and the International Society on Family Law, of which he was vice-president for many years.

Dominique Goubau, who was promoted to full professor in 2000, has received research grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada for such projects as establishing of the Parental Separation, Stepfamily Living research partnership. He also received funding from Fonds de recherche du Québec – Société et culture (Québec Research Fund, Society and Culture) and the Barreau du Québec Foundation.

Professor Goubau also served as a vice dean of the Faculty of Law for a few years. He has put together several courses in his areas of specialization that have helped developed and deepened students’ understanding, including a popular seminar in child law. He sat as Université Laval’s representative on the Centre jeunesse de Québec board of directors for nearly 15 years, which also raised the University’s profile in the community.

He continues to be called by the media for his ability to make complex legal issues understandable and has been invited to teach at renowned universities in Belgium and France. He has also given more than 100 lectures and talks in Europe, the United States, and South America.

An experienced practitioner

Before embarking on his career as a professor, Dominique Goubau practised law with the Brussels Bar and Barreau du Québec. He has put his knowledge to work on behalf of the practice of law throughout his career, serving in roles including chair of Barreau du Québec’s standing committee on family law and member of Ministère de la justice du Québec’s family law advisory committee.

As both an academic and a practitioner of law, Dominique Goubau has contributed to important legislative reforms in his fields of expertise. He was called on to be part of major Divorce Act and family law reforms. He is highly regarded in the legal community and the provincial and federal judiciary.

His varied and fruitful career earned him the title of Barreau du Québec Advocatus Emeritus in 2020. The Bar recognized his outstanding contributions to the legal profession and impact in the community.