Serge Rousselle, André Richard tackle school bus case despite past dispute

The province's high-profile constitutional gambit on school bus duality has created an unlikely legal alliance between two former antagonists.

André Richard, a veteran litigator with the prominent law firm Stewart McKelvey, is representing the attorney general in the case before the Court of Appeal.

And the attorney general is Serge Rousselle, who publicly denounced Richard in 2013 when Richard was the chair of the University of Moncton's board of governors.

At the time, Rousselle criticized the way the board hired Marie-Linda Lord as the university's vice-president of student and international affairs.

Rousselle was up for the job as well, but a hiring committee recommended a third candidate. When Lord was chosen instead, Rousselle accused Richard and the board of subverting the proper process.

Given students are told not to cheat and plagiarize, Rousselle said in June 2013, "how do we explain that, through the head of the board of governors, the rules were changed mid-course?"

Rousselle made the comments, and the call for Richard's resignation, while promoting a book he wrote about the hiring controversy.

"I think that person, in that circumstance, is not a good example for our students, so I think he has to make the necessary decision and say, `Thank you, goodbye.'"

Richard announced three months later he would not seek a new term as board chair. He said the "multiple attacks" on him and other university officials meant it was in the best interests of the university for him to not serve a second term.

Now, it's Richard asking the court on behalf of Rousselle to answer the question submitted by the government: whether the constitution requires separate school bus systems for English and French schools.

Rousselle told reporters this week that it's not unusual for the attorney general's office to hire outside lawyers like Richard.

Sometimes "the lawyers in the office are too busy, basically … and sometimes it happens that if we have constitutional cases, it's too much."

Rousselle suggested he had no role in choosing Richard specifically.

"I can ask my deputy minister or assistant deputy minister the way he was chosen, but I'll have to come back to you on that," he said.

Richard is also the brother-in-law of federal Liberal MP Dominic LeBlanc, a prominent political ally of Premier Brian Gallant.

Richard did not respond Thursday to CBC's request for a comment on how he was selected for the case.