Arthur Gibeault, B. A., Ll. L

Arthur Gibeault, a Laval man, active in the practice of law since January, 1902, has been retained as counsel for the defense or prosecution in many notable cases heard in the Montreal courts. He was born on the 26th of February, 1880, a son of Arthur Alphonse and Elizabeth Emma (Morrissette) Gibeault. The father was for seven years provincial chief ranger of the Catholic Order of Foresters. The son was a student in Montreal College for eight years, from September, 1890, until July, 1898. In September of the latter year he entered Laval University, where he remained until December 21, 1901, winning the Bachelor of Arts and LL. L. degrees. He was admitted as a lawyer and barrister to the bar of Quebec on the 17th of January, 1902, and has since been actively connected with the profession, in which he has made steady advancement, already having won a place of equal rank with many an older representative of the bar. He was attorney and counsel for the school commissioners of Hochelaga for many years and as counsel tried many immigration cases. He was especially prominent in the case of Gaetanetta Imparato, who was deported to Italy and subsequently returned to Canada pursuant to an appeal made by Mr. Gibeault in her favor. He represented Sarah Kositzky in her appeal before the department of immigration of the United States and obtained a commission of three medical men to examine her. The decision of the first board was afterward reversed by this commission. Mr. Gibeault’s name appears in connection with other important cases which have attracted widespread interest not only in Canada but also in the United States.

Mr. Gibeault is a conservative and was prime minister of the mock parliament of Laval in 1899 and head of the conservative ministry, while the leader of the opposition was J. W. Pilon, a well known lawyer of Montreal. That Mr. Gibeault possesses marked histrionic as well as legal talent is indicated in the fact that during the year 1904-5 the Greek drama of Antigone by Sophocles was played in Greek, on which occasion he took the role of Ismene and the role of Antigone was taken by D. Lalonde, now Father Lalonde, P. S. S., one of the directors of Montreal College, while the role of Creon was played by J. F. St. Cyr, now district magistrate of St. Johns, Iberville. The production of the play in Greek created a tremendous sensation at the time because it was an achievement unheard of before.

On the 26th of June, 1905, Mr. Gibeault was married to Marie Jeanne Phaneuf, daughter of L. A. Phaneuf, notary public of Rigaud, and Marie Joseph Adam. Mrs. Gibeault is a niece of the Rt. Rev. Canon F. L. T. Adam, of Montreal, and Father J. Adam, S. J. Mr. and Mrs. Gibeault have three children, Yves, Marc and Madeleine. The religious faith of the family is that of the Catholic church and Mr. Gibeault is a leading member of the Independent Order of Foresters. Possessed of natural oratorical ability, his power in that direction, supplementing the analytical trend of his mind and added to his broad knowledge of the law, has gained him distinction as one of the younger members of the Montreal bar.