How this Quebec shop was tasked with modernizing the Supreme Court attire

Genevieve Beauchemin has more on the new robes Canada’s Supreme Court justices will wear in celebration of the court’s 150th anniversary.

A made-to-measure shop in the Saguenay region of Quebec received a tall order from the Supreme Court of Canada.

Les Rabats-Joies was asked to create new ceremonial robes for the nine Justices of the country’s top court. This marks the first redesign of the vestments in the court’s 150 years of existence.

The mission was to thread the needle between respecting traditions and renewal.

“No fur for the new robes which is very important,” says Les Rabats-Joies owner Romane LeGallou. “We used silk, pure silk, which is a very noble fabric.”

LeGallou got her start in the business of making robes and accessories for lawyers and judges by designing them for her friends in law school.

Now LeGallou, whose shop is in the heart of Saguenay, is one of a few on Canadian soil devoted to clothing those in the profession in many provinces. Its stylish storefront mixes an antique sewing machine and black robes.

In November 2024, LeGallou received an intriguing email from the Supreme Court.

“I was sent an email to set up a meeting, because the brand was bold, original,” she said. “They wanted to speak about a secret project.”

She guessed the job would involve making adjustments and modifications to the existing robes for the court’s 150th anniversary, but was excited to learn this was a far more elaborate mandate.

The justices’ old robes were bright red, trimmed with layers of white fur, and described by some, even by some sitting at the top court, as Santa suits. The justices wore these for ceremonies, including the Speech from the Throne, which King Charles III delivered in Parliament last May.

“The justices were saying that the robes were very heavy, they were very hot and uncomfortable,” said LeGallou. “So there were changes that could be made not just about the aesthetics, the look, but also to make them more comfortable.”

LeGallou and her team set out on a nearly year-long endeavour to create a new design that was more modern for the traditional world. The shop’s technical chief, seamstress Myriam Herrera, played a key role.

Herrera is originally from Nicaragua, and learned the craft from her mother, who taught her how to sew from an early age. She fabricated wedding dresses and evening gowns for Miss World contestants before she arrived to a new home in the Saguenay region.

“This project was quite complicated,” Herrera said. “We worked with pure silk, there were hundreds of embroideries on each robe, everything had to look flawless. I never imagined that I would be part of something like this.”

The new robes were unveiled earlier this month at a judicial opening of the Supreme Court, an event marking the beginning of the year’s sittings. The black robes are adorned with simple red piping, a nod to the Canadian flag. The embroidery is a pattern of heraldic emblems of the Supreme Court, which were unveiled in 2021.

Chief Justice Richard Wagner called the robes distinctly Canadian.

“They have a modern and simple design,” said Wagner.

Some critics have decried the watering down of tradition, but LeGallou says the redesign reflects the core values Wagner has stated for the court.

“He wants the Court to be more accessible, with integrity and respect,” she said.

The yarn of the Supreme Court robes is becoming part of the fabric of the Saguenay, a point of pride.