QUEBEC CITY (LifeSiteNews) – Quebec Cardinal Marc Ouellet has been accused of sexual assault in a class-action lawsuit filed against the Archdiocese of Quebec.
According to CTV News, the allegations against Ouellet are detailed in the class-action suit which was filed on Tuesday in Quebec’s Superior Court, and specifically accuse the prominent cardinal of kissing a woman at a cocktail reception in 2008 while “sliding his hand down her back and touching her buttocks.”
Arsenault Dufresne Wee Avocats, a Montreal-based law firm, says the accusation represents just one of the 101 alleged victims in the suit, who have accused approximately 88 priests and other members of the clergy in the Archdiocese of Quebec of sexual assault.
A second class-action lawsuit was also filed, this time against the Brothers of the Christian Schools of Francophone Canada, in which 193 alleged victims have accused 116 members of the organization of sexual assault.
Both suits have been authorized by a judge, according to CTV News, and contain detailed reports of the alleged behavior.
Ouellet, who was elevated to cardinal by Pope John Paul II in 2003, served as the Archbishop of Quebec from 2003 to 2010.
Since 2010, Ouellet has served as the prefect for the Dicastery for Bishops and the president for the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.
The Archdiocese of Quebec told LifeSiteNews that they are aware of the allegations but declined to comment at this time.