The passage of the Archives Act in 1983 marked a turning point in Quebec archival practice. However, the long-awaited Bill 3 of the National Assembly gave rise to dissatisfaction among some of the archival community with its narrow view of archives as limited to historical documents. An overview of the briefs submitted at that time highlights the main criticisms of the text and shows how the involvement of the community led to a reorientation of the bill toward the integrated vision of archival science that prevailed. Unfortunately, while innovative at the time of its enactment, the Archives Act has since then been challenged by other legislative or normative instruments that have featured digital records and those who manage them, all of which are lacking in the current Act. Noting that not all mise en concurrence avec d'autres textes législatifs ou normatifs qui ont fait une place importante aux documents numériques ainsi qu'aux have featured digital records and those who manage them, all of which are lacking in the current Act. Noting that not all of the promises of the 1983 have been fulfilled, the article analyzes the hopes expressed by archival professionals, both in the briefs submitted at the consultation launched by Bibliothèque and Archives nationales du Québec (BAnQ) in November 2020 and at the breakout session at the 2021 annual conference of the Association des archivistes du Québec. The article concludes on a note of hope for the adoption in the near future of an updated law on archives and related records that will be more responsive to the reality of various environments.

     The authors'study aims to identify the data collected on the archival services and centres of Québec in order to develop a statistical portrait of these institutions from a large-scale survey done in late 2016 and early 2017. The article presents the steps realized in the framework of a preparatory pre-inquiry. Twelve participants responded to a questionnaire on the diverse aspects of archival practice, including administration, resources, digital documents, records management and archives management. The results highlighted the methodological challenges posed by the collection of statistical data and the efforts to standardize to handle such data. At the end of the project, the data gathered will constitute a first point of reference toward a strategy continuously to improve archival services and centers. Also, it will facilitate the study of the evolution of the professional archival milieu.

     The text discusses a key period for the Archives Service of the University of Montreal, beginning when François Beaudin became director in April 1972. He inherited a situation that had been described as problematic by his predecessor, Luc-André Biron, in a brief to the Joint Council of the University and the University Assembly. The Commission's report, prepared by Judge Deschênes, accepted the main recommendations, thereby giving fresh life to the Service. Based on these recommendations, François Beaudin transformed the Service in depth during his short four-year period in office.He created the Archives Commission, hired qualified staff who would make a mark on the archival scene, approved the first conservation calendars, and put in place a system for depositing semi-active documents, among other measures.

     From the beginning of the 1970s, the Division of Records Management and Archives of the University of Montreal has played an important role through its innovation and its commitment to communicate its knowledge and know-how. Recognized internationally for the exemplary quality of its work methods, its main realizations are reviewed in this article, followed by a discussion of the challenges that will continue to occupy it with respect to information management, the management of digital archives, and the valuing of heritage archives. The author concludes with a stress on the importance of undertaking evaluation and measurement of their services with respect to their partners.

     In this article, Diane Baillargeon presents the analysis that preceded the decision to invest in Web 2.0 by the Document Management and Archives Division of the University of Montreal. The author stresses that Web 2.0 is at once both attractive and intimidating; attractive because of its possibilities for communication of archives, intimidating for archival services that are used to more traditional methods of communication where one has total control over the content that is made available. Therefore, a certain caution must be exercised in making choices. The choice of a platform, the resources to be devoted to it, and the editorial policy with respect to interventions on the network are all aspects which require serious thought. The article discusses the processes which led the University of Montreal group to move into the collaborative Web and presents the pros and cons of this new experience for university archives in Quebec.

     This text relates the ideas of two Quebec archivists who are recognized for their professional engagement and their passion for their work. Diane Baillargeon and Michel Lévesque consented to be interviewed by Lucie Pagé, and responded generously to her. The subjects covered include : their convictions and deeply held values ; the desire to be engaged ; the certainty of being able to foster change ; the enhancement of personal and professional abilities. For both, family influence has been a decisive factor in their social and professional engagement. From adolescence, both have invested themselves generously in various non-profit organizations and associations, motivated by a strong will to change things and to share their passion with others. Finally, the interviews reveal that both professional archivists are moved by a deep conviction of the value of contributing, by means of their engagement at the heart of the archival community, to the advancement of the profession.

     The authors summarize the positions taken, and the wide-ranging interventions made, by the Association des Archivistes du Québec (AAQ), mainly from the beginning of the 1990s. The Association's involvement has been particularly active since 1992, with the creation of the Committee on professional affairs (1990) and of the position of legislative affairs officer (1997). By becoming vigilant with respect to archival matters, the AAQ has been able to intervene before government authorities as well as media and the general public to highlight the importance of archives, the archival professional, and archival services. Issues in which the AAQ has been involved include : recognition of the profession of archivist, promotion of the Law on Archives (1996), protestation against the closing of archives and the under-financing of the archival sector, and the treatment of archives and archivists in cases of school board mergers (1997) and municipal mergers (2001-2002). The Association has participated actively in the debates regarding communication of records held in archives (Copyright Law, 1998) and access to information and protection of personal data both in the private and public sectors. Broadly speaking, the authors review the role of the AAQ as a defender of archives and the archival vocation in Québec.

     In this article the author reveals the results of a survey conducted in 2005 among members of CREPUQ (Conférence des recteurs et des principaux des universités du Québec). The goal of the survey was to develop a portrait of the current situation in universities with respect to the acquisition, processing and communication of the private archival holdings of these institutions. First, the author demonstrates how the private fonds, whether they are quasiinstitutional or somehow associated with the institution, or completely without links to the institution, play an important role within the university. They contribute to the development of institutional memory, support teaching and research, witness to the evolution of disciplines and the orientations of research, document the achievements of professors and researchers, and, finally, witness to the place of universities in society. The study proceeds to present the acquisitions policies of the universities, and evaluates the quantities of private holdings and the resources allotted to their management in comparison with institutional holdings.
      The author concludes with the use made of private holdings by those who use the services of university archives. As a final note, the results of the survey are the subject of analyses along lines which open new perspectives on the place which private archival holdings should have in Québec universities.

     In this article the author looks at the text of a paper presented March 25, 2004 as part of the 4th Archives Day organized by the Catholic University of Louvain in Louvain-La Neuve in Belgium. The author shares her reflections on the importance for professional archivists of adhering to a Code of Ethics that provides the rules for practice, defining their duties and practices. To illustrate her points, the author comments on the Code of Ethics adopted in 2004 by the International Council of Archives (ICA). She then presents actual cases from Canada and elsewhere in the world which highlight two problem areas linked to professional ethics : destruction of documents, and accessibility of archives. The author concludes her text by recalling the social responsibility of the archivist to ensure a balance between the public's right to information and the protection of personal information.

     In this article, the author discusses the creation, collection, conservation, and communication of private archives in Québec. She describes the earliest sources of private archives in New France, and then describes the historical societies and the great collectors which have permitted safeguarding the private archival heritage of Quebec. She then presents the role of the Quebec National Archives in the constitution of private archives, both by acquisition of these archives and by measures that are in place to provide support in the milieu. She follows this with a presentation on the results of a survey made between May and October 2003 of the main public and private archives. The objective of the survey was to gain knowledge of the actors in the milieu of private archives, to assess the resources held in private archives, and to give a brief presentation on the collections they hold. The author then depart from the topic of private archives strictly speaking, and discusses the evolution of professionalisation in the milieu, and she briefly describes several specific initiatives. The text ends with a short assessment of archival training in Quebec over the past ten years.

     In August 1998 the Association des archivistes du Québec presented a brief to the Assemblée nationale's Commission de la Culture on bill451 to amend the Act respecting Access to documents held by public bodies and the Protection of Personal Information, the Act respecting the Protection of personal information in the Private Sector and other legislative measures. In this brief, with a view to achieving an acceptable balance in the legislation between concern to protect privacy and the need to develop our society's collective memory, the AAQ comments on certain proposed amendments in the bill and recommends revisions that are original or inspired by measures adopted elsewhere in the world.