 He studied at the Petit Séminaire de Montréal, then articled in law and was called to the bar in 1843.He set up practice in Saint-Hyacinthe.In 1846, he married Marie-Eugénie-Rosalie Dessaulles, daughter of Jean Dessaulles; he looked after the family seigneury until 1852 when the property was distributed among his father-in-law's children.