Background
He was born in Île-Verte, Quebec and became a lawyer by career.
He was born in Île-Verte, Quebec and became a lawyer by career.
Dion was educated at Ste-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, and at Université Laval where he received his Bachelor of Laws degree.
He was first elected to Parliament at the Lake Street-John—Roberval riding as an Independent Liberal candidate in the 1945 general election. He and several other Quebec Liberals had broken with their party the year before during the Conscription Crisis of 1944, quitting the party in order to oppose the government"s decision to deploy National Resources Mobilization Acting conscripts overseas. Previously, conscripts had only been used for "home defence" and kept within Canada.
From 1949 to 1952, he was the House of Commons" Deputy Speaker.
On 8 April 1952, Dion resigned his Parliamentary seat when he was appointed a puisne judge of the Superior Court of Quebec.