Post by Dr. Drum on Aug 10, 2004 5:32:32 GMT -5
Since the original Canadian politics board is now defective, I’ve started a new page. And what better way to start it than with a call to put a Newf on the high court? I’ll cast my vote for Clyde Wells.
Give Newfoundland a Supreme Court voice
By Joel Rochon and Sakie Tambakos
The Globe and Mail
Tuesday, August 10, 2004
With his cabinet in place, Prime Minister Paul Martin must now turn to the important task of filling two vacancies on the Supreme Court of Canada. Given that decisions made by the court have a profound effect on Canada, these appointments are an opportunity to remedy an injustice: The Supreme Court has not yet had one judge from the province of Newfoundland and Labrador since Newfoundland entered the confederation 55 years ago.
By constitutional convention, the prime minister controls who is appointed, although there is usually some consultation with the Canadian Bar Association's committee on the judiciary. The only criteria stipulated in the Supreme Court Act are that an appointee must have a minimum of 10 years practice at the bar or must be a judge of a provincial superior court, and that at least three of the judges be from Quebec. Over time, the convention has become three justices from Ontario, two from Western Canada and one from the Atlantic provinces.
The current Atlantic representative on the court is New Brunswick's Mr. Justice Michel Bastarache, appointed in 1997. Now at the relatively young age of 57, Judge Bastarache has a long career ahead of him. If Canada blindly stays with convention on regional appointments, Newfoundland and Labrador's voice will stay mute well into the future.
The convention has been broken in the past. The most recent instance was in 1979, when British Columbia's William Rogers McIntyre replaced the retiring Wishart Flett Spence of Ontario. That appointment breached the usual custom of three judges from Ontario, and was made to allay concerns by the B.C. bar that the province had been ignored over previous selections to the bench. The appointment was also made on the understanding that when Alberta's Ronald Martland retired, he would be replaced by someone from Ontario. Without a similar break in convention, Newfoundland and Labrador will not likely see a place on the Supreme Court until after 2012.
Perhaps, in view of the vacancies created by the departure of Louise Arbour and Frank Iacobucci, a seat could finally be given to Newfoundland and Labrador as a measure of recompense for its patience and invaluable contributions to Canada, and for the decades of neglect around its representation on the Supreme Court. A third Ontario judge could then be appointed to maintain the traditional regional distribution after the retirement of Judge Bastarache.
Newfoundland has outstanding potential candidates who merit consideration:
Mr. Justice Leo D. Barry, graduate of Dalhousie Law School; masters at Yale University; sat in Newfoundland House of Assembly from 1972 to 1975 and from 1979 to 1981 as minister of mines and energy and minister of industrial development; appointed to the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1989;
Chief Justice J. Derek Green, graduate of Dalhousie Law School, where he became a Sir James Dunn scholar; studied at Oxford University and became a Rhodes scholar; former treasurer of the Law Society of Newfoundland; former member of the Newfoundland and Labrador Court of Appeal; currently serving as Chief Justice on the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador trial division;
Mr. Justice Keith J. Mercer, BA of jurisprudence and a BCL from Oxford; former associate deputy minister of justice with the provincial government; appointed to the trial division of the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1992;
Mr. Justice David B. Orsborn, graduate of Dalhousie Law School, where he received a number of scholarships, awards and prizes for academic achievement, including the university medal in law for highest grade in graduating class; former partner of Mercer, Orsborn, Benson and Myles; appointed to the trial division of the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1993;
Chief Justice Clyde K. Wells, graduate of Dalhousie Law School; worked in the office of the Judge Advocate-General of the Canadian Army from 1962 to 1964; former provincial minister of labour, Liberal leader and premier; serving as Chief Justice on the Court of Appeal of Newfoundland and Labrador since 1999.
Although one seat on a bench of nine will not cure decades of neglect, that one seat would symbolize a genuine effort on Ottawa's part to pave the way to a more balanced appointment process and to serve as a catalyst for reforming the way that judges are selected to the Supreme Court of Canada.
Joel Rochon has worked in civil litigation since 1988; Sakie Tambakos is an associate lawyer with Toronto-based firm Rochon Genova. They are Ontarians who think it's the Rock's turn.
Give Newfoundland a Supreme Court voice
By Joel Rochon and Sakie Tambakos
The Globe and Mail
Tuesday, August 10, 2004
With his cabinet in place, Prime Minister Paul Martin must now turn to the important task of filling two vacancies on the Supreme Court of Canada. Given that decisions made by the court have a profound effect on Canada, these appointments are an opportunity to remedy an injustice: The Supreme Court has not yet had one judge from the province of Newfoundland and Labrador since Newfoundland entered the confederation 55 years ago.
By constitutional convention, the prime minister controls who is appointed, although there is usually some consultation with the Canadian Bar Association's committee on the judiciary. The only criteria stipulated in the Supreme Court Act are that an appointee must have a minimum of 10 years practice at the bar or must be a judge of a provincial superior court, and that at least three of the judges be from Quebec. Over time, the convention has become three justices from Ontario, two from Western Canada and one from the Atlantic provinces.
The current Atlantic representative on the court is New Brunswick's Mr. Justice Michel Bastarache, appointed in 1997. Now at the relatively young age of 57, Judge Bastarache has a long career ahead of him. If Canada blindly stays with convention on regional appointments, Newfoundland and Labrador's voice will stay mute well into the future.
The convention has been broken in the past. The most recent instance was in 1979, when British Columbia's William Rogers McIntyre replaced the retiring Wishart Flett Spence of Ontario. That appointment breached the usual custom of three judges from Ontario, and was made to allay concerns by the B.C. bar that the province had been ignored over previous selections to the bench. The appointment was also made on the understanding that when Alberta's Ronald Martland retired, he would be replaced by someone from Ontario. Without a similar break in convention, Newfoundland and Labrador will not likely see a place on the Supreme Court until after 2012.
Perhaps, in view of the vacancies created by the departure of Louise Arbour and Frank Iacobucci, a seat could finally be given to Newfoundland and Labrador as a measure of recompense for its patience and invaluable contributions to Canada, and for the decades of neglect around its representation on the Supreme Court. A third Ontario judge could then be appointed to maintain the traditional regional distribution after the retirement of Judge Bastarache.
Newfoundland has outstanding potential candidates who merit consideration:
Mr. Justice Leo D. Barry, graduate of Dalhousie Law School; masters at Yale University; sat in Newfoundland House of Assembly from 1972 to 1975 and from 1979 to 1981 as minister of mines and energy and minister of industrial development; appointed to the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1989;
Chief Justice J. Derek Green, graduate of Dalhousie Law School, where he became a Sir James Dunn scholar; studied at Oxford University and became a Rhodes scholar; former treasurer of the Law Society of Newfoundland; former member of the Newfoundland and Labrador Court of Appeal; currently serving as Chief Justice on the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador trial division;
Mr. Justice Keith J. Mercer, BA of jurisprudence and a BCL from Oxford; former associate deputy minister of justice with the provincial government; appointed to the trial division of the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1992;
Mr. Justice David B. Orsborn, graduate of Dalhousie Law School, where he received a number of scholarships, awards and prizes for academic achievement, including the university medal in law for highest grade in graduating class; former partner of Mercer, Orsborn, Benson and Myles; appointed to the trial division of the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1993;
Chief Justice Clyde K. Wells, graduate of Dalhousie Law School; worked in the office of the Judge Advocate-General of the Canadian Army from 1962 to 1964; former provincial minister of labour, Liberal leader and premier; serving as Chief Justice on the Court of Appeal of Newfoundland and Labrador since 1999.
Although one seat on a bench of nine will not cure decades of neglect, that one seat would symbolize a genuine effort on Ottawa's part to pave the way to a more balanced appointment process and to serve as a catalyst for reforming the way that judges are selected to the Supreme Court of Canada.
Joel Rochon has worked in civil litigation since 1988; Sakie Tambakos is an associate lawyer with Toronto-based firm Rochon Genova. They are Ontarians who think it's the Rock's turn.
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