Federation Welcomes New Supreme Court Appointment Process

The government announced Tuesday it will change the manner in which a Supreme Court justice is appointed, saying it’s time for the process to “demonstrate a degree of rigour and responsibility” that may have been missing in the past.

The five judges are Administrative Law Court Chief Judge Ralph “Tripp” Anderson III of Columbia, and Circuit Court judges Diane Goodstein of Summerville, George James Jr. of Sumter, former state Rep. Keith Kelly of Moore, and Carmen Mullen of Hilton Head.

“We are opening up the appointment process to people who aren’t just specifically from Atlantic Canada, but there will be candidates from Atlantic Canada on the short list that the advisory board puts forward”, she said.

“Canada’s justice system, including our Supreme Court, is the envy of the world”.

The Liberals said the new appointment process will add openness and transparency to the process of selecting new Supreme Court justices.

According to the new process, any qualified Canadian lawyer or judge will be allowed to announce their name for consideration and the government will accept applications for the job in Canada’s highest court until the end of the day on August 24.

To choose who sits on the bench of the Supreme Court of Canada is, ultimately, to shape the society we live in.

The government said it plans to publicly release the questionnaire each candidate must answer and some – but not all – of the answers from the eventual nominee. A public skirmish between the prime minister’s office and the top justice and a rare Supreme Court ruling rejecting Nadon’s candidacy undermined public confidence in the system that named him. Four will be designated by the Canadian Judicial Council, the Canadian Bar Association, the Federation of Law Societies and the Council of Canadian Law Deans.

Eugene Meehan, a lawyer at Supreme Advocacy LLP and former executive legal officer at the Supreme Court, told Legal Feeds by e-mail that “given how long the process for selecting Supreme Court justices has been a concern, having a clear process set down in writing is a welcome change for the legal community and public alike”. Meehan also said, “The bilingual requirement is welcome, but we may see some challenges as the eligibility requirements are constitutionally protected”.