The resignation of Supreme Court Justice Russell Brown leaves a big hole in the country’s top court, according to many.
Joanna Baron, a lawyer and the executive director of the Canadian Constitution Foundation, said his loss is “monumental.”
“Justice Brown was a judge of extraordinary rigour and clarity, who consistently hewed to the demands of the rule of law,” she told The Epoch Times.
“Brown also offered a strong and lucid defence of the constitutional division of powers in 2021’s Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act,” Baron said.
In another case, she said, involving the City of Halifax, Brown authored an important precedent for protecting property rights in Canada, which are not guaranteed under the charter.
‘Glaring Contradictions’
Brown was appointed to the Supreme Court in 2015 under the government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, after serving on the Alberta Court of Appeal.He announced his resignation on June 12, ending a probe by the Canadian Judicial Council (CJC) into allegations of misconduct.
“We are confident that, in light of all this evidence, Justice Brown would have been completely vindicated at the conclusion of the Canadian Judicial Council’s process. However, the effect of the process on the Court and the considerable strain on Justice Brown and his family, have led him to this decision to retire,” the statement said.
Appointment Process
Brown’s resignation means a new Supreme Court judge will have to be appointed. Chief Justice Richard Wagner released a statement on June 12 calling on the prime minister “to exercise promptly the necessary care and consideration in appointing a new justice of the Supreme Court of Canada.”Since Brown was appointed from Alberta, it’s expected that his replacement will also be from a western province or territory.
“Justice Brown’s departure robs this country of one of the greatest judicial minds and legal writers to have presided over the Court in recent decades. We urgently recommend that the Prime Minister appoint a successor from Western Canada who exhibits a similar legal brilliance and commitment to foundational principles,” said the statement.
While some see Brown as one of the more “foundational” or conservative judges, there’s no guarantee his replacement will have similar views.
Current Judges
The new judge who will be appointed will be joining a court where the majority of appointees are relatively new.The longest serving is Justice Andromache Karakatsanis, who was appointed by the Harper government in 2011. Chief Justice Richard Wagner was first appointed to the court in 2012, also under Harper, and named chief justice in 2017. Justice Suzanne Côté was appointed in 2014.
Russell Brown was the final Harper government appointee, taking the position in 2015.
In 2016, Justice Malcolm Rowe was appointed, followed by Justice Sheilah Martin in 2017, Justice Nicholas Kasirer in 2019, Justice Mahmud Jamal in 2021, and Justice Michelle O’Bonsawin in 2022, who is a member of the Odanak First Nation.