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McLachlin 1st woman to hold top court job: The B.C. `farm girl' has been
described by legal analysts as an independent centrist.; [Final Edition]
McLachlin has served 10 years with the country's top appeal court. She had been considered a leading contender for the position of chief justice, along with another former B.C. judge, Frank Iacobucci, since [Antonio Lamer] announced his retirement last August. Justice Beverley McLachlin, a self-described "farm girl" and former chief justice of the B.C. Supreme Court, will be the first female chief justice of the Supreme Court of Canada. McLachlin, who is married with an adult son, will become the 17th chief justice when Chief Justice Antonio Lamer retires Jan. 7 after 20 years on the bench of the nation's highest court. Lamer, 66, served 10 years as chief justice. Justice Minister Anne McLellan said Wednesday she was pleased that Prime Minister Jean Chretien appointed a woman, but added that the appointment was based on merit. "She is a person of outstanding ability, she is someone who understands this country, she is a person of balance and I think she will serve the Supreme Court very well," McLellan said. McLachlin, 56, was previously the first woman appointed to the B.C. Court of Appeal, the first female chief justice of the B.C. Supreme Court and the second woman appointed to the nine-judge bench of the Supreme Court of Canada. McLachlin has served 10 years with the country's top appeal court. She had been considered a leading contender for the position of chief justice, along with another former B.C. judge, Frank Iacobucci, since Lamer announced his retirement last August. McLachlin's judicial colleagues in Vancouver were enthusiastic about the announcement. "Canada will be well served by this most significant appointment," B.C. Chief Justice Allan McEachern said Wednesday during a tribute to McLachlin from the bench of the B.C. Court of Appeal before beginning the day's work. "I speak for all members of this court, and I am sure for all the judiciary of British Columbia, in expressing our most sincere congratulations to Madame Justice McLachlin on this most important occasion, which is, of course, the most important appointment of her already very illustrious career." McEachern noted McLachlin has kept in close touch with her former judicial colleagues and members of the B.C. bar. "I'm sure she'll provide splendid leadership for the court and for the judiciary across the country," B.C. Supreme Court Justice Wally Oppal said of McLachlin. She has an incisive mind and is an equally incisive writer of court decisions, Oppal said. "I think people here should be proud of her appointment," he said. "I think it's very encouraging they've appointed a woman. She's qualified in any event, regardless of her gender." McLachlin is known for liberalizing the rules of law when it comes to child victims of sexual assault, ruling that courts should allow hearsay evidence concerning a child who froze on the witness stand and was unable to testify, Oppal noted. During a time when the court has come under fire for judicial activism in creating new law rather than leaving that function to Parliament, McLachlin has been described by legal analysts as a independent centrist who is mindful of the practical effects of the court's decisions. She recently wrote a strong dissenting opinion, for example, in the unpopular ruling that gave the Mi'kmaq Indians the right to catch lobster out of season. The decision, based on a 1763 treaty, led to violence between native and non-native fishermen in the East Coast fishery. In 1991, feminists felt betrayed when McLachlin wrote the majority opinion striking down the federal rape shield law protecting complainants from being questioned about their sexual past. The same year, she created an uproar with the anti-feminist group REALWomen when she said in a speech that criminal laws against abortion and prostitution were based on sexual stereotypes and led to unfair and unequal treatment for women. Lawyer Bae Wallace, a former B.C. Supreme Court judge who is considered McLachlin's mentor because she was hired as Wallace's junior at Bull Housser & Tupper, predicted she will make "the best damn chief justice we've had." MCLACHLIN'S NOTEWORTHY JUDGMENTS - September 1999: Wrote unanimous sex-discrimination decision that reinstated an elite B.C. firefighter who lost her job because she failed a fitness test. The court declared Tawney Meiorin was capable of doing her job safely, despite her inability to pass a rigid running test that was designed with male physiology in mind. - June 1999: In unanimous ruling, found that employers can be held legally responsible for employees who abuse children in their care. - March 1999: In the case of Bracklow vs. Bracklow, McLachlin wrote for a unanimous court that opened the door for more Canadians to collect alimony in a decision that could lead to awards in even the shortest of marriages. - February 1999: Wrote separate but concurring opinion in the case of Steve Ewanchuck in which she condemned Alberta Court of Appeal Justice John McClung for perpetuating myths about women and sexual assault. Her comments were overshadowed by a scathing separate opinion of L'Heureux-Dube that touched off a war of the judiciary. - January 1998: Wrote unanimous decision that there is widespread racism in the justice system and special steps are needed to screen out prejudiced jurors. - July 1994: Rewrote will of Vancouver shoemaker to give wife of 43 years most of his estate. - January 1994: Restored most of a $2-million malpractice award to a toddler severely disabled at birth. - October 1993: Wrote dissent in 5-4 ruling against a legally assisted suicide for Sue Rodriguez - August 1993: In a 4-3 ruling, wrote for majority in finding that an obscure law twice used to convict Ernst Zundel is unconstitutional because it violates freedom of speech. - August 1992: Dissents with L'Heureux-Dube when court split along gender lines, ruling against a 72-year-old woman by declaring mandatory retirement is a justified form of age discrimination. - April 1991: Wrote unanimous opinion clearing man who is borderline mentally ill who confessed to murdering two women. Ruling found his confessions were unreliable because police didn't ensure he understood his constitutional rights. - February 1991: Declaring police behaviour a "state intrusion into the private affairs of citizens," McLachlin strongly dissents in 8-1 ruling that eases rules for undercover operations against suspected drug dealers. - December 1990: Writes stinging dissent in 4-3 ruling that restricts
freedom of speech by finding that hate-mongers like Jim Keegstra deserve
little constitutional protection because of the potentially catastrophic
effect of their words. |