Government of Canada announces judicial appointment in the province of Quebec
News Release
January 19, 2018 – Ottawa, Ontario – Department of Justice Canada
The Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, today announced the following appointment under the new judicial application process announced on October 20, 2016. The new process emphasizes transparency, merit, and diversity, and will continue to ensure the appointment of jurists who meet the highest standards of excellence and integrity.
Pascale Nolin, a partner at Robinson Sheppard Shapiro, is appointed a judge of the Superior Court of Quebec, for the district of Montréal. She replaces Mr. Justice L. Lacoursière, who elected supernumerary status effective December 12, 2017.
Biography
After receiving her law degree from the Université de Montréal, Justice Pascale Nolin was called to the Quebec Bar in 1990. Until her appointment to the bench, she was a partner with the firm of Robinson Sheppard Shapiro, where she practised family law and human rights law from 1996. Before joining the firm, Justice Nolin spent six years with the firm of Byers Casgrain (now Dentons Canada), where she specialized in civil and commercial litigation.
Justice Nolin has frequently appeared before the Superior Court of Quebec and the Quebec Court of Appeal. She was drawn to practise family law because of the complex issues at stake, the significant role of alternative dispute resolution, and above all the profoundly human dimensions of family law practice. She is the outgoing president of the Bar of Montreal’s Family Law Liaison Committee with the Superior Court.
Justice Nolin has lectured extensively on family law topics, for the Canadian Bar Association, the Barreau du Québec, and the National Judicial Institute, among others. She has also served as administrator and treasurer of the Charles Coderre Foundation, an organization devoted to the advancement of social and family law in Quebec.
Excerpts from Justice Nolin’s judicial application will be available shortly.
Quick Facts
- In 2017, the Minister of Justice made 100 appointments and elevations – the most a Minister of Justice has made in one year in at least two decades.
- Of these appointees, half are women, four are Indigenous, and 16 have self-identified as a member of a visible minority population, LGBTQ2, or a person with a disability.
- Budget 2017 includes additional funding of $55 million over five years beginning in 2017-2018 and $15.5 million per year thereafter for 28 new federally appointed judges. Of these new positions, 12 have been allotted to Alberta and one to the Yukon, with the remaining 15 being assigned to a pool for needs in other jurisdictions.
- To ensure a judiciary that is responsive, ethical and sensitive to the evolving needs of Canadian society, the Canadian Judicial Council will receive $2.7 million over five years and $0.5 million ongoing thereafter. This will support programming on judicial education, ethics and conduct, including in relation to gender and cultural sensitivity.
- Federal judicial appointments are made by the Governor General, acting on the advice of the federal Cabinet and recommendations from the Minister of Justice.
- The Judicial Advisory Committees across Canada play a key role in evaluating judicial applications. There are 17 Judicial Advisory Committees, with each province and territory represented.
- Significant reforms to the role and structure of the Judicial Advisory Committees, aimed at enhancing the independence and transparency of the process, were announced on October 20, 2016. Sixteen Judicial Advisory Committees have been reconstituted to date.
Contacts
For more information, media may contact:
Kathleen Davis
Communications and Parliamentary Affairs Advisor
Office of the Minister of Justice
613-992-4621
Media Relations
Department of Justice Canada
613-957-4207
media@justice.gc.ca
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