Government of Canada announces judicial appointments in the province of Manitoba

June 27, 2019 – Ottawa, Ontario – Department of Justice Canada  

The Honourable David Lametti, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, today announced the following appointments under the new judicial application process introduced 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.

The Honourable Shauna McCarthy, a Judge of the Provincial Court of Manitoba, is appointed a Judge of Her Majesty’s Court of Queen’s Bench for Manitoba. Madam Justice McCarthy replaces Madam Justice P.C. Suche (Winnipeg), who elected to become a supernumerary judge effective November 19, 2018.

Anne Turner, Counsel at the Public Prosecution Service of Canada in Winnipeg, is appointed a Judge of Her Majesty’s Court of Queen's Bench for Manitoba. Madam Justice Turner replaces Madam Justice L.T. Spivak (Winnipeg), who was elevated to the Court of Appeal on March 25, 2019.

Biography

Justice McCarthy earned a Bachelor of Arts (Special) degree in psychology and sociology in 1988 from the University of Alberta and completed her Bachelor of Laws at the University of Manitoba Robson Hall in 1993. She commenced articles in 1993 at the criminal and civil litigation firm of Wolch Pinx Tapper Scurfield in Winnipeg and practised another twelve years with that firm over the course of her career. She also practised for thirteen years in a small rural firm in Carman, Manitoba.

Her litigation experience includes criminal, civil, estate, and family litigation, and she acted as trial counsel to several Child and Family Service Agencies. In addition to litigation, Justice McCarthy has extensive mediation and collaborative practice training, and solicitors experience. She has also been retained by the Attorney General of Manitoba to act as counsel to complainants and witnesses on third-party record applications in criminal matters.

On March 6, 2019, Justice McCarthy was appointed to the Provincial Court of Manitoba. At the time of that appointment she was an elected Bencher for the Law Society of Manitoba and Vice Chair of the Discipline Committee. She has sat on several Law Society committees and presented and taught for the Law Society of Manitoba and the University of Manitoba, Faculty of Law.

Justice McCarthy grew up in a small farming community in Alberta. In 1988, she relocated to Manitoba for her husband’s employment with the RCMP. She has been married for 33 years and has three children.

Justice Turner received her LL.B from the University of Manitoba in 2002 and was called to the Manitoba Bar in 2003. She received an LL.M from Osgoode Hall in 2016, with a focus on criminal law.

Justice Turner is bilingual and articled with the federal Department of Justice in Winnipeg, gaining experience in prosecutions, tax and civil litigation, and the aboriginal law section. After receiving her call, she remained with prosecutions, where her most recent work has been complex trial and appellate work. She was designated Senior Crown Counsel and a team leader in 2016, where she focuses on developing and mentoring many junior counsel.

In 2018, Justice Turner was nominated to the Public Prosecution Service of Canada’s National Diversity & Inclusion Committee, and she was honoured to accept the position of National Advisor for Indigenous Peoples.

Since September 2018, she has been a contract professor in the Criminal Justice Department at the University of Winnipeg. For several years, she has instructed articling students at the Law Society of Manitoba, presenting on oral advocacy, ethics and practice management, and legal research and writing. In addition to presenting at various conferences and internal education events, she frequently presents to the Winnipeg Police Service and RCMP on a variety of criminal law topics.

Outside of her legal practice, she is an enthusiastic triathlete, both as a participant and organizer.