The Government of Canada has announced the appointment of Shauna Van Praagh as President of the Law Commission of Canada as well as Sarah Elgazzar and Aidan Johnson as part-time Commissioners pursuant to the Law Commission of Canada Act. These mandates came into effect on June 6, 2023.
The Law Commission of Canada provides independent advice on improvements, modernization and reform for a just legal system that meets the changing needs of Canadian society.
According to the Law Commission of Canada Act, the purpose of the Commission is to study and keep under systematic review, in a manner that reflects the concepts and institutions of the common law and civil law systems, the law of Canada and its effects, with a view to providing independent advice on improvements, modernization and reform that will ensure a just legal system that meets the changing needs of Canadian society and of individuals in that society, including:
- the development of new approaches to, and new concepts of, law;
- the development of measures to make the legal system more efficient, economical and accessible;
- the stimulation of critical debate in, and the forging of productive networks among, academic and other communities in Canada in order to ensure cooperation and coordination; and
- the elimination of obsolete laws and anomalies in the law.
