13 May 2011
Ottawa, Ontario
Prime Minister Stephen Harper today issued the following statement on Mr. Justice Ian Binnie and Mme Justice Louise Charron announcing their upcoming retirement:
“On behalf of our Government, I would like to thank Justice Ian Binnie and Justice Louise Charron for their tireless work promoting justice.
“Both have served the Supreme Court of Canada with great insight and dedication and have made important and lasting contributions to the administration of justice in Canada.
“The departure of Justices Binnie and Charron will leave a significant void in our country’s highest Court and filling these vacancies will be a priority for our Government in the coming months.
The process will be as follows:
- To identify a pool of qualified candidates for appointment to the Supreme Court of Canada, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General will consult with the Ontario Attorney General, as well as leading members of the legal community. Members of the public are invited to submit their input with respect to qualified candidates who merit consideration at www.justice.gc.ca/eng/scc-csc.html.
- The list of qualified candidates will be reviewed by a selection panel composed of five Members of Parliament – including three Members from the Government Caucus and one Member from each of the recognized Opposition Caucuses, as selected by their respective leaders – to review the list of qualified candidates.
- The Supreme Court Selection Panel will be responsible to assess the candidates and provide an unranked short list of six qualified candidates to the Prime Minister of Canada and the Minister of Justice for their consideration.
- The two selected nominees will appear at a public hearing of an ad hoc parliamentary committee to answer questions of Members of Parliament. This is a process that was first established for the appointment of the Honourable Mr. Justice Marshall E. Rothstein in 2006.
“I would like to wish both Justices Binnie and Charron the very best as they begin writing the next chapters in their lives. They will be missed.”
