JUDGING SELECTION: APPOINTING CANADIAN JUDGES

Abstract

Since the 1970s, the appointment of trial judges in Canada has generally involved an arms-length committee of professionals, although the structure of these committees and their role in the process has varied from province to province, as well as evolving over time. Yet these “new” structures and “new” processes did not prevent a major judicial appointment scandal in the province of Quebec in 2010, culminating in the formation of the Bastarache Committee to recommend changes. This paper summarizes the forty-year history of Canadian judicial appointment committees, identifies the major challenges that face those committees, and suggests the basic values toward which reforms to the appointment process might be directed.