Corrine Sparks championed equity and human rights while L. Jane McMillan promoted Indigenous rights
Retired Family Court judge Corrine Sparks and legal anthropologist L. Jane McMillan have been announces as appointees to the Order of Nova Scotia this year.
They join eight other appointees recognized for their contributions in the fields of arts, human rights, public service, health, and education. Sparks received the accolade for her work in equity, human rights, and the legal profession of Nova Scotia and Canada as a whole; meanwhile, McMillan was honoured for her work in Indigenous rights, justice, and reconciliation.
Corrine Sparks (Dartmouth)
Sparks has been recognized as a jurist, legal educator, and community leader. She was the first African Nova Scotian to become a judge in the province, as well as the first African Canadian woman on the bench.
She joined the Family Court of Nova Scotia on March 30, 1987 and presided for over 34 years before retiring on December 31, 2021. While judge, she played a key role in establishing a judicial mentorship initiative with the Schulich School of Law geared towards African Nova Scotian and Indigenous lawyers who expressed interest in joining the judiciary.
Sparks also aided in organizing judicial engagement sessions with the African Nova Scotian community to improve understanding of the difficulties experienced by African Nova Scotians and the administration of justice by expanding judges’ horizons and skillsets. The sessions also aimed to bolster the African Nova Scotian community’s understanding of the legal system and the judiciary.
One session took place in Cherry Brook in 2018 while another was held at Whitney Pier, Cape Breton in 2019. The sessions went on to birth the African Nova Scotian Access to Justice Judicial Committee.
“From being the first in her immediate family to attend university, to working in the province’s first all-female law firm, to her groundbreaking accomplishments on the bench, judge Sparks has helped build the foundation for a more equal and inclusive legal profession in Nova Scotia, and across the country,” said Pamela S. Williams, then chief judge of the Provincial and Family Courts of Nova Scotia, in a 2021 media release announcing Sparks’ retirement.
Following her retirement, Sparks was named one of two commissioners overseeing the adjudication of land ownership disputes in historic African Nova Scotian communities. She has also taught at the Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute.
L. Jane McMillan (Antigonish)
McMillan is a legal anthropologist and educator known for championing Indigenous rights, justice, and reconciliation through research, education, and community collaboration.
Her research concentrates on the intersections of Indigenous knowledge with community strategies for implementing treaty and Aboriginal rights. She examines the processes by which Indigenous peoples translate historical and legal identities into contemporary practices.
McMillan chairs the anthropology department at St. Francis Xavier University. She was a Canada research chair from 2006 to 2016.
The other 2026 Order of Nova Scotia appointees are as follows:
- Robert Bennett (New Glasgow) - social services leader: advanced inclusion, employment opportunities, and community participation for people with diverse abilities
- Wadih Fares (Halifax) - businessman, engineer, and philanthropist: contributed to economic development, immigration, health care and community organizations
- Dr. John Hamm (Stellarton, Pictou County) - former premier and physician: contributed to public service, health care, education, and Nova Scotia’s economic and fiscal development (posthumous)
- Barb Hamilton-Hinch (Dartmouth) - academic and community leader: advanced health equity, education, and opportunities for Black and African Nova Scotian communities
- Matt Minglewood (Glace Bay) - musician and songwriter: contributed to Nova Scotia’s music and cultural identity and long supported communities and charitable causes
- Lynn Murphy (Halifax) - activist, community builder and historian: advanced human rights and preserved the history of Nova Scotia’s LGBTQ2+ communities
- Alan Syliboy (Millbrook) - Mi’kmaw visual artist, author, musician, and Elder: contributed to Indigenous art, cultural preservation, and the promotion of Mi’kmaw language, history and traditions
- Shelly Whitman (Black Point, Halifax Regional Municipality) - humanitarian, scholar, and community leader: advanced children’s rights and international peace and worked to prevent the recruitment and use of children in armed conflict
The Order of Nova Scotia is the province’s highest honour. The lieutenant-governor appoints individuals to the order according to an independent advisory council’s recommendations.
The number of appointments each year rose to 10 following recent changes to the Order of Nova Scotia Act and regulations. Lieutenant-governor Mike Savage, who is the Order of Nova Scotia chancellor, announced the 2026 appointments on Friday August 14.
Savage will hand out the insignias and appointment scrolls at an investiture ceremony to be held at Halifax’s Government House in the fall.
