Toews served in Stephen Harper’s cabinet as minister of justice and most recently of public safety. His appointment to the bench has long been rumoured.
The Law Society of Manitoba confirmed his appointment in a tweet just before noon EST.
As rumours of Toews appointment to the bench have been swirling for some months, most of the negativity arises in part from his political affiliation but also that he has been away from the practise of law for so many years that many feel he is ill equipped to sit on the bench.
Reaction on Twitter was swift and mostly negative. Here’s a quick hit from the Twitterverse in the few minutes since the news broke.
