The chair is a former premier of PEI
The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, has announced the chair and members of the independent advisory board who will identify candidates to become the next Supreme Court justice.
The independent advisory board will consider applications received through the Office of the Commissioner for Federal Judicial Affairs and identify candidates who are jurists of the highest calibre, functionally bilingual, and representative of the country's diversity. The board will submit a shortlist of highly qualified candidates to the prime minister for consideration.
Former premier of Prince Edward Island (PEI), Wade MacLauchlan C.M., OPEI, was appointed chair of the independent advisory board. He served as premier from 2015 to 2019. He also worked as PEI's attorney general and minister of aboriginal affairs, intergovernmental affairs, justice and public safety, and finance. In addition, MacLauchlan served terms as chair of the Council of the Federation, the Council of Atlantic Premiers, and the New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers.
He is president emeritus of the University of Prince Edward Island and served as president from 1999 to 2011. He was also the law dean at the University of New Brunswick (UNB) and founding director of the UNB Centre for Property Studies. MacLauchlan previously served as chair of the independent advisory board for the Supreme Court of Canada's judicial appointments in 2022.
The independent advisory board also includes the following as members:
- Reem A. Bahdi, dean of the faculty of law at the University of Windsor
- The Honourable Richard J. Chartier, former chief justice of Manitoba
- Erin M. S. Kleisinger, K.C., partner at the law firm McDougall Gauley LLP
- Bianca Kratt, K.C., partner at the law firm Parlee McLaws LLP
- Carol Anne Lee, O.B.C., co-founder and chair of the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation
- Georgina (Gina) M. Nagano, founder and president of consultancy firm House of Wolf & Associates Inc.
- Jean Teillet, M.S.C., senior counsel with the law firm Pape Salter Teillet LLP
"The Supreme Court of Canada is the backbone of our country's judicial system and plays a critical role in our democracy. This is due in no small part to a long tradition of appointing only the most exceptional and deserving individuals to the court," Trudeau said. "I am confident that the respected minds on the Independent Advisory Board will help continue this tradition and maintain the highest standards for Canada's highest court."
The board aims to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Justice Russell Brown. The application period for qualified candidates to the Supreme Court of Canada was open to all qualified applicants from Western Canada and Northern Canada in recognition of the convention of regional representation.
