15 New Judges Appointed by Justice Minister to Address Alarming Vacancy Rate

Federal Justice Minister Arif Virani appointed 14 provincial and territorial judges and one to the Federal Court on Aug. 29 to fill some of the many vacancies in Canada’s judicial system.

“Thrilled to announce 15 new judicial appointments. That makes 18 appointments in my first month, thanks to the hard preparatory work of my predecessor David Lametti,” Mr. Virani said on social media platform X on Aug. 29.

“These jurists are highly qualified & reflect our country’s diversity. I am confident they will do well on the bench.”

Related Stories

Five of the judges were appointed in Manitoba—four of which were promotions—and four were appointed in Ontario. One judge was appointed in each of the provinces of B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, Newfoundland and Labrador, and one in Nunavut. One judge was also appointed to the Federal Court.

The appointments come months after Supreme Court Chief Justice Richard Wagner encouraged the federal government to speed up the process, saying he was “very concerned” with a high number of vacancies in the superior and appeal courts.

“The current situation is untenable and I am worried that it will create a crisis in our justice system, which is already facing multiple challenges. Access to justice and the health of our democratic institutions are at risk,” Justice Wagner wrote in a May 3 letter obtained by CBC Radio-Canada.

He added that several courts across Canada have been operating with a 10 to 15 percent vacancy rate, and the process of filling the positions can take several months.

As of July 1, there were 81 vacancies in federally appointed judicial positions across Canada. Mr. Wagner said the vacancies meant judges across Canada are being forced to prioritize certain cases to the detriment of others.

“Despite their best efforts, stays of proceedings are pronounced against individuals accused of serious crimes, such as sexual assault or murder, because of delays that are due, in part or in whole, to a shortage of judges,” he wrote.

Move ‘Expeditiously’ to Address Vacancies

Mr. Virani replaced David Lametti as the justice minister following Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet shuffle in late July. A former human rights and constitutional lawyer who is a rookie to the Liberal cabinet, he told the Canadian Press that he planned to use a “fresh perspective and a fresh approach” to quickly fill the vacancies while giving “marching orders” to Department of Justice staff.

“We need to be doing things—not compromising on quality—but we need to be doing things expeditiously,” Mr. Virani said.

The justice minister said he also noted that in one of his first briefings, the government was dealing with a lack of judicial applicants. “That’s a bit frustrating when we want to appoint judges, but also reflective of the diversity of Canada, which is important to me and important to the prime minister,” he said.

The Department of Justice has said that the 645 judges appointed since the Liberals came to power in November 2015 represent the “diversity that strengthens Canada.” Half of the judges have been women, along with an increased representation of people of colour, indigenous Canadians, those who identify as LGBT, and persons with a disability.

Budget 2022 provided for 22 new judicial positions, along with two associate judges at the Tax Court of Canada.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.