Justin Trudeau has appointed, for the first time in history, an Indigenous judge to the Supreme Court, in the person of Michelle O’Bonsawin, an Abenaki member of the Odanak First Nation who is fluent in both official languages.
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“Justice Michelle O’Bonsawin is a highly respected member of the Canadian legal community and her career has been remarkable. She will bring invaluable knowledge to the highest court in the land, and that is why I am announcing her appointment today,” said Prime Minister Trudeau.
This is “gratifying” news in the eyes of the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples (CPA), which warmly congratulated the jurist.
“The Supreme Court of Canada has always lacked someone who can interpret Canadian law from an Indigenous perspective, but that is no longer the case,” CAP National Chief Elmer St. -Rock.
According to him, “Michelle O’Bonsawin will help to balance the supreme judicial office of Canada, by bringing a vital point of view on the most important legal questions of the country”.
Justice O’Bonsawin, from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Ottawa, is an expert in mental health, labor and employment law, human rights and privacy law. private life.
Justice Minister David Lametti celebrated “a historic moment for the Supreme Court and for Canada.”
Lametti replaced former justice minister Jody Wilson-Raybould, who in 2015 was the first Indigenous person to become attorney general for all Canadians.
Earlier this year, Supreme Court Chief Justice Richard Wagner disagreed with the idea that the absence of an Indigenous judge on the Supreme Court affects the impartiality of decisions rendered .
“Even though there has never been an indigenous judge on the court, the court has nevertheless been able to render important judgments in favor of recognition and reconciliation in some way with the indigenous people”, declared he during an interview with the “CBC” in April.
This decision comes just over a year after Mary Simon, the first Aboriginal person appointed to represent the Queen in Canada, took office as Governor General.
She will replace Justice Michael J. Moldaver, who announced his retirement earlier this year.
Justice O’Bonsawin studied law at the University of Ottawa.