Although the Jordan decision did not lead to an “avalanche” of stays of proceedings in Canada, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Richard Wagner, is not reassured. Because the country’s judges and courthouses are sorely lacking in resources. A situation “unacceptable” in his eyes, which could ensure that thousands of trials are abandoned as we feared.
By co-signing the dissent to this 2016 Supreme Court judgment, Justice Wagner was concerned that the majority decision would lead to thousands of stays of proceedings. “The situation has not necessarily degenerated,” he agreed Thursday. “But we have to be on our guard, because what we see in all the provinces — and I am perhaps more familiar with what is happening in the province of Quebec — is that the justice system , that’s right, has been improved […]but it remains [qu’il] is still underfunded. And in an unacceptable way, as far as I am concerned, ”dropped the chief justice of the highest court in the land, during his annual press conference.
In interview at To have to this spring, Justice Wagner recognized that governments have invested in the justice system to respond to the Jordan decision, which sets 18 months in the Court of Quebec and 30 months in the Superior Court as the reasonable time to hold a trial . However, he opined Thursday that these efforts are insufficient.
“Judges are not able to do their job, because they don’t have adequate resources,” he observes. the Montreal Journal recently reported a glaring lack of staff in the courthouses and that hearings have been postponed for lack of available clerks.
Judge Wagner defended himself from wanting to “embark on a political debate”, acknowledging that the administration of justice is a provincial responsibility. “But I still see that the judges are not given all the means they need to accomplish their tasks. And that worries me,” he said. “I hope that the public authorities will react quickly to avoid […] that we return to a period where there would be stays of proceedings because the trials could not be completed in the time in which the Supreme Court had ruled. »
The office of Quebec Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette said it had “no comments to make.”
His federal counterpart, David Lametti, said in an interview with To have to “always seek additional resources to help run the courts,” especially those under federal jurisdiction.
No leak risks like Roe v. wade
As luck would have it, Judge Wagner was in Washington in early May when the U.S. Supreme Court’s draft decision overturning the ruling Roe v. wade on abortion has come to light. A situation that the Canadian magistrate is not afraid to see happen in Canada.
“I would be very surprised, because we don’t have the same polarization of issues here,” he explained. The Supreme Court of Canada has over the years considered issues that could arouse passions, such as medical assistance in dying or same-sex marriage. “We have never experienced polarization,” he insists.
This is why he affirms that he did not feel the need to intervene with court employees either, following this historic flight to the United States.
This polarization is also different in the Supreme Court justice appointment process. It would therefore be a mistake to believe that Canadian judges appointed by a Conservative or Liberal prime minister share the philosophy of these political parties, as is the case in the United States.
“We are talking about two completely different worlds,” replied Judge Wagner, recalling that south of the border, the political allegiance of magistrates is mentioned during the selection process. “It’s tradition […] so different. […] It’s not in Canada’s DNA. »
The proof, he says, the nine justices of the Supreme Court rendered a unanimous decision on May 27 in the case of the Quebec mosque shooter (thereby reversing changes made to the life sentence by the Harper government ), while five of them were appointed by Conservative Stephen Harper and four by Liberal Justin Trudeau.
In Canada, an independent committee recommends candidates to the Prime Minister, who makes his choice. Trudeau will appoint a fifth justice by September, when Justice Michael Moldaver retires.
With Marco Belair-Cirino