Manitoba Court of Appeal
The Manitoba Court of Appeal (French: Cour d'appel du Manitoba) is the highest court of appeal in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It was established in 1906. It is located in the Old Law Courts building at 408 York Avenue in Winnipeg, the capital city of Manitoba. It hears criminal, civil and family law cases, as well as appeals from various administrative boards and tribunals.
The Court of Appeal consists of 8 judicial seats including the position of Chief Justice.[1] At any given time there may be one or more additional justices who sit as supernumerary justices.
Pursuant to The Court of Appeal Act, the court consists of a Chief Justice and seven other judges. The Chief Justice is responsible for the judicial functions of the court, including direction over sittings of the court and the assignment of judicial duties.
Most cases are heard by a panel of three justices. A single justice presides over matters heard in "chambers", usually interlocutory matters or applications for leave to appeal. Proceedings before the court are governed by the Court of Appeal Rules.
As a "Superior Court" under section 96 of the Constitution Act, 1867, Court of Appeal judges are appointed by the Governor-General of Canada (in practical terms, the Prime Minister of Canada). Appointees must be members of the Manitoba bar, but need not have had previous experience as a judge. However, appointees almost always have some experience as a judge, usually on the Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench.
Current Justices
Name | Appointed | Nominated by | Position prior to appointment |
---|---|---|---|
Chief Justice Richard J. F. Chartier | March 8, 2013 November 22, 2006 |
Harper | Justice of the Manitoba Court of Appeal Provincial Court of Manitoba (August 16, 1993) |
Madam Justice Diana Cameron | November 2, 2012 | Harper | Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba (February 4, 2011) |
Mr. Justice William Burnett | March 8, 2013 | Harper | Associate Chief Justice of the Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba (February 4, 2011) |
Mr. Justice Christopher J. Mainella[2] | July 1, 2013 | Harper | Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba (October 5, 2012 to 2013) PPSC (1995 to 2012) |
Madam Justice Jennifer Ann Pfuetzner | June 26, 2015 | Harper | Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba (October 10, 2014) |
Madam Justice Janice leMaistre | June 26, 2015 | Harper | Provincial Court of Manitoba (November 23, 2006) |
Madam Justice Karen Simonsen | August 31, 2018 | Trudeau | Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba (December 2004) |
Madam Justice Lori Spivak | March 26, 2019 | Trudeau | Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba (May 2005) |
Under the federal Judges Act, federally appointed judges (such as those on the Manitoba Court of Appeal) may, after being in judicial office for at least 15 years and whose combined age and number of years of judicial service is not less than 80 or after the age of 70 years and at least 10 years judicial service, elect to give up their regular judicial duties and hold office as a supernumerary judge.
Supernumerary
Name | Appointed | Nominated by | Position prior to appointment |
---|---|---|---|
Mr. Justice Michel A. Monnin (Supernumerary)[3] | July 26, 1995 | Chretien | Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba (March 23, 1984) |
Madam Justice Freda M. Steel (Supernumerary)[4] | February 28, 2000 | Chretien | Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba (October 3, 1995) |
Madam Justice Barbara M. Hamilton (Supernumerary)[3] | July 16, 2002 | Chretien | Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba (July 26, 1995) |
Madam Justice Holly C. Beard (Supernumerary) | September 9, 2009 | Harper | Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba (November 27, 1992) |
Mr. Justice Marc Monnin (Supernumerary) | February 3, 2011 | Harper | Chief Justice of the Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba (March 26, 2003) |
Past Justices
Name | Date of appointment | Nominated by | Additional information |
---|---|---|---|
Hector Mansfield Howell | July 23, 1906 | He was initially appointed as "Chief Justice Appeal". His title was changed to Chief Justice of Manitoba on November 15, 1909; he served in that position until April 7, 1918 | |
William Egerton Perdue | July 23, 1906 | Chief Justice of Manitoba from May 25, 1918 until December 30, 1929 | |
Frank Hedley Phippen | July 23, 1906 | ||
Albert Elswood Richards | July 23, 1906 | ||
John Donald Cameron | April 27, 1909 | ||
Alexander Haggart | April 3, 1912 | ||
Charles Perry Fullerton | July 20, 1917 | ||
Robert Maxwell Dennistoun | July 2, 1918 | Robert Borden | |
Thomas Llewellyn Metcalfe | October 3, 1921 | William Lyon Mackenzie King | |
James Emile Pierre Prendergast | May 1, 1922 | William Lyon Mackenzie King | Chief Justice of Manitoba from December 30, 1929 until March 18, 1944 |
Walter Harley Trueman | April 14, 1923 | William Lyon Mackenzie King | |
Hugh Amos Robson | December 31, 1929 | William Lyon Mackenzie King | |
Stephen Elswood Richards | March 11, 1932 | R. B. Bennett | |
Hjalmar August Bergman | March 18, 1944 | William Lyon Mackenzie King | |
Ewan Alexander McPherson | March 15, 1944 | William Lyon Mackenzie King | Chief Justice of Manitoba from March 18, 1944 until November 18, 1954 |
James Bowes Coyne | December 10, 1946 | William Lyon Mackenzie King | |
Andrew Knox Dysart | September 11, 1947 | William Lyon Mackenzie King | |
John Evans Adamson | January 30, 1948 | William Lyon Mackenzie King | Chief Justice of Manitoba from January 1955 until March 1, 1961 |
Percival John Montague | February 1, 1951 | Louis St. Laurent | |
Joseph Thomas Beaubien | August 27, 1952 | Louis St. Laurent | |
Ivan Schultz | January 13, 1955 | Louis St. Laurent | |
George Eric Tritschler | April 18, 1957 | Louis St. Laurent | |
Calvert Charlton Miller | October 21, 1959 | John Diefenbaker | Appointed Chief Justice of Manitoba on March 1, 1961 |
Samuel Freedman | March 10, 1960 | John Diefenbaker | Chief Justice of Manitoba from March 22, 1971 until 1983 |
Robert DuVal Guy | March 1, 1961 | John Diefenbaker | |
Alfred Maurice Monnin | January 3, 1962 | John Diefenbaker | Chief Justice of Manitoba from April 16, 1983 until 1990 |
Charles Rhodes Smith | November 22, 1966 | Lester B Pearson | Chief Justice of Manitoba from June 13, 1967 until 1971 |
Robert George Brian Dickson | June 13, 1967 | Lester B Pearson | Later elevated to the Supreme Court of Canada, eventually serving as Chief Justice of Canada |
Gordon Clarke Hall | May 14, 1971 | Pierre Trudeau | |
Roy Joseph Matas | August 15, 1973 | Pierre Trudeau | |
Joseph Francis O'Sullivan | July 24, 1975 | Pierre Trudeau | |
Charles Richard Huband | February 20, 1979 | Pierre Trudeau | |
Alan Reed Philp | May 5, 1983 | Pierre Trudeau | |
Archibald Kerr Twaddle | August 22, 1985 | Brian Mulroney | |
Sterling Rufus Lyon | December 19, 1986 | Brian Mulroney | |
Bonnie M. Helper | June 30, 1989 | Brian Mulroney | |
Guy Joseph Kroft | February 1, 1993 | Brian Mulroney | |
Glenn D. Joyal | March 2, 2007 | Stephen Harper | Appointed to the Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba on July 10, 2007 |
Chief Justices of Manitoba
- Court of King's Bench (to 1906)
Name | Term | Notes |
---|---|---|
Alexander Morris | July 1872–Dec 1872 | |
Edmund Burke Wood | 1874–1882 | |
Lewis Wallbridge | 1882–1887 | |
Sir Thomas Wardlaw Taylor | 1887–1899 | Knighted in 1897 Diamond Jubilee Honours |
Albert Clements Killam | 1899–1903 | to Supreme Court of Canada, 1903 |
Joseph Dubuc | 1903–1909 | Court of Appeal from 1906 |
- Court of Appeal (from 1906)
Name | Term | Notes |
---|---|---|
Hector Mansfield Howell | Nov 1909–Apr 1918 | |
William Egerton Perdue | 1918–1929 | |
James Emile Pierre Prendergast | Dec 1929–Mar 1944 | |
Ewan Alexander McPherson | Mar 1944–Nov 1954 | |
John Evans Adamson | Jan 1955–Mar 1961 | |
Calvert Charlton Miller | Mar 1961–Feb 1967 | |
Samuel Freedman | 1966–1967 | Acting Chief Justice during Miller's illness |
Charles Rhodes Smith | June 1967–Mar 1971 | |
Samuel Freedman | Mar 1971–Apr 1983 | |
Alfred Maurice Monnin | Apr 1983–Jan 1990 | |
Richard Jamieson Scott | July 1990–Mar 2013 | |
Richard J. F. Chartier | 2013–present |
Trivia
The sons of two former Court of Appeal justices (Samuel Freedman and Alfred Monnin) currently serve as judges on the court (Martin Freedman, Michel Monnin and Marc Monnin).
The first female appointed to the Court was Bonnie M. Helper, on June 30, 1989.
Further reading
- Dale Brawn, "The Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba 1870-1950: A Biographical History" (Toronto: Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History, 2006)
- Peter McCormick, "Caseload and Output of the Manitoban Court of Appeal: An Analysis of Twelve Months of Reported Cases" (1990) 19 Man. L. J. 31
- Peter McCormick, "Caseload and Output of the Manitoba Court of Appeal 1989" (1990) 19 Man. L. J. 334
- Peter McCormick, "A Tale of Two Courts: Appeals from the Manitoba Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, 1970-1990" (1990) 19 Man. L. J. 357
- Peter McCormick and Suzanne Maisey, "A Tale of Two Courts II: Appeals from the Manitoba Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, 1906-1990" (1992) 21 Man. L. J. 1
- Peter McCormick, "Caseload and Output of the Manitoba Court of Appeal, 1990" (1992) 21 Man. L. J. 24
- Peter McCormick, "Caseload and Output of the Manitoba Court of Appeal 1991" (1993) 22 Man. L. J. 263
- Peter McCormick, "The Manitoba Court of Appeal, 2000-2004: Caseload, Output and Citations" (2005) 31 Man. L. J. 1
- Frederick Read, "Early History of the Manitoba Courts", Manitoba Bar News (1937) Vol. 10, Nos. 1 & 2
References
- "Federal Judicial Appointments - Number of Federally Appointed Judges in Canada". www.fja.gc.ca.
- "Manitoba Judicial Appointments Announced".
- "MANITOBA JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS ANNOUNCED". Archived from the original on 2003-11-11. Retrieved 2020-03-24.
- "MANITOBA JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS ANNOUNCED". Archived from the original on 2003-09-23. Retrieved 2020-03-24.