Evidence of meeting #82 for Justice and Human Rights in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was process.
A video is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Anthony Housefather Liberal Mount Royal, QC
Is part of the process an interview that the committee and the minister do with the candidate? Was there any direct interview? I'm sure the committee, at that point, did an interview.
Chairperson, Independent Advisory Board for Supreme Court of Canada Judicial Appointments
Yes, the committee had an interview with the candidate. It would have lasted in the order of an hour.
Those interviews have two qualities: One, they have a consistent set of questions, because you have to do that out of fairness to everyone. However, it is a dialogue and conversation in which our committee and the candidate have an opportunity to go very deep in both values and expertise.
Liberal
Arif Virani Liberal Parkdale—High Park, ON
I will add this, Mr. Housefather: The committee members doing the interview included the eight individuals. This is in response to something that was previously raised.
I just want to point out that Ms. Kratt was born in Quebec. She is a member of the Huron-Wendat Nation. She studied at Laval University and is a member of the Quebec bar.
Liberal
Anthony Housefather Liberal Mount Royal, QC
I understand, but that was not my question.
Mr. Minister, did you interview the two finalists?
Liberal
Arif Virani Liberal Parkdale—High Park, ON
I reviewed the dossiers of the two finalists. I did not conduct a physical interview.
Liberal
Anthony Housefather Liberal Mount Royal, QC
In the past, when the process began with Minister Wilson-Raybould, she gave access to the chair of the committee, the Conservative critic, the NDP critic and the Bloc critic to see the final applications. She gave them access to see the final applications and have them each give her advice as to who they thought should be appointed.
Was that part of this process?
Liberal
Arif Virani Liberal Parkdale—High Park, ON
The consultation process was done by both me and my staff. They consulted on the names on the short list with opposition critics, with the chair of the Senate committee, with senior members of the bar and with chief justices around the country.
Liberal
Arif Virani Liberal Parkdale—High Park, ON
As I mentioned, it was with the opposition critics and with the chair of the Senate committee.
Liberal
Anthony Housefather Liberal Mount Royal, QC
What about our Liberal chair of the committee? Was she included?
Liberal
Arif Virani Liberal Parkdale—High Park, ON
The people on this committee who were consulted include the three opposition critics.
Liberal
Anthony Housefather Liberal Mount Royal, QC
I would say that in the past, the chair of the committee was also consulted. I would consider that to be a suggestion for the future as well, given that this was the process before.
I'd like to ask another question. Was one of the things that caused you—which I think is a good thing—to appoint Justice Moreau the fact that she was a francophone from outside of Quebec and would bring a new dimension to the court as a person who experienced being a francophone from outside of Quebec?
Chairperson, Independent Advisory Board for Supreme Court of Canada Judicial Appointments
Justice Moreau brings many advantages and a lot of experience. At the heart of her work, including before going to the bench, has been her active participation and organization around minority language and then in litigation, and some path-breaking work in that area.
Liberal
Arif Virani Liberal Parkdale—High Park, ON
Mr. Housefather, I want to clarify for the record that when the consultations were happening, Madame Diab was not constituted as chair. Mr. Sarai, the previous chair, was consulted on the nomination.
Thank you.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Lena Metlege Diab
Thank you, Mr. Housefather.
Mr. Fortin, you have two and a half minutes.
Bloc
Rhéal Fortin Bloc Rivière-du-Nord, QC
Okay. There is discrimination even here.
Since I only have two and a half minutes, I will keep my question brief.
Obviously, we agree that Justice Moreau has many qualifications. I won't list them all because I only have two minutes.
Mr. MacLauchlan, we know how qualified Justice Moreau is, but what was the main reason why she was the ideal candidate.
Chairperson, Independent Advisory Board for Supreme Court of Canada Judicial Appointments
I would first say that it was her years of experience and the abilities that she has demonstrated in her legal work. As a chief justice, she also showed leadership in legal areas both nationally and internationally.
Bloc
Rhéal Fortin Bloc Rivière-du-Nord, QC
She is a woman and I know that there is some concern about ensuring gender balance on the Supreme Court. The minister can correct me if I am wrong.
Did that influence your decision in any way? If so, how much weight was given to that?
Chairperson, Independent Advisory Board for Supreme Court of Canada Judicial Appointments
I believe we discussed this same issue last year, and I said that an appointment is based on a whole set of criteria. The fact that Madam Moreau is a woman was not something that weighed in the balance one way or the other. However, that being said, that is no doubt part of what makes her who she is and it has likely shaped her experience and her life, as you will no doubt see this afternoon.
As for the board, our job is to come up with a list that reflects Canada's diversity.
Bloc
Rhéal Fortin Bloc Rivière-du-Nord, QC
With regard to language, in her career as a lawyer and a judge, Justice Moreau had to deal with cases involving Canada's linguistic minorities. She clearly has a lot of expertise in that area.
Did that play an important role? If so, can you tell us how significant of a role that played when you were reviewing her application?
Chairperson, Independent Advisory Board for Supreme Court of Canada Judicial Appointments
First of all, our job was to identify candidates who are functionally bilingual. That played a role.
The determining factor was not just her expertise in several fields, including the one you mentioned, but also the considerable leadership that she has demonstrated. These qualities will help the Supreme Court in all areas.
Liberal
Arif Virani Liberal Parkdale—High Park, ON
Madam Chair, I would like to briefly respond to Mr. Fortin's previous question.
Our objective is always to ensure Canadians' confidence in our justice system. When Canadians see a Supreme Court that is more representative of diversity, it enhances their confidence in the system. We could say the same thing about the appointment of Mr. Jamal, a racialized person, or the appointment of Madam O'Bonsawin, who is indigenous.
The fact that Madam Moreau is a woman is an asset, but it is her intellectual abilities and her rigour in the legal field that make her an exceptional candidate.