Justice committee  We see two fundamental objectives. One is increasing public confidence in the judiciary, and the other—and there can be tension between the first and second—is maintaining the independence of the judiciary, particularly security of tenure. That is why The Advocates' Society think

Justice committee  I can weigh in simply from the perspective of the law society. I can speak to the Nova Scotia law society, and Bill C-9 is actually quite consistent in that complaints that are filed are not made public. It's only when the matter is referred for a hearing and charges are laid t

Justice committee  Just to clarify, it obviously varies by jurisdiction, but in Nova Scotia it depends on whether it gives rise to professional misconduct or professional incompetence and charges are laid. At that point, it becomes public. There can be breaches that from an ethical perspective do

Justice committee  No, we don't have any comment beyond what's already contained in our submissions. As I indicated, The Advocates' Society supports the entirety of Bill C-9, including the restrictions on reasonings. The public aspect and the involvement of lay participants at the hearing panel, w

Justice committee  I'm not sure if Mr. Devlin's microphone is working.

Justice committee  The Advocates' Society would not recommend any changes to include financial sanctions in the legislation.

Justice committee  First of all, my understanding is that if the legislation were redrafted as we are proposing, which would be to have a right of appeal to the Federal Court of Appeal, there would still be an opportunity for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, at least based on our pro

Justice committee  Yes, we do see a benefit to adding lay witnesses who are involved in the entire process. It is an improvement from the perspective of the public confidence in the process. As we've indicated, The Advocates' Society supports all of the amendments, including the addition of lay-wit

Justice committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair, for the opportunity to make submissions to the standing committee today regarding Bill C-9, an act to amend the Judges Act. My name is Sheree Conlon, and I'm a partner at the law firm of Stewart McKelvey in Halifax, Nova Scotia. I am here representing The