FACL previously wrote to Justice Minister Peter MacKay raising concerns regarding the federal judicial appointment process and the lack of diversity among federally-appointed judges. This was based on the Globe and Mail article which indicated that only 3 of the past 200 new judges appointed are visible minorities. In our letter of May 7, 2014, FACL requested a meeting with the Minister to discuss potential initiatives to improve the representation of minorities on the bench. Minister MacKay turned down our request by his letter dated June 26, 2014, “due to a heavy schedule”.
FACL wrote another letter to Minister MacKay on June 23, 2014, to again request a meeting to discuss initiatives to improve the representation of racialized minorities on the federally appointed bench. Other member associations of the Roundtable of Diversity Associations expressed a desire to join this meeting.
In his letter dated September 16, 2014, Minister MacKay declined our request for a meeting on this “important matter”, citing his heavy schedule. We are disappointed, but not surprised, by his refusal given the Minister’s previous comments at the council of the Ontario Bar Association on June 13, 2014.
We believe a joint meeting with the diversity associations and the Minister would have been fruitful to address this ongoing concern with federal judicial appointments. FACL will continue its ongoing efforts to advocate for a more representative judiciary.
Please click on the links below to view our second exchange of correspondence with the Minister:
FACL Letter to Justice Minister Peter MacKay dated June 23, 2014
Response from Justice Minister Peter MacKay dated September 16, 2014
All of FACL’s correspondence with the Justice Minister on this issue have been posted under the Judicial and Legal Diversity in Canada section of our Media page.