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Kanada Justice Minister Packs Court
via APCanada Picks Same-Sex Advocates As Judges Two judges known for supporting same-sex unions were nominated Tuesday to fill vacancies on Canada's Supreme Court, and they will be assessed in the country's first-ever public screening of such appointments. Justice Rosalie Abella, a 58-year-old human rights expert, and Justice Louise Charron, a French-speaking Ontarian raised in Ottawa, will be vetted in a televised parliamentary hearing Wednesday. Justice Minister Irwin Cotler named the two Ontario Court of Appeal judges as Prime Minister Paul Martin's choices for two vacancies on Canada's highest court. "There was literally an embarrassment of riches when it came to selecting nominees to the Supreme Court of Canada," Cotler said. Appointing Abella and Charron would bring the number of women on the nine-member high court to four, the most ever. But Cotler denied that gender or support of same-sex rights played a role. "The one criteria that I had in mind was The governing Liberals have asked the Supreme Court to rule this fall on whether their proposed legislation on same-sex marriage is constitutional. Right-wing critics have long pushed for a chance, as in the United States, to grill top-court prospects on their personal views before they begin crafting influential judgments. But a panel of legislators and legal experts will not get to quiz the candidates in person and they cannot overturn Martin's choices. Cotler will field questions Wednesday about Martin's choices from an advisory panel that will issue a nonbinding report Friday. The prime minister will officially appoint the new judges anytime after the report is received. And Kanada makes another Posted by: .com 2004-08-25 |
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