Smith says Alberta will withhold funding for judges without more input on selection

Premier Danielle Smith says her government will withhold funding for new judicial appointments in Alberta until Ottawa allows the province to provide input on who is picked.

In a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney on Jan. 23, Smith says she expects “meaningful engagement” with the provincial government on the appointment process with judges, noting a future vacancy when Supreme Court Justice Sheilah Martin’s retirement in May.

“Alberta’s government will not agree to provide the necessary funding to support any new judicial positions in the province until such engagement and collaboration are provided,” Alberta’s premier wrote.

Smith is proposing a special advisory committee with four “non-partisan experts” — two appointed by the province — to assess candidates on a “non-partisan basis” while ensuring candidates have the expertise to serve in roles on the Alberta Court of King’s Bench, the Alberta Court of Appeal, and the Supreme Court of Canada.

Candidates to Alberta courts would be presented to the minister of justice, who would have a deciding role in the appointment process.

Premier Smith wants the same for candidates recommended to the Supreme Court before reaching the prime minister, “acknowledging that there may also be candidates from other Western provinces and the territories who may be considered for the vacancy” through processes in those jurisdictions.

She cites the United States and Australia as examples of federal systems where state-level appointments rest with their respective governments rather than the federal level.

“Providing Alberta with a formal and meaningful role in the appointment process would strengthen public confidence in the administration of justice, promote national unity within Alberta and help ensure judicial decision-making reflects the values and expectations of Albertans,” she said.

Smith’s letter also calls on the federal government to make “practical and reasonable changes to relax bilingualism requirements for federal judicial appointments.”

She says those requirements don’t reflect Canada’s linguistic diversity in the west, and would alienate Albertans and western Canadians alike.

“We are simply asking for a formal and meaningful role in the judicial appointment process that would boost public confidence in the administration of justice, support national unity within Alberta, and ensure judicial decision-making reflects the values and expectations of Albertans,” Smith wrote in a separate statement on Tuesday.

Shawn King, president of the Criminal Trial Lawyers Association, which speaks for defence lawyers across the province, said if Smith follows through on her ultimatum to withhold funding from courts, the already-stressed justice system will “implode.”

“At least in criminal cases, it means that matters are going to be stayed hand over fist, and who’s going to be blamed for that?”

King said courts will see more Jordan applications, which are legal motions to dismiss criminal charges due to unreasonable trial delays.

“This is potentially catastrophic,” he said.

He added it’s currently not unusual to see matters adjourned or rescheduled due to a shortage of judges.

Smith’s letter comes after Alberta’s three chief justices, in a rare public statement last week, urged respect for the independence of the judicial branch, saying democracy only functions when all three branches of government operate independently.

Smith has recently said she wished she could “direct” judges in regards to bail rules and decisions. In recent months, the premier has repeated criticized what she calls “activist” courts and “unelected” judges.

Smith has said she believes in parliamentary supremacy, and in the fall sitting of the legislature, invoked the Charter’s notwithstanding clause four times to shield her government’s laws from court challenges.

–With files from The Canadian Press