Chief Justice Wagner warns against 'attacks' against court and judges

OTTAWA — Chief Justice Richard Wagner warned against “attacks” against the justice system and took issue with criticism painting judges as partisan actors or obstacles to the will of the people.

During his annual press conference Tuesday, Wagner said that “rhetorical attacks” questioning the legitimacy of courts and judges weakens Canada’s judicial system. He also applauded unnamed chief justices who recently spoke out after critical comments from a politician.

“What happened in Canada most recently, if you refer to some attacks or attempts to politicize the judiciary, there was a strong reaction of the chief justices in some provinces… there were strong messages given by the chief justices, as that is their responsibility,” Wagner told reporters.

Though he refused to single out any particular criticism or critic, Wagner’s comments appeared to be thinly-veiled criticism of statements by Alberta Premier Danielle Smith.

In January, the three chief justices of Alberta courts issued a rare public message emphasizing the importance of judicial independence just days after Smith said she wished she could “direct the judges” on her weekly radio show.

“The judges get very, very prickly when you criticize them, but boy… they deserve the criticism,” Smith told a caller who complained that Justin Bone was out on bail when he allegedly killed two people in Edmonton.

On Tuesday, Wagner said that criticism and questioning is party of a healthy democracy, but drew the line at what he called attempts to undermine public confidence in the justice system.

“We have seen judges and courts sometimes portrayed as partisan actors, or described as obstacles to the will of the people,” he noted. “A non-partisan judiciary, sheltered from all politicization, is essential for the rule of law.”

In April of last year, Ontario’s three chief justices also issued a rare joint statement insisting on the importance of judicial independence in response to fiercely critical comments by Premier Doug Ford.

At the time, Ford ranted that judges were being soft on crime and called judicial independence a “joke”.

“The system is broken, and there’s a lot of terrible, terrible bleeding-heart judges out there,” the premier said.

Wagner said Tuesday that he liked the way the provincial chief justices had responded to date to “attacks” on the judiciary.

“Chief justices in Canada, in every province, and the chief justice of Canada have a responsibility, not an obligation, but a responsibility to speak out about any attempts on judicial independence, attacks on independence, or the rule of law… or any events that could jeopardize the justice system,” Wagner said.

During his press conference, Wagner reiterated his concerns about a lack of resources in courts across the country and warned that it is partly to blame for growing court delays.

But the chief justice declined to comment on the federal government’s decision to reject the recommendation by a quadrennial commission to boost judges’ $429,000 compensation by at least $28,000. Two associations representing judges are currently suing the government over the decision.

Wagner also cited ongoing litigation when he declined to explain his recent, controversial decision not to recuse from the Emergencies Act case currently being considered by his court.

Last month, Wagner told parties requesting his recusal that his 2022 comments about the Freedom Convoy protests had nothing to do with the issues on appeal.

In the months following the February 2022 Freedom Convoy protests, Wagner described the events as the “start of anarchy” and said participants took Ottawa residents “hostage.”

On Tuesday, Wagner also warned about growing use of artificial intelligence by parties, saying the technology is making the law more accessible but comes with considering risk of “hallucinations.”

“Artificial intelligence is now present in the courtroom in ways both promising and problematic. Just a few years ago, hallucinated legal cases were not something we imagined. Today, they are a part of our reality,” he said.

Wagner said the chances that fake cases generated by AI are submitted to the Supreme Court is “very low” because cases are “filtered” by the time they arrive at the apex court.

National Post

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