Barbara Lilian Baird, Q.C., (born October 1, 1952) also known as Barbara Baird-Filliter, was the first female Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party

Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick

The Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick is a centre-right political party in New Brunswick, Canada. It has its origins in the pre-Canadian confederation Conservative Party that opposed the granting of responsible government to the colony...

 in the Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 province of New Brunswick

New Brunswick

New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...

 from 1989 to 1991.

She led the party during a time when it held no seats at all in the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick

Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick

The Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick is located in Fredericton. It was established de jure when the colony was created in 1784, but only came in to session in 1786 following the first elections in late 1785. Until 1891, it was the lower house in a bicameral legislature when its upper house...

, having been shut out by Frank McKenna

Frank McKenna

Francis Joseph "Frank" McKenna, PC, OC, ONB, QC is a Canadian businessman and former politician and diplomat. He is currently Deputy Chairman of the Toronto-Dominion Bank. He served as Canadian Ambassador to the United States from 2005 to 2006...

's historic sweep of all 58 seats in the 1987 provincial election

New Brunswick general election, 1987

The 31st New Brunswick general election was held on October 13, 1987, to elect 58 members to the 51st New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada...

. She was replaced by Dennis Cochrane

Dennis Cochrane

Dennis H. Cochrane is a Canadian politician and civil servant.He graduated from the New Brunswick Teacher's College in 1970, received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of New Brunswick in 1974, received a Bachelor of Education in 1974 and a Master of Education in 1981 from the...

 before the 1991 election

New Brunswick general election, 1991

The 32nd New Brunswick general election was held on September 23, 1991, to elect 58 members to the 52nd New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada....

, and returned to her legal practice in Fredericton.

Baird received a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws from the University of New Brunswick

University of New Brunswick

The University of New Brunswick is a Canadian university located in the province of New Brunswick. UNB is the oldest English language university in Canada and among the first public universities in North America. The university has two main campuses: the original campus founded in 1785 in...

 in 1974 and 1976 respectively, and a Master of Laws from the London School of Economics and Political Science in 1985. She was made Queen's Counsel

Queen's Counsel

Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...

 in December 2000, and was appointed to the Court of Queen's Bench of New Brunswick, Family Division in April 2007. She is married to George Filliter, a labour lawyer and mediator, and has two daughters.