Bertha Wilson
Encyclopedia
Bertha Wernham Wilson, CC
(September 18, 1923, Kirkcaldy, Fife, Scotland
– April 28, 2007, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
) was a Canadian
jurist and the first woman Puisne Justice
of the Supreme Court of Canada
.
, the daughter of Archibald Wernham and Christina Noble, she received a Master of Arts
degree in philosophy
from University of Aberdeen
in 1944. In 1949 Wilson emigrated to Canada with her husband, the Reverend John Wilson, whom she had married in 1945.
degree from Dalhousie University
and was called to the Nova Scotia
Bar in 1957. She moved to Toronto
in 1959, was called to the Ontario Bar and joined the firm of Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt
. She became a partner in 1968.
She was the first woman appointed to the Court of Appeal for Ontario in 1975. In 1982, she became the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada
, by then Prime Minister
Pierre Elliott Trudeau
. Wilson retired from the court in 1991 and was made a Companion of the Order of Canada
and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
that same year.
Wilson's Supreme Court rulings include: R. v. Morgentaler
in 1988 (abortion procedures), R. v Lavallée
in 1990 (battered-wife syndrome as self-defense), Operation Dismantle v. The Queen
in 1985 (judicial review), the minority decision in R. v. Stevens
(1988) which was adopted later in R. v. Hess; R. v. Nguyen
in 1990 (mens rea and statutory rape), Kosmopolous v. Constitution Insurance Co. of Canada
(piercing "corporate veil"), the dissenting opinion in McKinney v. University of Guelph
in 1990 (mandatory retirement), Andrews v. Law Society of British Columbia
in 1989 (equality rights test), and Sobeys Stores v. Yeomans and Labour Standards Tribunal (NS)
in 1989 (interpretive authority of tribunals), among many other foundational cases interpreting the Charter of Rights and Freedoms that was enacted the year she was appointed to the Supreme Court.
From 1991 to 1996, she was a Commissioner of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples
. Bertha Wilson gave a controversial and much-discussed speech about the role and influence of women in legal professions and the judiciary titled “Will Women Judges Really Make a Difference?”
Wilson died in an Ottawa
retirement home on April 28, 2007 of an unspecified "prolonged illness" which some sources claim was Alzheimer's disease
.
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
(September 18, 1923, Kirkcaldy, Fife, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
– April 28, 2007, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
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...
) was a 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...
jurist and the first woman Puisne Justice
Puisne Justice
A Puisne Justice or Puisne Judge is the title for a regular member of a Court. This is distinguished from the head of the Court who is known as the Chief Justice or Chief Judge. The term is used almost exclusively in common law jurisdictions such as England, Australia, Kenya, Canada, Sri Lanka,...
of the Supreme Court of Canada
Supreme Court of Canada
The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court of Canada and is the final court of appeals in the Canadian justice system. The court grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants each year to appeal decisions rendered by provincial, territorial and federal appellate courts, and its decisions...
.
Early life
Born in Kirkcaldy, Fife, ScotlandScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, the daughter of Archibald Wernham and Christina Noble, she received a Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
degree in philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
from University of Aberdeen
University of Aberdeen
The University of Aberdeen, an ancient university founded in 1495, in Aberdeen, Scotland, is a British university. It is the third oldest university in Scotland, and the fifth oldest in the United Kingdom and wider English-speaking world...
in 1944. In 1949 Wilson emigrated to Canada with her husband, the Reverend John Wilson, whom she had married in 1945.
Professional career
She received a Bachelor of LawsBachelor of Laws
The Bachelor of Laws is an undergraduate, or bachelor, degree in law originating in England and offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree...
degree from Dalhousie University
Dalhousie Law School
The Schulich School of Law is part of Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Formerly called Dalhousie Law School, it was established in 1883, making it the oldest university-affiliated common law school in the Commonwealth. It is the primary law school in Atlantic Canada and...
and was called to the Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
Bar in 1957. She moved to Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
in 1959, was called to the Ontario Bar and joined the firm of Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP is one of Canada’s largest business law firms practising nationally and internationally from its offices in Toronto, Calgary, Montreal, Ottawa, and New York. It is one of Bay Street's "seven sisters". Clients include industry and business leaders in all segments of the...
. She became a partner in 1968.
She was the first woman appointed to the Court of Appeal for Ontario in 1975. In 1982, she became the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada
Supreme Court of Canada
The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court of Canada and is the final court of appeals in the Canadian justice system. The court grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants each year to appeal decisions rendered by provincial, territorial and federal appellate courts, and its decisions...
, by then Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
Pierre Elliott Trudeau
Pierre Trudeau
Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau, , usually known as Pierre Trudeau or Pierre Elliott Trudeau, was the 15th Prime Minister of Canada from April 20, 1968 to June 4, 1979, and again from March 3, 1980 to June 30, 1984.Trudeau began his political career campaigning for socialist ideals,...
. Wilson retired from the court in 1991 and was made a Companion of the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
Royal Society of Canada
The Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
that same year.
Wilson's Supreme Court rulings include: R. v. Morgentaler
R. v. Morgentaler
R. v. Morgentaler [1988] 1 S.C.R. 30 was a decision of the Supreme Court of Canada wherein the abortion provision in the Criminal Code of Canada was found to be unconstitutional, as it violated a woman's right under section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to "security of person"...
in 1988 (abortion procedures), R. v Lavallée
R. v. Lavallee
R. v. Lavallee, [1990] 1 S.C.R. 852 is a leading Supreme Court of Canada case on the legal recognition of battered woman syndrome. The judgement, written by Bertha Wilson, is generally considered one of her most famous.-Background:...
in 1990 (battered-wife syndrome as self-defense), Operation Dismantle v. The Queen
Operation Dismantle v. The Queen
Operation Dismantle v. The Queen [1985] 1 S.C.R. 441 is a decision by the Supreme Court of Canada where the court rejected a section 7 Charter challenge against the government for allowing the US government to test cruise missiles over Canadian territory....
in 1985 (judicial review), the minority decision in R. v. Stevens
R. v. Stevens
R. v. Stevens, [1988] 1 S.C.R. 1153, was a decision of the Supreme Court of Canada rendered on June 30, 1988, concerning the retrospective application of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.-Background:...
(1988) which was adopted later in R. v. Hess; R. v. Nguyen
R. v. Hess; R. v. Nguyen
R v. Hess; R. v. Nguyen, [1990] 2 S.C.R. 906 is a leading decision of the Supreme Court of Canada where the Court struck down part of the Criminal Code of Canada offence of rape as a violation of section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms....
in 1990 (mens rea and statutory rape), Kosmopolous v. Constitution Insurance Co. of Canada
Kosmopolous v. Constitution Insurance Co. of Canada
Kosmopoulos v. Constitution Insurance Co. of Canada [1987] 1 S.C.R. 2 is a leading Supreme Court of Canada decision on the court's ability to pierce the corporate veil -- to impose an interest or liability, that is, upon the shareholders of a company instead of the company itself...
(piercing "corporate veil"), the dissenting opinion in McKinney v. University of Guelph
McKinney v. University of Guelph
McKinney v. The University of Guelph [1990] 3 S.C.R. 229 is the Supreme Court of Canada case that decided that mandatory retirement age for University teachers does not violate equality rights under section 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms...
in 1990 (mandatory retirement), Andrews v. Law Society of British Columbia
Andrews v. Law Society of British Columbia
Andrews v. Law Society of British Columbia, [1989] 1 SCR 143 is the first Supreme Court of Canada case to deal with section 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms...
in 1989 (equality rights test), and Sobeys Stores v. Yeomans and Labour Standards Tribunal (NS)
Sobeys Stores Ltd. v. Yeomans and Labour Standards Tribunal (NS)
Sobeys Stores v. Yeomans and Labour Standards Tribunal [1989] 1 S.C.R. 238 is a leading Supreme Court of Canada case on determining if a tribunal has the authority to hear a dispute, and more generally, the interpretation of section 96 of the Constitution Act, 1867.-Background:Sobeys, a Nova...
in 1989 (interpretive authority of tribunals), among many other foundational cases interpreting the Charter of Rights and Freedoms that was enacted the year she was appointed to the Supreme Court.
From 1991 to 1996, she was a Commissioner of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples
Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples
The Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples was a Canadian Royal Commission established in 1991 to address many issues of aboriginal status that had come to light with recent events such as the Oka Crisis and the Meech Lake Accord. The commission culminated in a final report of 4000 pages,...
. Bertha Wilson gave a controversial and much-discussed speech about the role and influence of women in legal professions and the judiciary titled “Will Women Judges Really Make a Difference?”
Wilson died in an Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
retirement home on April 28, 2007 of an unspecified "prolonged illness" which some sources claim was Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...
.
See also
- List of decisions by Justice WilsonReasons of the Supreme Court of Canada by Justice WilsonList of reasons written by Justice Bertha Wilson during her time as puisne justice of the Supreme Court of Canada.-1982-1985:* Shell Oil Co. v. Commissioner of Patents, [1982] 2 S.C.R. 536* Kamloops v. Nielsen, [1984] 2 S.C.R. 2...
External links
- Biography of Bertha Wilson from the Supreme Court of Canada's website.
- First female Supreme Court judge dies at age 83
- Bertha Wilson (September 18, 1923 - April 28, 2007) - obituary on Cerberus with additional links