News and Views Issue 1: Winter 1998-1999
Remembering Former Chief Justice Brian Dickson
The death of the Honourable Brian Dickson last fall was a great loss to the
cause of law reform in Canada. Although at times weakened by ill health, he continued
to make a significant contribution to public life after his retirement from the
Supreme Court. Among his many interests were aboriginal rights, military justice,
and the operation of the civil justice system. He was adviser to the Primer Minister
in setting up the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. He had written two of
the leading decisions in this field: Guerin v. The Queen (1984)
and, with Justice La Forest, Sparrow v. The Queen (1990). Later,
he chaired a special task force to advise the Minister of National Defence on
changes in the military justice system. The day he died he was scheduled to travel
to Vancouver on a similar assignment.
In additional to his ground-breaking opinions on the foundations of the Charter,
Dickson always strove to improve the form and quality of legal writing. In an
interview with Justice Robert Sharpe he said:
- I think it is imperative that our judgments be understandable to people
who have not had legal training. We are not writing simply for legal academics
or other judges. The cases we deal with affect every man, woman, and child in
the country. I also think from the point of view of judges of the other courts
who are required to follow our judgments, sometimes reading them late at night
preparing for a jury charge, it is very much easier for them to read something
which is written in everyday language.
[The Advocates Society Journal, (Summer 1998) at 24.]
The Chief Justice served as Honorary Chair of the Systems of Civil Justice
Task Force (1996-1997) and continued in that capacity with the Implementation
Committee (1997-1998). Like everything he undertook, he threw his considerable
energies into these tasks, attending many meetings and carefully reviewing, and
correcting, the text of our reports. He kept in touch with many of us on a regular
basis.
Dickson believed passionately in civil justice reform, and criminal justice reform
too. In addition to supporting the Forum, he was interested in any reforms which
would speed up the litigation process at reasonable cost. Court connected mediation,
standards for pro bono work by lawyers and law firms, and the use of will-say
statements in civil cases were projects which he embraced with enthusiasm.
Former Chief Justice Dickson speaking with Doug F. Robinson, Q.C. (left) and
P. André Gervais, c.r. at the 1998 CBA Annual Meeting.
His opening remarks on the occasion of the National Conference on Systems of Civil Justice (Toronto, February 1, 1996), are a striking reminder of the reality of the task:
- We have a clear sense of what the problems are. We are beginning to have a better grasp of the root causes of symptoms such as cost and delay. We need to focus now on developing a better system. We cannot start from scratch - we have to deal with the reality of our institutions as they have developed over the centuries. We must safeguard the central principles which make our system fair. Yet we must not be afraid to question the ways in which we have carried out our business. We must separate those elements of our civil justice system which are essential and those elements which we can no longer afford.
In August 1998, only a few weeks before he died, he participated in the CBA Annual Meeting in St. John's to demonstrate his support for the Task Force and its work. He attended an all-day meeting of the Implementation Committee, a meeting with the Civil Justice Committee on the Canadian Judicial Council and a reception in honour of the establishment of the Forum, all of this in his wheelchair. It was a remarkable performance and inspiring to us all.
Brian A. Crane, Q.C.