Elected leaders should read Supreme Court decisions before speaking, says top justice

OTTAWA –

The chief justice of the Supreme Court sent a warning Monday about the risks elected officials run by reacting to decisions from the court without first having read the rulings themselves. 

Richard Wagner issued that call during his annual news conference on the work of the top court and other matters pertaining to the administration of justice. 

Wagner said he is concerned about the spread of false information on court rulings, and politicians criticizing rulings based in part on which judge delivered them.

“It is one thing to express disagreement with a decision,” he said Monday. 

“But it is another thing altogether to criticize it because of who the judge is or how they were appointed. Comments like this undermine public confidence in the justice system.”

One example of disinformation Wagner pointed to was a March ruling in a sexual assault case that at one point used the phrase “person with a vagina.” 

Some columnists blasted that phrasing and Quebec legislators unanimously passed a motion denouncing the ruling, claiming it tried to make women invisible and underlining the importance of using the word “woman.” 

But the ruling itself did use the word “woman” many times, and after the vote, the Quebec Liberal Party said it had regrets in going along with the motion. Québec solidaire also expressed that it wished it had handled the situation differently. 

Speaking in French, Wagner said that had those commenting on the widely reported part of the decision actually read the whole things themselves, they would have seen the Supreme Court “never wished to devalue the notion of womanhood.”

“Disinformation did circulate,” the chief justice said. 

At the federal level, Melissa Lantsman, one of the deputy leaders of the Conservatives, also waded in on the ruling after it came out.

She shared an opinion piece written about the decision on social media, saying, “there is nothing confusing about the word ‘woman,’ it’s common sense” — invoking the Conservatives’ frequent “common sense” rallying cry.

“It’s not hateful, bigoted, wrong or unfair in anyway. This is just complete nonsense that moves nothing forward. It’s not ‘progress,'” she posted on X.

Asked whether Lantsman had read the ruling herself, and about her thoughts pertaining to Wagner’s concerns about the spread of disinformation, a spokesman for Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s office said in a statement that “the deputy leader was commenting on a news piece from a major national media outlet.”

“Her comments speak for themselves,” Sebastian Skamski wrote. 

During his news conference, Wagner also noted that he had seen improvements in terms of the speed at which the federal government is appointing new judges to fill outstanding vacancies.

He and others have long flagged the appointment process as a serious concern, noting that the delays led to some criminal charges being stayed because cases could not be heard in a timely manner.

Wagner said there are around 57 vacant positions, which is down from about 90 at the same time last year. 

“I saw some improvements, and I am confident now that the situation can be corrected.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 3, 2024.