| Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Established | 1918 |
| Location | Regina |
| Authorized by | The Court of Appeal Act, 2000 |
| Number of positions | 8 |
| Website | Court of Appeal |
| Chief Justice | |
| Currently | Robert Leurer |
| Since | June 30, 2013 |
The Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan (SKCA) is a Canadian appellate court.
The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal is the highest court in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada. There are 8 official judicial positions, including the Chief Justice, who make up the Court of Appeal. [1] At any given time there may be one or more additional justice siting as supernumerary justices. [1] The Court is governed by The Court of Appeal Act, 2000, [2] which sets out the composition and jurisdiction of the Court. It hears appeals from the Court of King's Bench for Saskatchewan, the Provincial Court of Saskatchewan and a number of administrative tribunals.
The Court is based in Regina, Saskatchewan and consists of the Chief Justice - styled the "Chief Justice of Saskatchewan". Justices of the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal are appointed and paid by the federal government. [3]
Most cases are heard by a panel of three justices, however, the Court sits with panels of five or seven from time to time, depending on the appeal. [4] A single justice will preside over matters heard in "chambers", usually interlocutory matters or applications for leave to appeal.
The Court has a limited original jurisdiction, giving it the discretion to grant relief by way of a prerogative writ. [5] The Court has held that since it is primarily a court of appeal, it will only entertain original applications for prerogative relief in extraordinary circumstances. [6] It also has any original jurisdiction that is necessary or incidental to the hearing and determination of an appeal. [7]
Under The Constitutional Questions Act, [8] the Government of Saskatchewan has the authority to refer questions of law to the Court of Appeal for the Court's advisory opinion.
The Court of Appeal was created on March 1, 1918, upon the coming into force of The Court of Appeal Act of 1915. [9] Prior to that date, there was a single superior court for Saskatchewan, known as the Supreme Court of Saskatchewan, which had both appellate and trial jurisdiction. Individual members of the Supreme Court sat as trial judges, while the full Supreme Court Court (also known at the Supreme Court en banc) heard appeals. The 1915 legislation split the appellate functions and the trial functions. The new Court of Appeal was established to take over the appellate function of the Supreme Court of Saskatchewan, and the new Court of King's Bench was created to take over the trial functions of the Supreme Court of Saskatchewan. [10] The Supreme Court of Saskatchewan was abolished effective March 1, 1918. [11]
Appeals may be taken from the Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada either by right, by leave of the Supreme Court of Canada, or by leave of the Court of Appeal itself, depending on the nature of the case. Until 1949 appeals could further be taken from the Supreme Court of Canada to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in the United Kingdom. Appeals could also be taken directly from the Court of Appeal to the Privy Council. [12]
The current justices of the Court [13] are:
| Name | Appointed | Nominated By | Position prior to appointment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chief Justice Robert W. Leurer | 2018 2023 | J. Trudeau | Court of Queen's Bench |
| Justice Neal W. Caldwell | 2010 | Harper | Lawyer at McDougall, Gauley LLP [14] |
| Justice Lian M. Schwann | 2017 | J. Trudeau | Court of Queen's Bench |
| Justice Jerome Tholl | 2019 | J. Trudeau | Court of Queen's Bench |
| Justice Jeffery Kalmakoff | 2019 | J. Trudeau | Court of Queen's Bench |
| Justice Meghan McCreary | 2022 | J. Trudeau | Court of Queen's Bench |
| Justice Jillyne Drennan | 2022 | J. Trudeau | Court of King's Bench |
| Justice Naheed Bardai | 2024 | J. Trudeau | Court of King's Bench |
Supernumerary
| Name | Appointed | Nominated By | Position Prior to Appointment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Justice Georgina R. Jackson | 1991 | Mulroney | Lawyer at MacPherson Leslie and Tyerman |
| Justice Brian Barrington-Foote | 2018 | J. Trudeau | Court of Queen's Bench |
An asterisk indicates the individual also served as Chief Justice of Saskatchewan; a double asterisk indicates subsequently appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada.
There are three main courts in Saskatchewan:
The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court in the judicial system of Canada. It comprises nine justices, whose decisions are the ultimate application of Canadian law, and grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants each year to appeal decisions rendered by provincial, territorial and federal appellate courts. The Supreme Court is bijural, hearing cases from two major legal traditions and bilingual, hearing cases in both official languages of Canada.
In law, certiorari is a court process to seek judicial review of a decision of a lower court or government agency. Certiorari comes from the name of an English prerogative writ, issued by a superior court to direct that the record of the lower court be sent to the superior court for review. The term is Latin for "to be made more certain", and comes from the opening line of such writs, which traditionally began with the Latin words "Certiorari volumus...".
The Court of Cassation is the supreme court for civil and criminal cases in France. It is one of the country's four apex courts, along with the Council of State, the Constitutional Council and the Jurisdictional Disputes Tribunal.
In common law systems, a superior court is a court of general jurisdiction over civil and criminal legal cases. A superior court is "superior" in relation to a court with limited jurisdiction, which is restricted to civil cases involving monetary amounts with a specific limit, or criminal cases involving offenses of a less serious nature. A superior court may hear appeals from lower courts. For courts of general jurisdiction in civil law system, see ordinary court.
The court system of Canada is made up of many courts differing in levels of legal superiority and separated by jurisdiction. In the courts, the judiciary interpret and apply the law of Canada. Some of the courts are federal in nature, while others are provincial or territorial.
Emmett Matthew Hall, was a Canadian lawyer, civil liberties advocate, Supreme Court of Canada judge and public policy advocate. He is considered one of the fathers of the Canadian system of Medicare, along with his fellow Saskatchewanian, Tommy Douglas.
Edward Milton Culliton, was a member of Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan and Chief Justice of Saskatchewan.
The Court of Appeal of Quebec is the highest judicial court in Quebec, Canada. It hears cases in Quebec City and Montreal.
The Supreme Court of Queensland is the highest court in the Australian State of Queensland. It was formerly the Brisbane Supreme Court, in the colony of Queensland.
The Court of King's Bench of Alberta is the superior trial court of the Canadian province of Alberta. During the reign of Elizabeth II, it was named Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta.
The Court of Appeal of New Brunswick is the appellate court in the province of New Brunswick. There are five Justices, one Chief Justice, any former judge of the Court of Appeal who is a supernumerary judge and any former Chief Justice of New Brunswick who is a judge or a supernumerary judge. The court sits in Fredericton, New Brunswick. Cases are heard by a panel of three judges.
The Manitoba Court of Appeal is the court of appeal in, and the highest court of, the Canadian province of Manitoba. It hears criminal, civil, and family law cases, as well as appeals from various administrative boards and tribunals.
The Court of King's Bench for Saskatchewan is the superior trial court for the Canadian province of Saskatchewan.
Edward Bayda was the Chief Justice of Saskatchewan, Canada and Chief Justice of the Province's Court of Appeal.
The Provincial Court of Saskatchewan is the provincial court of record for the province of Saskatchewan. It hears matters relating to criminal law, youth law, civil law, family law, traffic law and municipal bylaws.
The Court of King's Bench of Manitoba —or the Court of Queen’s Bench of Manitoba, depending on the monarch—is the superior court of the Canadian province of Manitoba.
The College of Law at the University of Saskatchewan is the university's law school. Located in Saskatoon in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, the College of Law was established in 1912 and is the oldest law school in Western Canada, a distinction it shares with the University of Alberta.
The Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories is the name of two different superior courts for the Canadian territory of the Northwest Territories, which have existed at different times.
Horace Harvey was a lawyer, jurist, and a Chief Justice of Alberta, Canada.
The Court of Appeal of Alberta is a Canadian appellate court that serves as the highest appellate court in the jurisdiction of Alberta, subordinate to the Supreme Court of Canada.