OTTAWA, ON, June 24, 2024 /CNW/ - The Honourable Arif Virani, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, today announced the following appointment under the judicial application process established in 2016. This process emphasizes transparency, merit, and the diversity of the Canadian population, and will continue to ensure the appointment of jurists who meet the highest standards of excellence and integrity.

The Honourable Karan M. Shaner, a Judge of the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories, is appointed a Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of Alberta in Edmonton. Justice Shaner replaces Justice M. Crighton (Edmonton), who elected to become a supernumerary judge effective November 1, 2023.

"I wish Justice Shaner every success as she takes on her new role. I am confident she will serve Albertans well as a member of the Court of Appeal of Alberta". 

—The Hon. Arif Virani, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada

Justice Karan M. Shaner was appointed to the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories in 2011. She received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Calgary in 1986 and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Alberta in 1990. She was admitted to the Northwest Territories Bar in 1991.

At the time of her appointment to the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories, Justice Shaner had been with the Department of Justice of the Government of Northwest Territories since 1996. She was Assistant Deputy Minister from 2008 to 2011; Director, Legal Division from 2003 to 2007; and legal counsel from 1996 to 1999 and from 2001 to 2003. She was an associate with Johnson, Gullberg, Wiest and MacPherson (now Lawson, Lundell) from 1991 to 1996. In addition to her management roles, her main areas of practice were labour law, human rights, administrative law, and general litigation. Since 2019, she has been the judicial nominee of the Chief Justice of the Northwest Territories for the Federal Judicial Advisory Committee for Northwest Territories.

• The Government of Canada has appointed more than 750 judges since November 2015. This includes 126 appointments since the Honourable Arif Virani became Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada on July 26, 2023, a pace of appointments that has no precedent in Canadian History. These exceptional jurists represent the diversity that strengthens Canada. Of these judges, more than half are women, and appointments reflect an increased representation of racialized persons, Indigenous, 2SLGBTQI+, and those who self-identify as having a disability.
• To support the needs of the courts and improve access to justice for all Canadians, the Government of Canada is committed to increasing the capacity of superior courts. Budget 2022 provides for 22 new judicial positions, along with two associate judges at the Tax Court of Canada. Along with the 13 positions created under Budget 2021, this makes a total of 37 newly created superior court positions. Since Budget 2017, the government has funded 116 new judicial positions.
• Changes to the Questionnaire for Federal Judicial Appointments were announced in September 2022. The questionnaire continues to provide for a robust and thorough assessment of candidates but has been streamlined and updated to incorporate, among other things, more respectful and inclusive language for individuals to self-identify diversity characteristics.
• Federal judicial appointments are made by the Governor General, acting on the advice of the federal Cabinet and recommendations from the Minister of Justice.
• The Judicial Advisory Committees across Canada play a key role in evaluating judicial applications. There are 17 Judicial Advisory Committees, with each province and territory represented.
• Significant reforms to the role and structure of the Judicial Advisory Committees, aimed at enhancing the independence and transparency of the process, were announced on October 20, 2016.
• The Government of Canada is committed to promoting a justice system in which sexual assault matters are decided fairly, without the influence of myths and stereotypes, and in which survivors are treated with dignity and compassion. Changes to the Judges Act and Criminal Code that came into force on May 6, 2021, mean that in order to be eligible for appointment to a provincial superior court, candidates must agree to participate in continuing education on matters related to sexual assault law and social context, which includes systemic racism and systemic discrimination. The new legislation enhances the transparency of decisions by amending the Criminal Code to require that judges provide written reasons, or enter them into the record, when deciding sexual assault matters.

SOURCE Department of Justice Canada