The Honourable Justice Mary T. Moreau’s appointment to the Supreme Court of Canada, on November 6, 2023, marked an important milestone in Canadian judicial history. Since late last year, Canada’s highest court has, for the first time, been presided over by a female majority.
This historic development signals a progressive shift towards greater gender representation and an effort to diversify our judiciary, ensuring that it more accurately represents Canadian society.
Following her appointment, The Honourable Justice Moreau commented on the need for diversity and representation in our legal system:
To earn and retain the confidence of the public in our justice system, our laws must be respectful of human rights and be administered and interpreted through a fair, open, timely and accessible process by a competent, ethical, independent and impartial judiciary, and should reflect the diversity of the communities it serves.
With the landmark appointment of The Honourable Justice Moreau, the Supreme Court of Canada joined the High Court of Australia, which reached a female majority for the first time in 2022. Neither the Supreme Court of the United States nor the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom have ever consisted of a female majority.
For the first 115 years of Canada’s history, from Confederation on July 1, 1867, to The Honourable Justice Bertha Wilson’s appointment in 1982, only men had served as justices of the Supreme Court of Canada. In the past 42 years, 12 women have held the role, including the five current female justices: The Honourable Justices Andromache Karakatsanis, Suzanne Côté, Sheilah L. Martin, Michelle O’Bonsawin and Mary T. Moreau.
In 1990, The Honourable Justice Bertha Wilson spoke to the importance of a female presence in law:
If women lawyers and women judges, through their differing perspectives on life, can bring a new humanity to bear on the decision-making process, perhaps they will make a difference… Perhaps they will succeed in infusing the law with an understanding of what it means to be fully human.
The Supreme Court of Canada is comprised of nine justices, whose decisions are the ultimate treatment of Canadian law. The Court is bilingual and bijural – it hears cases in both of Canada’s official languages, and in both the common law and civil law traditions. At present, the justices of the Supreme Court of Canada are The Honourable Chief Justice Richard Wagner and The Honourable Justices Andromache Karakatsanis, Suzanne Côté, Malcolm Rowe, Sheilah L. Martin, Nicholas Kasirer, Mahmud Jamal, Michelle O’Bonsawin and Mary T. Moreau.
The timeline of appointments and retirements of female justices of the Supreme Court of Canada is as follows:
March 4, 1982 – The Honourable Justice Bertha Wilson became the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. She was the 60th puisne justice in Canadian history.
April 15, 1987 – The Honourable Justice Claire L’Heureux-Dubé became the second woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. At the time of her appointment, she was the second sitting female justice, joining The Honourable Justice Wilson.
March 30, 1989 – The Honourable Justice Beverley McLachlin, as she then was, became the third woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. At the time of her appointment, she was the third sitting female justice, joining The Honourable Justices Wilson and L’Heureux-Dubé.
January 3, 1991 – The Honourable Justice Wilson retired from the Supreme Court of Canada.
September 15, 1999 – The Honourable Justice Louise Arbour became the fourth woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. At the time of her appointment, she was the third sitting female justice, joining The Honourable Justices L’Heureux-Dubé and McLachlin.
January 7, 2000 – The Honourable Chief Justice McLachlin became the first woman to serve as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada. She was the 17th Chief Justice in Canadian history.
June 30, 2002 – The Honourable Justice L’Heureux-Dubé retired from the Supreme Court of Canada.
August 7, 2002 – The Honourable Justice Marie Deschamps became the fifth woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. At the time of her appointment, she was the third sitting female justice, joining The Honourable Chief Justice McLachlin and The Honourable Justice Arbour.
June 30, 2004 – The Honourable Justice Arbour retired from the Supreme Court of Canada.
August 30, 2004 – The Honourable Justices Rosalie Abella and Louise Charron became the sixth and seventh women, respectively, appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. At the time of their appointment, they were the third and fourth sitting female justices, joining The Honourable Chief Justice McLachlin and The Honourable Justice Deschamps.
August 29, 2011 – The Honourable Justice Charron retired from the Supreme Court of Canada.
October 21, 2011 – The Honourable Justice Karakatsanis became the eighth woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. At the time of her appointment, she was the fourth sitting female justice, joining The Honourable Chief Justice McLachlin and The Honourable Justices Deschamps and Abella.
August 6, 2012 – The Honourable Justice Deschamps retired from the Supreme Court of Canada.
December 1, 2014 – The Honourable Justice Côté became the ninth woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. At the time of her appointment, she was the fourth sitting female justice, joining The Honourable Chief Justice McLachlin and The Honourable Justices Abella and Karakatsanis.
December 14, 2017 – The Honourable Chief Justice McLachlin retired from the Supreme Court of Canada.
December 18, 2017 – The Honourable Justice Martin became the 10th woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. At the time of her appointment, she was the fourth sitting female justice, joining The Honourable Justices Abella, Karakatsanis and Côté.
July 1, 2021 – The Honourable Justice Abella retired from the Supreme Court of Canada.
September 1, 2022 – The Honourable Justice O’Bonsawin became the 11th woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. At the time of her appointment, she was the fourth sitting female justice, joining The Honourable Justices Karakatsanis, Côté and Martin.
November 6, 2023 – The Honourable Justice Moreau became the 12th woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. She is the fifth sitting female justice, having joined The Honourable Justices Karakatsanis, Côté, Martin and O’Bonsawin.
The attainment of a female majority in one of the nation’s most esteemed institutions is a testament to the progress made in advancing gender equality and inclusivity in Canada. In celebrating the appointment of The Honourable Justice Moreau and the first-ever female majority on the Supreme Court of Canada, Canadians have a reason to be proud of their nation’s commitment to equality, inclusivity and representation.
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