Brigitte Bussières

In a constitutional appeal on judicial independence, the appellants challenged transitional remuneration and pension provisions enacted during a provincial judicial reform.

The Court held that when a new judicial office is created, remuneration for all judges appointed to that office must be reviewed by an independent committee within a reasonable time, including retroactive review where required.

The impugned provisions delaying or structuring remuneration without timely committee review breached the institutional financial security guarantee and were not justified under s. 1.

The Court upheld the validity of the pension participation provision and the later executive order, and ordered a remedial committee review for the 2004 to 2007 period.

The Supreme Court of Canada heard multiple appeals from New Brunswick, Ontario, Alberta, and Quebec regarding the constitutional requirement for independent judicial compensation commissions.

The Court clarified the principles from the Provincial Judges Reference, establishing a three-stage analysis for determining whether a government's response to a commission's recommendations meets the standard of rationality.

The Court upheld the government responses in New Brunswick and Ontario, found the Alberta government's response partially irrational but globally effective, and struck down the Quebec government's response for failing to address the committee's core recommendations.