Analysis of Reference re Supreme Court Act: The Implied Currency Requirement for Quebec Seat Appointees to the Supreme Court

Abstract

The Supreme Court of Canada, in a 6-1 judgment in March 2014, ruled that an appointee to
one of the three Quebec seats on the Supreme Court must be either a current Quebec Superior
Court judge or a current Quebec lawyer of at least ten years’ standing. Reference re Supreme
Court Act, ss. 5 and 6 [Reference] determined that the phrase “from among” in section 6 of the Supreme Court Act [Act] implies that Supreme Court appointees to the reserved Quebec seats must be current members of one of the designated Quebec legal institutions. The judgment also affi rmed that any change to the composition of the Supreme Court, including the eligibility conditions of appointees, is constitutionally protected. A synthesis of textual, contextual, and purposive analysis is hereinaft er used to review the Reference.