Alberta’s three chief justices issued a rare joint statement Tuesday defending judicial independence, days after Premier Danielle Smith told a radio caller she wished she could “direct” judges. The statement did not name Smith, but said democracy works only when each branch of government respects the independence of the others.
A rare statement from the bench
The statement, dated Tuesday, is signed by acting Chief Justice of Alberta Dawn Pentelechuk, Court of King’s Bench Chief Justice Kent Davidson and Court of Justice Chief Justice James Hunter. Public interventions by sitting chief justices are uncommon in Canada, and a joint statement from all three of the province’s courts is rarer still.
“It ensures judges can make decisions based solely on the law and evidence presented,” the statement says of judicial independence. “It frees judges from pressure or influence from external sources including the governments that appoint us.”
The judges say they recognize their role is to serve Albertans. “We do this by upholding our oath of office to decide each case honestly, impartially, and to the best of our ability,” it reads. “We know that our decisions can profoundly impact the people who come before the courts.”
A provincial court spokesperson, Olav Rokne, declined to link the statement specifically to the premier, describing it as an educational piece aimed at public misunderstandings of the role of the courts. Reporting on the statement noted it had been developed over several weeks.
The radio comments
On her call-in radio show, “Your Province, Your Premier,” on Saturday, Smith took a question about bail laws from a caller who asked whether the government could “write some provincial rules to tune these judges in.” The caller was referring to the case of Justin Bone, who is on trial for second-degree murder in the 2022 deaths of two men in Edmonton’s Chinatown. Police have said Bone was released on bail a few days before the alleged attacks.
Smith told listeners on QR Calgary and 880 CHED that she wishes she could “direct” judges, adding that judges “get very, very prickly when you criticize them” but that the criticism in that case was deserved. She also said she is trying to work with Ottawa to let her government assist in appointing new Court of King’s Bench justices so “that we start choosing judges in Alberta that reflect the values of how we want them to operate here.” She has written to Prime Minister Mark Carney proposing more provincial involvement in judicial appointments.
In recent months, Smith has repeatedly criticized “activist” and “unelected” judges, arguing that courts are undermining decisions of elected leaders. Her government used the Charter’s notwithstanding clause last fall to end a provincewide teachers’ strike, and three more times to shield laws affecting transgender people. In December, after her government tabled legislation that rendered moot a court review of a proposed Alberta separation referendum question, the judge in that case, Justice Colin Feasby, issued his decision anyway, found the question unconstitutional under the old rules, and called the government’s move “extraordinary.”
Appointment power sits in Ottawa
The dispute runs into a constitutional wall: judges of Alberta’s Court of Appeal and Court of King’s Bench are appointed by the federal government, not the province. Alberta appoints only the judges of its provincial court. Any formal provincial role in superior court appointments would require Ottawa to agree to share a power it has held since Confederation.
Reactions
Sam Blackett, a spokesman for the premier’s office, offered a brief response. “While recent court rulings have rightfully led Albertans and Canadians alike to question aspects of our criminal justice system, our government respects the role of each branch of government and supports their independence,” he said.
Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi, in a joint statement with justice critic Irfan Sabir, said the unprecedented statement shows how far the premier and her justice minister have gone to sow mistrust in the justice system. “Every Albertan should be concerned about this. The rule of law is fundamental to a functioning society, and the cheap attacks, directly from the ‘Trump playbook,’ do not reflect Albertan or Canadian values,” they said.
Smith was publicly reprimanded by the province’s ethics commissioner in 2023, after an investigation found she undermined democracy and broke conflict-of-interest rules by discussing a criminal case with the accused and pressuring her attorney general to make the case go away.
