By Canadian Press

Court rules New Brunswick lieutenant-governor must be bilingual

Apr 14, 2022 | 11:26 AM

FREDERICTON — A New Brunswick judge says the appointment of a unilingual anglophone to the post of lieutenant-governor in the province was unconstitutional, but that striking down the appointment would cause too much harm.

Court of Queen’s Bench Chief Justice Tracey K. DeWare wrote in a ruling issued today that the Constitution requires the lieutenant-governor in the officially bilingual province to be able to speak both French and English, but she says it will be up to the federal government to decide what steps to take next.

DeWare says that striking down Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s choice of Brenda Murphy, who took office in September 2019, would create a constitutional and legislative crisis, because it would undermine otherwise lawfully enacted laws, decrees and appointments.

The Acadian Society of New Brunswick had challenged the appointment, arguing that appointing a unilingual anglophone to the role violated constitutional language protections, including the right to communicate with the New Brunswick government in either official language.

Lawyers for Trudeau and the Governor General argued that the appointment is not reviewable by the courts and that the Constitution requires the lieutenant-governor’s office to be bilingual, not the person who holds it.

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DeWare wrote that while not all government employees are required to be bilingual, the special role of the lieutenant-governor as the province’s head of state requires the person who holds the role to be able to communicate in both languages.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 14, 2022.

The Canadian Press