File Photo (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By Aaron Schulze

B.C. Chief Justice

Kamloops-based judge appointed as B.C. chief justice

Dec 8, 2023 | 11:44 AM

KAMLOOPS — A Kamloops-based judge on B.C.’s Court of Appeal has earned his second promotion in as many years.

On Friday (Dec. 8), Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the appointment of Len Marchard as the new Chief Justice of B.C. and Chief Justice of the Court of Appeal of Yukon. Marchand replaces Robert J. Bauman who retired on Oct. 1, 2023.

“The Honourable Leonard Marchand is a highly respected member of British Columbia and Canada’s legal community,” Trudeau states. “As he takes on his new role as Chief Justice of British Columbia and Chief Justice of the Court of Appeal of Yukon, I wish him continued success. I know he brings a wealth of experience to the position and will continue to serve the people of British Columbia and the Yukon well.”

After working at Fulton & Company LLP in Kamloops from 1994 to 2013, Marchand was appointed a provincial judge in 2013 and elevated to the B.C. Supreme Court in 2017. He was then appointed to B.C.’s Court of Appeal in 2021.

Marchand is the son of the late Leonard Marchand, who was Canada’s first Indigenous Member of Parliament and first Indigenous cabinet minister under then-Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.

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Chief Justices are responsible for the leadership and administration of their courts. They are appointed by the Governor General on the advice of Cabinet and the recommendation of the Prime Minister.