March 8, 2019 – Ottawa, Ontario – Department of Justice Canada
The Honourable David Lametti, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, today announced the following appointment under the new judicial application process introduced on October 20, 2016. The new process emphasizes transparency, merit, and diversity, and will continue to ensure the appointment of jurists who meet the highest standards of excellence and integrity.
Charles A. Leblond, Q.C., a partner at Stewart McKelvey LLP, is appointed a judge of the Court of Appeal of New Brunswick.
Biography
Justice LeBlond was born in Grand-Falls, New Brunswick. He completed his post-secondary education at the University of New Brunswick (Fredericton) and obtained his law degree from the University of Moncton in 1982.
Following his call to the bar in January 1983, Justice LeBlond practiced for over 36 years with Stewart McKelvey.
Justice LeBlond specialized in civil litigation and he appeared before the Court of Queen's Bench, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada. His practice focused mainly in the areas of insurance, construction, professional liability and corporate and commercial litigation.
Justice LeBlond was very active with the Law Society of New Brunswick. He held the position of President from 2000-2001 and chaired the Discipline Committee for over ten years. He was appointed Queen's Counsel in 1999 and was inducted as a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers in 2009.
Over the years, he sat on many community oriented boards of directors including Enterprise Saint John, the New Brunswick Museum, the Conseil Communautaire Samuel de Champlain (Association régionale de la communauté francophone de Saint-Jean), Alpine Ski NB, NB Sailing, Downtown Moncton Centreville Inc. and Special Olympics New Brunswick.
Justice LeBlond and his wife, the Honourable Colette d'Entremont, are the proud parents of their two accomplished sons, Dr. Louis LeBlond and Jean-Claude LeBlond, and are the equally proud in-laws of their respective spouses, Dr. Erica Doucet and Stephanie Murphy.
Quick facts
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Since 2016, the Government of Canada has made over 250 judicial appointments.
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Canada's judiciary is internationally renowned and respected for its independence and diversity. In October 2016, the government introduced important reforms to the appointments process, aimed at strengthening the selection process. Of the individuals appointed under the new process, over half are women, eight are Indigenous, 20 identify as visible minorities, 13 identify as LGBTQ2, and three identify as persons with disabilities.
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The Government of Canada is committed to promoting access to justice for all Canadians. To improve outcomes for Canadian families, Budget 2018 will provide funding of $77.2 million over four years to support the expansion of unified family courts, beginning in 2019-2020. This investment in the family justice system will create 39 new judicial positions in Alberta, Ontario, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador.
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In addition, Budget 2018 provided funding for a further seven judicial positions in Saskatchewan and Ontario, at a cost of $17.1 million over five years.
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The funding outlined in Budget 2018 comes on top of resources allocated under Budget 2017, which created 28 new judicial positions across the country.
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In addition, the Government will invest $6 million over two years, beginning in 2018-2019, to support the judicial discipline process through which allegations of judicial misconduct are investigated. In this way, the Government will ensure that a robust process remains in place to allow Canadians to voice their concerns and submit complaints about judicial conduct to the Canadian Judicial Council and the Office of the Commissioner for Federal Judicial Affairs.
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Federal judicial appointments are made by the Governor General, acting on the advice of the federal Cabinet and recommendations from the Minister of Justice.
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The Judicial Advisory Committees across Canada play a key role in evaluating judicial applications. There are 17 Judicial Advisory Committees, with each province and territory represented.
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Significant reforms to the role and structure of the Judicial Advisory Committees, aimed at enhancing the independence and transparency of the process, were announced on October 20, 2016. Sixteen Judicial Advisory Committees have been reconstituted to date.
