ONTARIO JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS ANNOUNCED

Ottawa, September 18, 2006 – The Honourable Vic Toews, Q.C., Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, today announced the following appointments:

The Honourable David Moseley Brown, partner with the firm of Stikeman Elliott, Toronto, is appointed judge of the Superior Court of Justice in and for the province of Ontario. He will be assigned by the Chief Justice to Toronto and replaces Mr. Justice J. M. Farley who has now retired from the Court.

Mr. Justice Brown received a Bachelor of Laws in 1981 from the University of Toronto and a Master of Laws in Constitutional Law in 2005 from Osgoode Hall Law School. He was admitted to the Bar of Ontario in 1983. Mr. Justice Brown’s practice expertise spans diverse areas from energy law and regulation to constitutional law and Charter litigation. Besides his practice commitments, Mr. Justice Brown has been an adjunct professor at Queen’s and Osgoode Law Schools for 18 years and is an immediate past director of The Advocates’ Society of Ontario. Mr. Justice Brown is a prolific writer of legal and popular publications and articles.

The HonourableWolfram Tausendfreund, partner with the firm of O’Flynn Weese Tausendfreund of Belleville, is appointed judge of the Superior Court of Justice in and for the province of Ontario. He will be assigned by the Chief Justice to London and replaces Mr. Justice G.E. Taylor who is to be transferred to Kitchener to replace Mr. Justice J. J. Cavarzan who elected to become a supernumerary judge.

Mr. Justice Tausendfreund received a Bachelor of Laws in 1970 and a Bachelor of Arts in 1967 from the University of Western Ontario. He was admitted to the Bar of Ontario in 1972 and became a certified specialist in Civil Litigation by the Law Society of Upper Canada in 2002. Mr. Justice Tausendfreund’s practice expertise is in the area of civil litigation including criminal, family, commercial, personal injury, insurance defence, real estate and estate law. He is a past director of the Ontario Trial Lawyer’s Association. Mr. Justice Tausendfreund is very engaged in community activities, being an elected member of Belleville City Council for 15 years, immediate past President of the Belleville Rotary Club and past President of the Belleville family YMCA.

The Honourable Julie Alexandra Thorburn, partner with the firm of Cassels Brock of Toronto, is appointed judge of the Superior Court of Justice in and for the province of Ontario. She will be assigned by the Chief Justice to Toronto and she replaces Mr. Justice J. Hamilton who elected to become a supernumerary judge.

Madam Justice Thorburn received a Bachelor of Laws (cum laude) in 1988 from Queen’s University and a Baccalauréat en Interpretation Chant (magna cum laude) in 1985 from l’Université de Montréal. She was admitted to the Bar of Ontario in 1990. Madam Justice Thorburn’s practice expertise is in commercial litigation, entertainment law and technology law. She currently serves on the Board of the Association des Juristes d’Expression française de l’Ontario and is the former Chair of the OBA Media & Communications Law Section. An accomplished singer, Madam Justice Thorburn is a member of the Board of Directors of the Ontario Media Development Corporation.

The Honourable Ronald John Harper, partner with the firm of Harper Jaskot of Hamilton, is appointed judge of the Family Branch of the Superior Court of Justice in and for the province of Ontario. He will be assigned by the Chief Justice to London and replaces Mr. Justice
D.R. Aston who was appointed Senior Family Judge of the Superior Court of Justice in 2005.

Mr. Justice Harper received a Bachelor of Law in 1972 from the Dalhousie Law School, Halifax, Nova Scotia. He was admitted to the Bar of Ontario in 1974 and designated as a certified specialist in Family Law by the Law Society of Upper Canada in 1996. Mr. Justice Harper is an expert in family law, child protection law and mental health law. He currently serves as a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada’s Family Law Specialty Certification Committee, as Vice Chair of the Community Child Abuse Council, and as Chairman of the Development Committee for the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts. He is a prolific writer and lecturer on family law.

These appointments are effective immediately.

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Ref:

Mike Storeshaw
Director of Communications
Minister’s Office
613-992-4621