20th-century Chief Justice of Canada and Lieutenant Governor of Quebec
Sir Charles Fitzpatrick
In office Nominated by Wilfrid Laurier Preceded by Henri Elzéar Taschereau Succeeded by Louis Henry Davies In office Monarch George V Governors General The Duke of Devonshire The Lord Byng of Vimy Premier Lomer Gouin Louis-Alexandre Taschereau Preceded by Pierre-Évariste Leblanc Succeeded by Louis-Philippe Brodeur In office Preceded by Jules Joseph Taschereau Frémont Succeeded by Lorenzo Robitaille In office Preceded by David Mills Succeeded by Allen Bristol Aylesworth In office Preceded by Charles Hibbert Tupper Succeeded by Henry George Carroll In office Preceded by Thomas Chase-Casgrain Succeeded by Némèse Garneau
Born (1851-12-19 ) December 19, 1851Quebec City , Canada East Died June 17, 1942(1942-06-17) (aged 90) Resting place Cimetière Saint-Michel de Sillery Political party Quebec Liberal Party (1890–1896)Liberal Party of Canada (1896–1906)
Sir Charles Fitzpatrick , GCMG PC Canadian lawyer and politician who served as Minister of Justice of Canada , as Chief Justice of Canada and then as Lieutenant Governor of Quebec .
Biography
Fitzpatrick was born in Quebec City , Canada East , to John Fitzpatrick and Mary Connolly.[ 1] Laval University , where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree (1873) and a Bachelor of Laws degree (1876), receiving the Dufferin Silver Medal .[ 2] bar of Quebec in 1876, he established his practice in Quebec City and later founded the law firm of Fitzpatrick & Taschereau.[ 1]
Fitzpatrick as an MP In 1885, he acted as chief counsel to Louis Riel , who was on trial for leading the North-West Rebellion . Riel was found guilty and sentenced to death.[ 3]
Fitzpatrick entered politics in 1890 , winning election to the Quebec Legislative Assembly in the Québec-Comté electoral district. He was re-elected in 1892 , but he resigned in June 1896 to enter federal politics.[citation needed
He was first elected to the House of Commons of Canada in the Quebec County electoral district in the 1896 federal election as a Liberal Member of Parliament (MP). He served as Solicitor General of Canada from 1896 to 1902, and as Minister of Justice from 1902 until 1906.[citation needed In 1905, he took part, as the federal government representative, in the negotiations that led to the creation of the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan .
He was appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada in 1906 as Chief Justice . He served in that position until 1918, when he was appointed as Lieutenant Governor of Quebec , the 12th since Confederation. Partway through his term as Lieutenant Governor, his wife's nephew (Louis-Alexandre Taschereau ) became the Premier of Quebec .
He is the only Chief Justice other than Sir William Buell Richards to have served in that position without having first been a Puisne Justice on the court (Richards was Chief Justice at the court's creation in 1875), and the only Chief Justice to have been appointed without any prior judicial experience.[citation needed
Personal life
On May 20, 1879, Fitzpatrick married Marie-Elmire-Corinne Caron. She was the daughter of René-Édouard Caron , 2nd Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, and his wife Marie-Joséphine De Blois.
He was knighted in 1907. Fitzpatrick died on June 17, 1942, at the age of 90 years and 6 months. He is interred in Sillery , at Saint-Michel Cemetery (cimetière Saint-Michel de Sillery ).[ 4]
Electoral record
By-election: On Mr. Fitzpatrick being appointed Solicitor General, 11 July 1896
By-election on 30 July 1896
Party
Candidate
Votes
Liberal Charles Fitzpatrick
acclaimed
Archives
There is a Charles Fitzpatrick fonds at Library and Archives Canada .[ 5]
References
^ a b Canada, Supreme Court of; Canada, Public Works and Government Services (November 1, 2000). The Supreme Court of Canada and its Justices 1875–2000: La Cour suprême du Canada et ses juges 1875–2000 ISBN 978-1-77070-095-6 ^ History of the Administration of the Earl of Dufferin in Canada ,William Leggo , Toronto: Lovell Printing and Publishing Company (1878), pg. 877^ Canada, Supreme Court of (January 1, 2001). "Supreme Court of Canada – Biography – Charles Fitzpatrick" . www.scc-csc.ca . Retrieved May 29, 2020 . ^ "Sir Charles Fitzpatrick P.C.G.C.M.G. 1851—1942: BillionGraves Record" . BillionGraves.com . Retrieved March 4, 2019 .^ "Charles Fitzpatrick fonds, Library and Archives Canada" . July 20, 2017. Retrieved September 3, 2020 .
External links
Post-Confederation (1867–present) Province of Canada (1841–66)* Lower Canada (1791–1841) British Province of Quebec (1759–91)*
The Crown's representative from 1759 to 1791, and from 1841 to 1866 held the office and rank of Governor-General
June 1906 – August 1906: September 1906 – 1909: 1909–11: 1911–18:
1 The office of Solicitor General was abolished and the office of Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness was in force April 4, 2005.
International National Other
