The legal and ethical issues regarding the appointment of Supreme Court Justices will be examined within the context of the Constitution Act of 1867. The issue of Judicature (Section VII) in the Constitution defines the role of the governor General in the appointment of Supreme Court Justices under the guidance of the Queen’s government. In recent times, the Prime minister can provide “advice” for the Governor General in the choice of Supreme Court judges, yet the ethical issue of a democratic process in choosing these candidates increases the potential for political corruption. The legislature does not have the ability to prevent political …show more content…
The parliament and the provinces had literally no power to replace Justice Nadon due to Harper’s control over the appointment process. More so, the increasing ethical debate of parliamentary hearings on the appointment of Supreme Court justices was approved in 2006, yet in 2008, PM Harper refused to allow this process as a reversal to the older ways of Constitutional law in the 19th century. Therefore, the issue of a consolidation of power in the executive branch defines the ineptitude of PM Harper’s constitutional authority, but more so, it defines the powerlessness of the parliament to check and balance these aspects of monarchical power that work through the Prime Minister and the governor General. Surely, these are major ethical issues that define the damaging effect of Supreme Court justices, which can also reflect the severe political bias of the Prime Minister and the British monarchy that works through the viceregal in the Canadian government. These are the important ethical issues on the appointment of Supreme Court justices, which define the potential bias and political corruption associated with the Prime Minister, the Governor General, and the British monarchy that control the legal institutions of the Canadian government through the Constitution of …show more content…
In the Constitution, Sections 96 and 101 define the overriding power of the Governor General and the Queen to choose Supreme Court judges without the approval of parliament or the provinces. More so, the Prime Minister has become the de facto government official that wields power to choose a Supreme Court judge, which illustrates the potential political corruption and bias of candidates that are chosen. The example of PM Stephen Harper defines the potential dangers of a singular executive power with the ability to choose a Supreme Court Judge with extreme bias and neglect for the rule of law. This ethical issue defines the limitations of the Constitution Act of 1867, which did not allow a broader process of examination and choice for the a new Supreme Court Judge. In the 2000s, the parliament was given the right to have hearings and interviews with the Supreme Court justice candidate, but PM Harper reversed this trend in favor of the conservative legal view of the Constitution of 1867. Ethically, the clash of legislative and executive branches defines the limitations of the Constitution of 1867 in terms of choosing Supreme Court Justices through political bias and a narrow corridor of power dominated by the British monarchy and the