B.C. appoints three provincial court judges

Posted in:

The Government of British Columbia has appointed three new provincial court judges to fill vacancies created by two judicial transfers to other jurisdictions within the province and one retirement.

The new appointments and effective dates are:

  • Dawn Boblin – Nov. 6, 2017
  • Mark Jetté – Nov. 10, 2017
  • Andrea Ormiston – Nov. 6, 2017

Boblin received a bachelor of laws degree from the University of British Columbia (UBC) in 1992 and has served as Crown counsel for the Province of B.C. from 1994 to 2002 and again from 2009 to the present, with a focus on serious crime files. During 2002 to 2009, she was with the City of Vancouver, where she provided legal and operational advice to members of the Vancouver Police Department. Boblin has been both a volunteer and director with the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival Society. She will be assigned to the Fraser Region.

Jetté graduated from the University of Victoria with a bachelor of laws degree in 1990. With an interest in criminal law and litigation, he worked in private practice and was most recently a partner with Sutherland Jetté Barristers, where his practice consisted of criminal defence and extradition. Jetté has worked as an ad-hoc prosecutor and special prosecutor, as well as for the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner. He has been an adjunct professor of advocacy law at UBC since 2013. Jetté is active in minor and amateur sports associations in Port Moody and Coquitlam. He will be assigned to the Fraser Region.

Ormiston was called to the bar in Ontario and British Columbia after earning a law degree from the University of Ottawa in 2001. She served as Crown counsel both in Ontario and, since 2005, in B.C. with a focus on criminal law. Between September 2003 and March 2004, Ormiston interned at the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs, Native Law Centre of Canada and the University of Vienna, where she concentrated on the international rights of Indigenous peoples. She volunteers with the Chilliwack Public Safety Committee. Ormiston will be assigned to the Fraser Region.

Government and the public rely on judges for their integrity and impartiality and trust they will deliver fair, learned decisions. These qualities are essential for maintaining the public’s confidence in the courts and are a vital component of any democratic justice system.

British Columbia’s judicial system is recognized as one of the best in the world because of the diversity, experience and knowledge of its judges.

Quick Facts:

  • The process to appoint judges involves several steps:
    • Interested lawyers apply and the Judicial Council of B.C., a statutory body made up of the chief judge, an associate chief judge, other judges, lawyers and lay people, reviews the candidates.
    • The council recommends potential judges to the Attorney General, with the final appointment made through a cabinet order-in-council.
  • Although judges are located in a judicial region, many travel regularly throughout the province to meet changing demands.
  • The chief judge determines the locations to which judges are assigned in order to meet the needs of the court.

Learn More:

Information about the judicial appointment process: www.provincialcourt.bc.ca

https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2017AG0033-001827