Harper nominates pair of Ontario judges to Supreme Court

Stephen Harper moved to fill two vacancies on the Supreme Court Monday monring, announcing his nominations of Justice Michael Moldaver and Justice Andromake Karakatsanis. Moldaver’s appointment is expected to rejoice the law-enforcement community, as the Ontario appellate judge has shown a reluctance to strike down legislation and expressed concern over the growth of litigation cases under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Meanwhile, Karakatsanis is a more unknown quantity; she is a long-time civil servant with a short history on the bench, but has close connections to senior Conservatives inside the federal government, most notably Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, with whom she worked when Flaherty was Ontario’s attorney-general. Both nominees will appear before a parliamentary committee on Wednesday to answer questions, though the committee has no power to reject them.

The Globe and Mail