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Member Bio
- Joined
- Jan 13, 2008
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- 19,382
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- 27,384
- Location
- St Lawrence Market Area
Wikipedia notes some history.. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King's_Counsel
Lawyers who are designated Certified Specialist are recognized and experienced in their field of law and have met high standards imposed by the Law Society of Ontario.[84] This is commonly identified as modern day replacement to the Queen's Counsel (QC) designation.[85]
Ontario courts, however, continued to recognize the Queen's Counsel designations of Ontario lawyers appearing before it where those lawyers were accorded the honorific by the Federal Government.[86]
On June 30, 2023, the Attorney General for Ontario announced that the province would start awarding the designation again, in honour of King Charles's coronation.[87] There had been calls from some members of the Ontario bar for the province to reinstate the King's Counsel designation, on a merit basis, to help Ontario lawyers remain competitive internationally.[88]
Ontario
The Government of Ontario stopped making appointments in 1985. The then-Premier of Ontario, David Peterson made a statement in the house giving five reasons:- the designation was originally meant to recognise excellence in the courtroom, but the practice in Ontario was that it could be given to any lawyer, regardless of courtroom experience;
- the use of the designation misled the public, because it was more based on who one knows than what one knows;
- it was unfair to lawyers who for whatever reason have not been designated, leading to questions about their standing in the profession;
- no other profession received government awards of this type;
- the designation had been used in Ontario mainly as a form of political patronage.[81]
Lawyers who are designated Certified Specialist are recognized and experienced in their field of law and have met high standards imposed by the Law Society of Ontario.[84] This is commonly identified as modern day replacement to the Queen's Counsel (QC) designation.[85]
Ontario courts, however, continued to recognize the Queen's Counsel designations of Ontario lawyers appearing before it where those lawyers were accorded the honorific by the Federal Government.[86]
On June 30, 2023, the Attorney General for Ontario announced that the province would start awarding the designation again, in honour of King Charles's coronation.[87] There had been calls from some members of the Ontario bar for the province to reinstate the King's Counsel designation, on a merit basis, to help Ontario lawyers remain competitive internationally.[88]