The Canadian Bar Association - National (English) - July/August 2012

From the President
HEALTHCARE & FINANCIAL SERVICES GROUP
PUBLISHER • ÉDITEUR
Jim Farley (416) 764-3910
JFarley@rci.rogers.com
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE • DÉLÉGUÉ COMMERCIAL
Stefanie MacDonald (416) 764-3911
Stefanie.macdonald@rci.rogers.com
Mot du président
One rule
The rule of law begins at home.
By Brian Tabor
When I’m at home, a little infrequently of late, one of the
things my two boys and I like to do at breakfast is watch
TSN, The Sports Network. It’s a great opportunity to do a little
male bonding and to catch up on what’s important in their lives.
The good news from my son Stuart (Grade 3) is that his school got a
new playground. The (so-called) bad news is that it comes with a whole
lot of new rules, to make it safe. And so we talked about the rules and
the reasons for them, and by the end of the discussion on this very
important issue, I had teased out of him the admission that the rules
were fair.
I tell you this story as an introduction and context for what is happening
on the world stage. There is an increasing realization, led by the
global legal community, that advancing the rule of law is the unifying
force for addressing poverty, combating terrorism, eliminating corruption
and responding to global pandemics. The unifying theme is governance
by the rule of law, so that countries can respond effectively to
these challenges.
We’ve all heard about the rule of law and its characteristics: an independent
bar and judiciary, free speech, access to information, transparency,
equal rights for women and minorities, and the list goes on. Distilled
to its essence, the rule of law is a benchmark against which all things are
measured in a society increasingly governed by a complex set of rules.
Good governance embraces the rule of law.
Increasingly, I am proud to say, other nations look to Canada as the
country that seems to be “getting it right.” Our lawyers, led by the
CBA, have advanced the rule of law as the “line in the sand” between
the state and the individual — in particular, to protect those whom
some would call the “losers” in our society. Someone must be prepared
to stand up and vindicate those rights. The CBA does that, on behalf of
all Canadians.
We haven’t stopped at our own borders, either. CBA lawyers are making
a significant difference around the world in advancing the rule of
law. Our reasoning is simple: it’s incumbent upon those of us in mature
bars to take the lead and advance the rule of law. Not only is it the right
thing to do, but if the rule of law is not strengthened everywhere, then
it is at risk everywhere.
We are in this for the long haul. The rule of law cannot be imported
into a society overnight — in many cases, it takes a generation to instil
and to build the framework for a just society. It all begins at home. N
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Send your comments to cbapres@cba.org.
PRODUCTION MANAGER • DIRECTRICE DE
LA PRODUCTION
Liz Stone (416) 764-3919
elizabeth.stone@rci.rogers.com
ROGERS MEDIA INC.
PRESIDENT & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
Anthony P. Viner
ROGERS PUBLISHING LTD.
PRESIDENT & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
Brian Segal
SENIOR VICE-PRESIDENTS
John Milne, Marc Blondeau, Harvey Botting, Mitch Dent,
Michael J. Fox
VICE-PRESIDENT, BUSINESS PLANNING
Immee Chee Wah
VICE-PRESIDENT, PRODUCTION
John Hall
La règle est
simple
Savoir prêcher par l’exemple
’ école de mon fils Stuart, qui est
L en troisième année du primaire,
s’est dotée d’un tout nouveau terrain
de jeu. Au départ, Stuart était loin de
se réjouir de la nouvelle. « Une foule
de nouvelles règles s’appliquent »,
déplorait-il. Pourtant, après une longue
conversation sur la question, il a finalement
reconnu que ces dernières
avaient du bon.
Cet exemple, tout à fait banal, est
un microcosme de ce qui se déroule à
l’échelle internationale. On constate
que l’éradication de la pauvreté, la lutte
contre le terrorisme et l’élimination de
la corruption ne peuvent se réaliser
sans qu’on insiste fortement sur l’importance
de la primauté du droit.
Nous en connaissons tous les tenants
et aboutissants : une magistrature
et un barreau indépendant, la liberté
d’expression, la transparence, l’accès
à l’information et l’égalité. La primauté
du droit est l’étalon de mesure
du bon fonctionnement d’une société
gouvernée par des règles de plus en
plus complexes. Elle ne fait qu’un avec
la bonne gouvernance.
En ce qui concerne le respect de la
primauté du droit, le Canada est un
modèle pour les autres nations.
Les bons gestes ne s’arrêtent pas à
nos frontières. Partout dans le monde,
les juristes de l’ABC contribuent à l’avancement
de la primauté du droit.
L’équation est simple : c’est aux barreaux
les plus solides de paver la voie.
Si la primauté du droit n’est pas
respectée à l’échelle internationale,
nous sommes tous perdants.
Il s’agit d’un travail de longue haleine
qui nécessitera les efforts de plusieurs
générations. Et dire que tout cela commence
à la maison. N
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Commentaires? cbapres@cba.org
SENIOR VICE-PRESIDENT, BUSINESS
DEVELOPMENT, HEALTHCARE & FINANCIAL
SERVICES GROUP
Marc Thibodeau
Executive
Officers
––––––––––
Administrateurs
exécutifs
PARKER MACCARTHY
1 st Vice-President
1 er vice-président
BERNARD AMYOT
2 nd Vice-President
2 e vice-président
JACK INNES
Treasurer
Trésorier
SUSAN MCGRATH
Past President
Présidente sortante
JOHN HOYLES
Executive Director
Directeur exécutif
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6 NATIONAL
JANUARY · FEBRUARY 2006