FEDERAL COURT JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS ANNOUNCED

OTTAWA, April 11, 2014 – The Honourable Peter Mackay, P.C., Q.C., M.P. for Central Nova, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, today announced the following appointments:

The Honourable René Leblanc, a lawyer with the Department of Justice Canada in Ottawa, is appointed a Judge of the Federal Court, to fill a new position created by Section 95 of Bill C-36.

Mr. Justice Leblanc received a Bachelor of Civil Laws from Université Laval in 1979 and was called to the Barreau du Québec in 1980. He worked in private practice with the law firm of Lazaroth Cannon Lemelin Rourke in Quebec City before joining the Legal Services Department of the Secretary of State of Canada in 1982. In 1986, he joined the Department of Justice Canada and in 2006, he was appointed Senior General Counsel. In that capacity, he has appeared before all levels of court.

Since 2006, Justice Leblanc has been designated as one of a small group of lawyers to represent the Attorney General of Canada before the Supreme Court of Canada. He is also a member of the national committee responsible for reviewing all aspects of litigation before the Supreme Court of Canada. His main area of practice was civil litigation and constitutional law.

Justice Leblanc has been a frequent conference speaker to his colleagues in the Department of Justice Canada and has served as a part-professor at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Civil Law.

The Honourable Martine St-Louis, a lawyer with McCarthy Tétrault in Montréal, is appointed a judge of the Federal Court in Ottawa, to replace Mr. Justice A.F.J. Scott, who was appointed to the Federal Court of Appeal.

Madam Justice St-Louis received a Bachelor of Laws from the Université de Montréal in 1987 and was admitted to the Barreau du Québec in 1988. She practised with Ogilvy Renault (Norton Rose) from 1988 to 1991, with Heenan Blaikie from 2000 to 2001 and with McCarthy Tétrault since 2001. Her main areas of practice were immigration law, administration law, labour law and constitutional law.

Madam Justice St-Louis has been active with numerous professional organizations, including the Canadian Bar Association, the International Bar Association and the Association des avocats et avocates en droit de l'immigration.

The Honourable George R. Locke, a lawyer with Norton Rose Fulbright in Montréal, is appointed a judge of the Federal Court in Ottawa, to replace Mr. Justice R. Boivin, who was appointed to the Federal Court of Appeal.

Mr. Justice Locke obtained a Bachelor of Engineering in 1987 and a Bachelor of Laws in 1991, both from McGill University. He articled with Bereskin & Parr and, since 1993, has practised with Ogilvy Renault LLP, now Norton Rose Fulbright. His main area of practice was intellectual property, including intellectual property litigation involving patents, trade-marks, copyrights, trade secrets and industrial designs. He has appeared before all levels of court, including the Superior Court of Quebec, the Federal Court and the Patent Appeal Board.

Justice Locke has been active with numerous professional organizations, including the Intellectual Property Institute of Canada, the Ordre des ingénieurs du Québec, the International Association for the Protection of Industrial Property and the International Federation of Intellectual Property Attorneys. He is accredited by the Law Society of Upper Canada as a Certified Specialist in Intellectual Property.

Justice Locke has been a frequent conference speaker and presenter, notably for the course on Law for Architects and Engineers at McGill University. He has authored and published numerous articles on various intellectual property topics.

These appointments are effective immediately.

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