Walkway barrier planned to ensure Supreme Court's independence
Justice Department offices being sealed off from building set to temporarily house Canada's top court
By Dean Beeby, CBC News
Posted: Aug 02, 2017 5:00 AM ET
Canada's Supreme Court justices will be temporarily moved
to new premises, where a simple wall will ensure their independence from
government. (Fred Chartrand/Canadian Press)
The walkway, known as the Memorial Colonnade, is an arch or bridge above Lyon Street that allows federal employees to walk comfortably between the buildings — out of the rain, wind, humidity and snow of Ottawa's changing seasons.
The East Memorial and West Memorial buildings, each facing Wellington Street, were constructed between 1949 and 1962 to house the rapidly expanding Veterans Affairs Department. The arch commemorates those who served in the Second World War.
The Memorial Colonnade, which people use to
go between two buildings, will be sealed off when the Supreme Court of
Canada moves into the West Memorial Building. (CBC)
The West Memorial Building has been vacant since 2008, and costs about $1.7 million for operations and maintenance each year.
But the west building is getting an important new tenant: The Supreme Court of Canada, including the offices of the nine justices, some 280 staff and three high-ceilinged courtrooms.
The big move is set to be complete by 2023, so the crumbling main Supreme Court building on Wellington, opened in 1939, can get a long-overdue, five-year makeover.
$1B rehabilitation project
The entire undertaking — fit up of the West Memorial Building, move, rehabilitation of the main Supreme Court building, and move back — is expected to cost taxpayers $1 billion.
But the whole project is contingent on erecting a simple, relatively inexpensive wall to block that pedestrian walkway.
That's because Canada's form of constitutional democracy requires a clear separation of its three branches; that is, Parliament, the government and the courts.
'This is to ensure the conceptual and operational independence of the Supreme Court of Canada.' - Public Services spokesperson
And a physical walkway between the justice minister's offices and the high court would offend that fundamental principle of separation, both practically and symbolically.
The wall "is to ensure the physical separation of the Supreme Court of Canada in the West Memorial Building from the federal judicial functions within the East Memorial Building," said Jean-François Létourneau, a spokesperson for Public Services and Procurement Canada, which is responsible for federal real estate.
"This is to ensure the conceptual and operational independence of the Supreme Court of Canada is maintained during their interim occupancy."
A second wall is also planned to seal off an underground pedestrian tunnel that also connects the two buildings.
"The Colonnade and tunnels will be reopened once the Supreme Court of Canada moves back into the rehabilitated Supreme Court of Canada building," said Nicolas Boucher, another Public Services spokesperson.
The walls — known as demising partitions — will be built sometime between 2019 and 2023, as the West Memorial Building is rehabilitated.
A Public Services spokesperson says the wall "solution" was developed by the department rather than the high court.
Court guards independence
The Supreme Court of Canada jealously guards its independence from government, and last year won its most recent skirmish.
In 2015, the Harper government issued an order requiring federal departments — including the Courts Administration Service and the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada — to obtain their IT services, such as data storage on central servers, from Shared Services Canada by Sept. 1 of that year.
The high court dug in its heels, refusing to comply and threatening action — all in defence of its independence from government.
The justices' objection had a practical side: about a third of the cases that come before the high court are brought by the federal government, so confidentiality on each side is necessary to ensure the integrity of the judicial process.
Data from both sides cannot be kept on the same server, the court argued.
In the end, the Liberal government altered the cabinet order on Jan. 13, 2016, no longer requiring the court to use Shared Services Canada. The Supreme Court now maintains its data on servers independent of government, though it does use Shared Services Canada to acquire secure hardware.
Electrical and other systems are at serious
risk of failure in the existing Supreme Court of Canada building, which
is getting a $1-billion makeover. (CBC)
Internal documents from Public Services and Procurement Canada, obtained by CBC News under the Access to Information Act, show several systems are expected to fail before the move to the West Memorial Building by 2023.
"Several building components are well beyond the expected life cycle and at significant risks of failure," warns one document from July of last year. Faulty systems include old wiring, leaky radiators and substandard plumbing.
430 Comments
Commenting is now closed for this story.
Alfred Tsu
It costs $250 million to
completely renovate all 6 TD Bank towers in Toronto. This includes
redoing all the external surfaces, upgrading over 100 elevators, and all
the while over 20,000 people are productively working.
In Ottawa, replete with public sector bloat and unaccountability, it costs $1 BILLION to renovate a small building housing 300 people. Sickening.
In Ottawa, replete with public sector bloat and unaccountability, it costs $1 BILLION to renovate a small building housing 300 people. Sickening.
Joe Smithson
@Alfred Tsu
What;s sickening is your lack of respect for the highest court in the land which keeps the Gov't in check.
We know you Trumpers would prefer to rule by dictatorship.
What;s sickening is your lack of respect for the highest court in the land which keeps the Gov't in check.
We know you Trumpers would prefer to rule by dictatorship.
David Raymond Amos
@Joe Smithson Mr Tsu makes a very valid point in my humble opinion Furthermore who picks the judges in the first place?
Kim Porte
good. thankfully our supreme
court justices aren't bought and paid for like our neighbours.
independence in the courts is vital to our democracy.
David Allan
@Chris Burke
"we live under the Crown"
No, we don't.
The Crown has no control or authority over Canada.
Not since April 17, 1982.
You can than our current PM's dad for that.
"Where did you get the idea that mob rule democracy was our systems.? "
Straw man can't win.
When did she ever say "mob rule"?
"It is a democratic voting process, that's all."
No judge in Canada is appointed via any voting process.
"we live under the Crown"
No, we don't.
The Crown has no control or authority over Canada.
Not since April 17, 1982.
You can than our current PM's dad for that.
"Where did you get the idea that mob rule democracy was our systems.? "
Straw man can't win.
When did she ever say "mob rule"?
"It is a democratic voting process, that's all."
No judge in Canada is appointed via any voting process.
@Artie Gibson
The SCC had nothing to do with the Rehtaeh Parsons case. Nothing at all.
You don't know how our courts work.
The SCC had nothing to do with the Rehtaeh Parsons case. Nothing at all.
You don't know how our courts work.
David Allan
@Artie Gibson
""Independence in the courts is vital to our democracy", surely you jest."
Cite incidences of interference with that independence.
""Independence in the courts is vital to our democracy", surely you jest."
Cite incidences of interference with that independence.
David Raymond Amos
@David Allan Why is it that I am suing the Queen of England right now then?
David Raymond Amos
@David Allan Trust that I know a quite a little bit about the Parsons matter as well
John Brown
A billion for a makeover,
$1.7 million a year to maintain an empty building...man, who the hell
did they hire to look after things, the mob?
Doesn't this seem stunningly, ridiculously expensive to anyone else? Our homeless are still homeless, our veterans have little to no support from the very government that sent them in harms way, our hospitals, highways, schools are always financially strapped, but they can justify this?
Un-freaking-believable.
Doesn't this seem stunningly, ridiculously expensive to anyone else? Our homeless are still homeless, our veterans have little to no support from the very government that sent them in harms way, our hospitals, highways, schools are always financially strapped, but they can justify this?
Un-freaking-believable.
David Raymond Amos
@John Brown I am glad you noticed that too
Jackson Farley
After the Omar decision, our
Constitution is just a piece of paper that is used whenever the left
wants to apply it. I saw comments saying how anybody who disagreed with
the decision should be silenced which clearly goes against freedom of
speech laws in our Charter.
David Raymond Amos
@Jackson Farley Maybe that
explains why I was illegally barred from parliamentary properties and
arrested a couple times after running for a seat in Parliament
John Phillips
Good plan to protect judicial independence.
After all, nobody uses smart phones to communicate influence.
After all, nobody uses smart phones to communicate influence.
David Raymond Amos
@John Phillips Lawyers would not dare to do that would they?
Ben Smith
Our 9 Santas!
Ewan Cameron
@Ben Smith Ben, you're forgetting the Santa clause.
David Raymond Amos
@Ewan Cameron Its the sneaky
little elves conning Rudolf to fly over to the rooftop of the other
building that have me concerned right now.
James Watson
We're paying for this nonsense? In the age of texting it IS nonsense!
David Raymond Amos
@James Watson Yup
Nelson Barley
So they couldn't just lock the doors?
David Raymond Amos
@Nelson Barley Methinks doors that could be unlocked would work far better in case of a fire or other emergencies.
Chris Burke
Funny how a wall suits this government just fine. lol , You can;t make this up.
Joe Smithson
@Chris Burke
At least they can build a wall..unlike Trump!
LOL!
At least they can build a wall..unlike Trump!
LOL!
David Raymond Amos
@Chris Burke Why is that I am humming some old Pink Floyd tunes right now?
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