The Honourable William Vancise

1982 - 1983   Justice of the Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench
1983 - 2013   Justice of the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal
1996 - 2013   Justice of the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories

William Vancise was born in Regina, Saskatchewan, in 1938. He attended elementary school in Regina and Grand Coulee, and enrolled in Regina’s Luther College for high school. He received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Saskatchewan in 1958, and two years later, obtained his Law degree from the same university.

Admitted to the Bar in 1961, he joined Balfour & Balfour as an associate in 1961. The following year, he joined Balfour, McLeod, McDonald, Laskchuk and Kyle. Mr. Vancise became a partner with that firm in 1963 and a managing partner in 1972. He specialized in resource, administrative and labour law, and was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1979.

In 1982, Mr. Vancise was appointed a judge of the Saskatchewan Court of Queen’s Bench. He was elevated to the Court of Appeal a year later. While sitting as a justice of the Court of Appeal, he was the founder and first president of the National Judicial Counselling Programme, a professional counselling service for federally appointed judges and their families. He was also appointed Chairman of the Copyright Board of Canada in 2004.

Mr. Vancise retired in January 2013.

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