Courts of Saskatchewan

Judicial Appointments

Provincial Court

To be eligible for an appointment as a Provincial Court judge, an individual must be a lawyer in good standing in one of the Canadian provinces.

He or she must have at least 10 years of experience (apart from exceptional circumstances where the individual has appropriate legal or other judicial experience) and must apply to the Saskatchewan Provincial Court Judicial Council.

The Saskatchewan Provincial Court Judicial Council

The Saskatchewan Provincial Court Judicial Council is a body created under The Provincial Court Act, 1998. It is composed of the Chief Justice of Saskatchewan, the Chief Justice of the Court of King’s Bench, the Chief Judge of the Provincial Court, the President of the Law Society of Saskatchewan, two additional judges and two people who represent the community at large. It has two main purposes: recommending candidates for judicial appointment to Provincial Court, and hearing complaints about the conduct of Provincial Court judges.

Once lawyers have submitted their applications, the Council reviews and evaluates them. Candidates receive a designation of “highly recommended”, “recommended” or “not recommended”. The list of the Council’s recommendations is provided to the Minister of Justice. When a new judge is required, the appointment is made from this list.

The Council does not advise candidates of the outcome of the evaluation. All applications are kept on file for three years. Candidates who wish to be considered after this period must reapply. For more information please refer to the Council’s Assessments Policy.

The Council considers the following qualities when assessing candidates for an appointment:

• Educational achievement;
• Strong legal skills;
• Professional training and experience including mediation and alternative dispute resolution;
• The breadth of view and maturity;
• Tolerance, compassion and sympathy;
• Capacity to grow and to develop intellectually and professionally;
• Age and health;
• Stability of character and judicial temperament;
• Wisdom and common sense;
• Professional reputation;
• Good work ethic;
• Sensitivity to cultural diversity;
• Demonstrated dedication to public service;
• Good listening, and oral and written communication skills; and
• Good administrative and computer skills.

The application to be considered for an appointment to the Provincial Court of Saskatchewan consists of the following forms:

1. Judicial Candidate Information Form
   • Note: This is an editable PDF. We recommend that you first save the PDF form to your computer and then open and fill it in with Adobe Acrobat Reader. Adobe Acrobat Reader is available for Windows or Mac free of charge.)
2. Authorization for Disclosure of Information by RCMP
3. Authorization for Disclosure of Information by the Law Society

Candidates must provide the names of 6 referees. (Letters of reference are no longer required.)

The Council may make discreet inquiries of a candidate’s qualifications among individuals in the legal and civic communities. These inquiries are in addition to any inquiries made by the 6 referees provided by the candidate.

The completed forms should be sent to:

Saskatchewan Provincial Court Judicial Council

c/o Nadine Barnes
Executive Officer
2425 Victoria Avenue
Regina SK S4P 4W6

For more information, email Nadine Barnes