Three new judges have been appointed to the Provincial Court of Saskatchewan.
The Honourable Cynthia Alexander is appointed to Regina, the Honourable Lori O’Connor and the Honourable Buffy Rodgers have been appointed to Prince Albert.
Judge Alexander received her Bachelor of Laws from the University of Saskatchewan College of Law in 1996 and was called to the Bar in 1997. She completed her articles with Woloshyn & Company (now W Law) in Regina, where she remained as an Associate Lawyer until 2000. Judge Alexander worked as a Crown Prosecutor with Public Prosecutions in Prince Albert, and became a Senior Crown Prosecutor there in 2008. In 2022, she moved to the Head Office of Public Prosecutions in Regina as the Director of Professional Development.
Judge Alexander has spent the majority of her career prosecuting criminal matters. She has developed expertise in criminal procedure, trial advocacy and rules of evidence. Outside of work, she enjoys music and travelling, and has volunteered with the Prince Albert Music Festival and the Saskatchewan Jazz Festival.
Judge O’Connor received her Bachelor of Laws from Dalhousie University in 2008 and was called to the Bar in 2009. She completed her articles with Legal Aid in Thompson, Manitoba, where she continued as a Staff Lawyer until 2010 when she joined Saskatchewan Public Prosecutions as a Crown Prosecutor. She became a Regional Crown Prosecutor in Melfort in 2019.
Judge O’Connor has extensive experience in criminal law and has taken an active role in mentoring law students, as well as providing court and testimony training to nurse examiners, victims services volunteers and peace officers. She also regularly contributes book reviews to the Canadian Law Library Review that appear on CanLii. Outside of her professional life, Judge O’Connor bakes banana bread for the Melfort Food Bank and enjoys walking her dog.
Judge Rodgers received her Bachelor of Laws from the University of Saskatchewan College of Law in 1998 and was called to the Bar in 1999. She completed her articles with Wardell Worme & Missens in 1999, and remained there as a Junior Lawyer until 2001. Judge Rodgers held a variety of roles from 2001 to 2006, including acting as legal counsel at Legal Aid Saskatchewan and Partner at Wardell Driedger Cotton & Rodgers, later Wardell Gillis Tangjerd Rodgers & Cotton. She joined the Saskatchewan Ministry of Justice and Attorney General as Crown Counsel in 2006 and became a Senior Crown Prosecutor with Saskatchewan Public Prosecutions in 2007. She held the position of Senior Crown Prosecutor – OH&S since 2015.
Over her legal career, Judge Rodgers has developed expertise in a wide variety of legal areas including criminal defense, child protection, civil law, small claims and legal aid. Judge Rodgers is a past Secretary of the Saskatchewan Crown Attorneys Association, and is a recipient of the Premier’s Award for Excellence in the Public Service for her work on the Serious Violent Offender Response Team.
Read the Judicial Appointment news release: Government of Saskatchewan
