Truscott Lecture in Justice 2023

Join Supreme Court of Canada Justice Michael Moldaver as he reflects on the state of the Canadian Criminal Justice System. From his unique vantage point as a former criminal defence lawyer and retiring Supreme Court justice, he will offer a critical assessment of how the system operates and how it might be improved. 

It will be an event not-to-be-missed for anyone interested in Canadian criminal justice, its past, and its future!

"Be yourself. Don’t try to be what someone else is. Just be yourself. Be true to yourself. And if you feel that there’s an area of the law that you would like to go out on a limb a little bit, with a view to enhancing the justice system, with a view to making it better, do it!"

Supreme Court of Canada Justice Michael Moldaver 
thelawyersdaily.ca, 2022

Justice Moldaver - Described as a “criminal law giant” and “one of the best justices,” Supreme Court of Canada Justice Michael Moldaver has shaped Canadian criminal justice for fifty years.  As a practicing criminal lawyer, an instructor at Osgoode Hall Law School, and as a judge at the Ontario Court of Appeal and Supreme Court of Canada, Justice Moldaver’s impact on virtually all areas of criminal law has been significant and enduring.  On the Ontario Court of Appeal Justice Moldaver served on panels the overturned the convictions of Steven Truscott and Roméo Phillion.  On the Supreme Court, Justice Moldaver has written decisions regulating ‘Mr. Big’ investigations (R. v. Hart), joint-sentencing decisions (R. v. Anthony-Cook), and the representation of Indigenous Peoples on juries (R. v. Kokopenance).  He also co-wrote critical decision regarding trial delay (R. v. Jordan) and the admissibility of evidence in sexual assault cases (R. v. J.J.).  His historic dissent from the Court’s Nadon decision is just one example of his independent mind and willingness to stand alone in judgment. 

The lecture series is part of the Truscott Initiative launched at U of G in 2009 to commemorate the struggles of Guelph resident Steven Truscott and his family.

Truscott is known across Canada for his decades-long battle to prove his innocence after the 1959 murder of his schoolmate Lynne Harper. He was wrongly convicted of the crime at age 14 and spent years in prison before his release in 1969. He was acquitted by the Ontario Court of Appeal in 2007.

The Truscott Initiative aims to improve understanding of the nation’s complex criminal justice system and to highlight how criminal justice intersects with other policy areas and broader conceptions of justice.

Registration is not required for this event.