Gerald Le Dain, who sat on the Supreme Court of Canada from 1984 – 1988, has died at the age of 83. Prior to his appointment to the SCC, Le Dain chaired the federal inquiry into drug use and later became the dean of Osgoode Hall Law School. He was appointed to the Federal Court of Appeal in 1970 and from there was elevated to the Supreme Court.
Speaking on behaf of the Court, Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin said:
Justice Le Dain served on the court during an important time in its history, taking part in the challenge of breathing life into the rights guaranteed in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Justice Le Dain’s decisions in these early Charter cases shaped the interpretation of our fundamental rights, and continue to have relevance to this day.
Le Dain’s funeral will be held on December 28 in Ottawa.