Canadian Lawyer

Government/non-profits/associations Geoffrey Cowper Partner, Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, Vancouver As chairman of the British Columbia Justice Reform Initiative, Geoffrey Cowper was tasked with crafting a proposal to modernize the criminal justice system and help carry it into the 21st century. After incorporating input from over a hundred members of the justice system and the public, Cowper produced his report, "A Criminal Justice System for the 21st Century." The B.C. Civil Liberties Association praised the report for laying a path for system-wide improvements to timeliness and accessibility. The resulting Justice Reform and Transparency Act, which received Royal assent in March, promises to fulfill key recommendations from Cowper's report. What the panel had to say: "Geoff Cowper has literally written the book on much-needed justice reform in B.C." André Marin Ombudsman, Province of Ontario, Toronto Wayne MacKay Professor, Yogis & Keddy Chair in Human Rights Law, Schulich School of Law, Halifax Since several tragic cases in the news led the public to demand action to prevent cyberbullying, Wayne MacKay is increasingly looked to as an authoritative voice. As chairman of the Nova Scotia Task Force on Cyberbullying, MacKay produced a report in 2012, subtitled "There's No App for That," which has been cited by the Supreme Court and underpins recent anti-bullying legislative efforts. Since then MacKay has continued to campaign for a more robust response to the problem, calling on Nova Scotia's newly appointed anti-bullying coordinator to spend less time collecting data and more time creating anti-bullying programs. He also suggested the province add a course on "digital citizenship" to school curriculums, and has advocated for making bullying a separate offence under the law. What voters had to say: "Professor MacKay's work on bullying could literally save young people's lives. I can't think of any more noble contribution from a legal scholar." 34 august 2013 www.CANADIAN L a w ye r m a g . c o m As the person responsible for investigating complaints about Ontario government services, you would expect André Marin to have his hands full, and he does. Last year, Marin started looking into the issue of closed-door meetings in Ontario municipalities. He also launched an investigation into the lack of services for adults suffering from autism, and criticized the Ontario Provincial Police for failing to take action on post-traumatic stress disorder. Recently he's been pushing to have his office granted oversight powers over the embattled air ambulance service ORNGE, and he has begun to address allegations of excessive use of force by correctional officers. In his annual report, he called the province to the mat for not following up on promised changes in a variety of sectors. Many Ontarians have come to see Marin as an honest and tenacious advocate who has been effective in pushing the boundaries to ensure they are treated fairly and their tax dollars are not wasted. What voters had to say: "Holding those in power responsible and accountable, Marin is the voice of reason, logic, justice and of our society's most marginalized citizens. Courageous, tenacious, principled, innovative."

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