Derek Green, chief justice of the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador Court of Appeal, is being commended for his service to the province.
Green spent 43 years working in the justice system, including 17 years as chief justice. He is retiring, having announced his departure in June.
“Chief Justice Green is a great legal mind and jurist,” Justice Minister Andrew Parsons said Tuesday in the House of Assembly, offering a formal thanks from the floor.
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Parsons spoke about Green’s legal resume, including time as a lawyer in private practice, as chair of the Newfoundland Law Reform Commission and acting counsel for two commissions of inquiry in the 1980s.
Green was appointed to the bench in 1992 and named chief justice of the Supreme Court trial division in 2000. He took the helm at the Court of Appeal in 2009.
Parsons highlighted Green’s work as commissioner of the more recent public inquiry into constituency allowances and spending by members of the House of Assembly, his efforts to make the courts more open and accessible to the public, and his advocacy for access to justice.