Malcolm Rowe
{{Short description|Puisne justice of the Supreme Court of Canada}}
{{Infobox judge
| name = Malcolm Rowe
| honorific-suffix =
| image = Malcolm Rowe 2025 (1) (cropped).jpg
| alt =
| caption = Rowe in 2025
| office2 = Puisne Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada
| term_end2 =
| nominator2 = Justin Trudeau
| appointer2 = David Johnston
| predecessor2 = Thomas Cromwell
| successor2 =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1953|6|27}}
| birth_place = St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada
| death_date =
| death_place =
| spouse =
| partner =
| children =
| residence =
| education = Memorial University of Newfoundland (BA, BSc)
York University (LLB)
| occupation =
| signature =
| signature_alt =
| website =
| footnotes =
| honorific_prefix = The Honourable
}}
Malcolm Rowe (born June 27, 1953) is a Canadian who has served as a puisne justice of the Supreme Court of Canada since 2016. Rowe is the first judge from Newfoundland and Labrador to sit on the Supreme Court.
Early life and education
Rowe was born on June 27, 1953 in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, to parents who grew up in the province's small fishing communities.{{Cite book |last=Watt |first=D. Lynne |title=Supreme Court of Canada Practice 2023 |last2=Beedell |first2=Jeffrey |last3=Ragan |first3=Graham |last4=Estabrooks |first4=Matthew |publisher=Thomson Reuters |year=2023 |isbn=9781668715079 |pages=780 |language=en}}{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trudeau-supreme-court-newfoundlander-1.3808384|title=Newfoundlander Malcolm Rowe nominated as next Supreme Court justice|last=Tasker|first=John Paul|date=October 17, 2016|newspaper=CBC News|access-date=October 17, 2016|archive-date=May 21, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190521021023/https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trudeau-supreme-court-newfoundlander-1.3808384|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/trudeau-appoints-newfoundlands-malcolm-rowe-to-supreme-court/article32388416/|title=Trudeau appoints Newfoundland's Malcolm Rowe to Supreme Court|last=Fine|first=Sean|date=October 17, 2016|newspaper=The Globe and Mail|access-date=October 17, 2016|archive-date=May 10, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170510082419/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/trudeau-appoints-newfoundlands-malcolm-rowe-to-supreme-court/article32388416/|url-status=live}}
Rowe attended Memorial University of Newfoundland, where he earned a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Arts in political science. He studied at York University's Osgoode Hall Law School from 1975–78 and graduated with a Bachelor of Laws.{{Cite web|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2016/10/17/trudeau-names-malcolm-rowe-as-the-first-newfoundland-judge-to-the-supreme-court-of-canada.html|title=Trudeau names Malcolm Rowe as the first Newfoundland judge to the Supreme Court of Canada|last=MacCharles|first=Tonda|date=October 17, 2016|website=thestar.com|publisher=Toronto Star|access-date=October 17, 2016|archive-date=October 17, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161017204520/https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2016/10/17/trudeau-names-malcolm-rowe-as-the-first-newfoundland-judge-to-the-supreme-court-of-canada.html|url-status=live}}
Career
Rowe was called to the bar by the Law Society of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1978 and The Law Society of Upper Canada (Ontario) in 1986.
Before becoming a judge, Rowe worked in the Canadian foreign service. He also started his own private practice in Ottawa that focused on Canadian constitutional law, foreign affairs, and arbitration over maritime boundaries. He was an adviser for Progressive Conservative cabinet minister John Crosbie and Liberal cabinet minister Brian Tobin, and served as secretary to Newfoundland and Labrador's cabinet after Tobin returned as premier.
He was appointed to the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador (Trial Division) in 1999. He was elevated to the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador (Court of Appeal) in 2001, where he served for 16 years.[https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2016/12/02/malcolm-rowe-officially-welcomed-to-supreme-court-bench.html "Malcolm Rowe officially welcomed to Supreme Court bench"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161204124313/https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2016/12/02/malcolm-rowe-officially-welcomed-to-supreme-court-bench.html |date=2016-12-04 }}. Toronto Star, Terry Pedwell of The Canadian Press, Dec. 2, 2016 pageA10.
Rowe also taught public and constitutional law as a lecturer at the University of Ottawa for two years.
= Supreme Court of Canada =
Rowe was nominated by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in October 2016 to sit on the Supreme Court of Canada, succeeding Justice Thomas Cromwell who retired that September. Rowe is the first judge from Newfoundland and Labrador to sit on the Supreme Court. Rowe's appointment was the result of a process newly instituted by Trudeau in which any jurist in Canada was invited to apply to a seven-member committee headed by former Progressive Conservative Prime Minister Kim Campbell. Rowe's appointment to the court was effective October 28, 2016, and he was formally sworn in at a private ceremony on October 31, 2016.{{cite web|title=News Release|url=http://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/news/en/item/5346/index.do|website=SCC Cases (Lexum)|date=January 2001|publisher=Supreme Court of Canada|access-date=1 November 2016|archive-date=3 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161103215553/http://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/news/en/item/5346/index.do|url-status=live}}
In March 2021, the Supreme Court found that the federal government's carbon price regime is constitutional. Rowe was one of three dissenting justices. He concluded that the federal government's carbon price law was unconstitutional because it interfered with areas of exclusive provincial jurisdiction.{{Cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/politics/federal/2021/03/25/supreme-court-rules-canadas-carbon-price-is-constitutional.html|title=The Supreme Court rules Canada's carbon price is constitutional. It's a big win for Justin Trudeau's climate plan|date=2021-03-25|access-date=2021-03-25|work=Toronto Star}}
Personal life
Rowe was married to Moya Greene, with whom he has a daughter.{{cite news | url = https://www.thelawyersdaily.ca/articles/3566/fisherman-s-son-rowe-seen-as-great-catch-for-top-court | title = Fisherman's son Rowe seen as 'great catch' for top court | date = 15 December 2016 | last = Schmitz | first = Cristin | work = The Lawyer's Daily | access-date = 27 March 2021}}
References
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External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20161108194931/http://www.scc-csc.ca/court-cour/judges-juges/bio-eng.aspx?id=malcolm-rowe Biography at Supreme Court of Canada]
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Category:Canadian King's Counsel
Category:Judges in Newfoundland and Labrador
Category:Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada
Category:Memorial University of Newfoundland alumni
Category:Osgoode Hall Law School alumni
Category:People from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
Category:Academic staff of the University of Ottawa
Category:Canadian civil servants