The attorney general of Ontario is the chief legal adviser to His Majesty the King in Right of Ontario and, by extension, the

Government of Ontario The Government of Ontario () is the body responsible for the administration of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. The term ''Government of Ontario'' refers specifically to the executive—political Minister ...

. The attorney general is a senior member of the

Executive Council of Ontario The Executive Council of Ontario (), often informally referred to as the Cabinet of Ontario (), is the cabinet of the Canadian province of Ontario. It comprises ministers of the provincial Crown, who are selected by the premier of Ontario (the ...

(the

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

) and oversees the Ministry of the Attorney General – the department responsible for the oversight of the justice system in the province of

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. The attorney general is an elected

Member of Provincial Parliament Member of Provincial Parliament is the title given to provincial legislators in two legislatures: * Member of Provincial Parliament (Canada) * Member of Provincial Parliament (Western Cape) In the Western Cape province of South Africa, Member of Pro ...

who is appointed by the

Lieutenant Governor of Ontario The lieutenant governor of Ontario (, in French: ''Lieutenant-gouverneur'' (if male) or ''Lieutenante-gouverneure'' (if female) ''de l'Ontario'') is the representative in Ontario of the monarch, who operates distinctly within the province but i ...

on the

constitutional advice A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...

of the

Premier of Ontario The premier of Ontario () is the head of government of Ontario. Under the Westminster system, the premier governs with the confidence of a majority the elected Legislative Assembly; as such, the premier typically sits as a member of Provincia ...

. The Ministry is the largest justice system in Canada and one of the largest in North America.

Doug Downey Douglas Richard Downey (born February 2, 1970) is a Canadian politician who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario during the 2018 general election. He represents the riding of Barrie—Springwater—Oro-Medonte, and is a member o ...

was appointed attorney general of Ontario on 20 June 2019, replacing

Caroline Mulroney Caroline Anne Mulroney Lapham, (born June 11, 1974) is a Canadian businesswoman, jurist, lawyer, and politician who currently serves as the President of the Treasury Board of Ontario and Minister of Francophone Affairs. Born in Montreal, Ca ...

Authority

The attorney general has the authority to represent the provincial government in court personally, but this task is almost always delegated to

crown attorney Crown attorneys or crown counsel () or, in Alberta and New Brunswick, crown prosecutors are the prosecutors in the legal system of Canada. Crown attorneys represent the Crown and act as prosecutor in proceedings under the Criminal Code and vario ...

s, or to crown counsel in civil cases. Both Ian Scott and

Roy McMurtry Roland Roy McMurtry (May 31, 1932 – March 18, 2024) was a Canadian lawyer, judge and politician in Ontario. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1975 to 1985, serving in the cabinet of Bill Dav ...

, who were prominent courtroom lawyers before entering politics, acted for Ontario in constitutional appeals before the Supreme Court of Canada.1976 Reference re: Anti-Inflation Act1981 Reference re: Resolution to amend the Constitution
an
Reference re Bill 30, An Act to Amend the Education Act
/ref> Most holders of the office have been practising lawyers.

Marion Boyd Phyllis Marion Boyd ( Watt; March 26, 1946 – October 11, 2022) was a Canadian politician in Ontario. She was a New Democratic member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1990 to 1999 who represented the riding of London Centre. She ...

was the only attorney general who was not a lawyer until Caroline Mulroney's appointment. Although Mulroney studied and briefly practised law in the United States, she is not legally able to practise law in Canada.

Responsibilities

The Ministry of the Attorney General delivers and administers a wide range of justice services, including: #administering approximately 115

statute A statute is a law or formal written enactment of a legislature. Statutes typically declare, command or prohibit something. Statutes are distinguished from court law and unwritten law (also known as common law) in that they are the expressed wil ...

s; #conducting criminal proceedings throughout Ontario; #providing legal advice to, and conducting litigation on behalf of, all government ministries and many agencies, boards and tribunals; #providing advice on, and drafting, all legislation and regulations; and #coordinating and administering court services throughout Ontario. The Ontario Crown Attorney's Office, the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee, the Office of the Children's Lawyer (formerly called the Official Guardian), and the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) all fall within the Ministry's responsibilities. The Ministry also partially funds

Legal Aid Ontario Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) is a publicly funded and publicly accountable non-profit corporation, responsible for administering the legal aid program in the province of Ontario, Canada. Through a toll-free number and multiple in-person locations s ...

, which is administered by an independent board and also receives funding through the Law Foundation of Ontario and from the federal government.

Portfolios

In 2008,

Office of the Independent Police Review Director The Office of the Independent Police Review Director (OIPRD; ) is an independent civilian oversight agency that handles public complaints regarding police conduct in the Canadian province of Ontario. The agency oversees municipal police services ...

(IPRD) was established under the authority of the AG, as a civilian body with powers invested through Public Inquiries Act to investigate complaints about municipal police forces and the

Ontario Provincial Police The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) is the State police, provincial police service of Ontario, Canada. The OPP patrols Provincial highways in Ontario, provincial highways and waterways; protects Government of Ontario, provincial government buil ...

. Following the 2013 release of former Supreme Court judge

Frank Iacobucci Frank Iacobucci (born June 29, 1937) is a former Puisne Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada from 1991 until he retires from the bench in 2004. He was the first Italian-Canadian judge on the court. Iacobucci was also the first judge on the ...

's report on the relationship between

Aboriginal peoples There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

and the Ontario justice system, a position of deputy attorney general with responsibility for Aboriginal issues was created.

List of attorneys-general

Upper Canada

John White (Frontenac County) John White ( – January 4, 1800) was a lawyer and politician in Upper Canada. He was the first Attorney General for Upper Canada. He wrote and was responsible for the legislation of the new Province, which stemmed from the partition of Que ...

1791–1800
2.

Robert Isaac Dey Gray Robert Isaac Dey Gray (ca. 1772 – October 8, 1804) was a lawyer, judge and political figure in Upper Canada. He was probably born in New York, but came to Canada with his parents (James Gray and Elizabeth Low) at the beginning of ...

1800–1801
3. Thomas Scott 1801–1806
4. William Firth 1807–1812
5. G. D'Arcy Boulton 1814–1818
6.

Sir John Robinson, 1st Baronet, of Toronto Sir John Beverley Robinson, 1st Baronet, (26 July 1791 – 31 January 1863) was a lawyer, judge and political figure in Upper Canada. He was considered the leader of the Family Compact, a group of families which effectively controlled the ear ...

1818–1829, acting AG 1812–1814
7.

Henry John Boulton Henry John Boulton, (1790 – June 18, 1870) was a lawyer and political figure in Upper Canada and the Province of Canada, as well as Chief Justice of Newfoundland. Boulton began his legal career under the tutelage of John Beverly Robins ...

1829–1833
8.

Robert Sympson Jameson Robert Sympson Jameson (1796 – August 1, 1854) was a lawyer and politician in Upper Canada, and later in the Province of Canada. He served as the first Speaker of the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada from 1841 to 1843. Early ...

1833–1837, last British-appointed AG
9.

Christopher Alexander Hagerman Christopher Alexander Hagerman, (28 March 1792 – 14 May 1847) was a Canadian militia officer, lawyer, administrator, politician and judge. Early life and family Known during his adult life as 'Handsome Kit', Hagerman was born at the Bay ...

1837–1840, first Canadian-born AG of Upper Canada
10.

William Henry Draper William Henry Draper may refer to: * William Henry Draper (judge) William Henry Draper (March 11, 1801 – November 3, 1877) was a lawyer, judge, and politician in Upper Canada, later Canada West. Personal life He was born near London, Eng ...

1840–1841, last AG of Upper Canada

Province of Canada (Canada West)

In 1841, the

Province of Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada () was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the Province of Quebec since 1763. Upper ...

became the District of Canada West in the

Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in British North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report ...

11.

1841–1843
12.

Robert Baldwin Robert Baldwin (May 12, 1804 – December 9, 1858) was an Upper Canadian lawyer and politician who with his political partner Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine of Lower Canada, led the first responsible government ministry in the Province of Canada. ...

1843–1848
13.

William Buell Richards Sir William Buell Richards (May 2, 1815 – January 26, 1889) was a Canadian lawyer, politician, and judge, and served as the first Chief Justice of Canada. Under Richards Court, Richards' leadership, the Supreme Court was marked by controve ...

1848–1854
14.

John A. Macdonald Sir John Alexander Macdonald (10 or 11January 18156June 1891) was the first prime minister of Canada, serving from 1867 to 1873 and from 1878 until his death in 1891. He was the dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, and had a political ...

1854–1862, 1864–1867
15.

John Sandfield Macdonald John Sandfield Macdonald, (December 12, 1812 – June 1, 1872) was the joint premier of the Province of Canada from 1862 to 1864. He was also the first premier of Ontario from 1867 to 1871, one of the four founding provinces created at Can ...

1862–1864 After 1867, the attorney general position was split into federal and provincial counterparts: Attorney General of Ontario

Attorney General of Quebec The following is a list of the people who have served as head of the Ministry of Justice of Quebec, or as Attorneys-General of Quebec, Canada East and Lower Canada. Prior to 1965, the name of the position was "Attorney General for Quebec". In 196 ...

(renamed the

Ministry of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

in 1965)

Attorney General of Canada The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vocalize it as st ...

Ontario (since
Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
)

References

External links

Ministry of the Attorney General website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Attorney General Of Ontario Ontario government departments and agencies *

1841 establishments in Canada

Authority

Responsibilities

Portfolios

List of attorneys-general

Upper Canada

Province of Canada (Canada West)

Ontario (since
Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
)

See also

References

Further reading

External links

Authority

Responsibilities

Portfolios

List of attorneys-general

Upper Canada

Province of Canada (Canada West)

Ontario (since Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...)

See also

References

Further reading

External links

Ontario (since
Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
)