Edwin A. Goodman, (1918 – August 23, 2006) was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

lawyer and political figure. Goodman graduated from Toronto's

Osgoode Hall Law School Osgoode Hall Law School, commonly shortened to Osgoode, is the law school of York University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is home to the Law Commission of Ontario, the ''Journal of Law and Social Policy'', and the ''Osgoode Hall Law Journal ...

in 1947 and was one of the founding partners of Goodmans LLP, a

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

law firm as well as a life bencher of the

Law Society of Upper Canada The Law Society of Ontario (LSO; ) is the law society responsible for the self-regulation of lawyers and paralegals in the Canadian province of Ontario. Founded in 1797 as the Law Society of Upper Canada (LSUC; ), its name was changed by statu ...

. He is best known, however, for his political work as an advisor and fundraiser for both the

Progressive Conservative Party of Canada The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada (PC; ) was a Centrism, centre to centre-right List of federal political parties in Canada, federal political party in Canada that existed from 1942 to 2003. From Canadian Confederation in 1867 unti ...

and particularly the

Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC; ), often shortened to the Ontario PC Party, or simply the PCs, colloquially known as the Tories, is a Centre-right politics, centre-right political party in Ontario, Canada. During its uninterr ...

, having been a friend and advisor to both

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...

John Robarts John Parmenter Robarts (January 11, 1917 – October 18, 1982) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 17th premier of Ontario from 1961 to 1971. He was a member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario. Early life Roba ...

and Premier

Bill Davis William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Behind Oliver Mowat, Davis was the List of premiers of Ontario by time in office, second-longes ...

. He has served as the national chair of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada and as vice-president of both the Ontario and federal Progressive Conservative Party. Goodman was also active in charity work as honorary president of

Scouts Canada Scouts Canada is a Canadian Scouting association that provides programs for young people ages 5 to 26. It aims "to help develop well-rounded youth, better prepared for success in the world." Scouts Canada, in affiliation with the French-language ...

and as a director for various bodies such as the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care and Princess Margaret Hospital. He was also chairman of the

Royal Ontario Museum The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is a museum of art, world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the largest museums in North America and the largest in Canada. It attracts more than one million visitors every year ...

for six years. He was considered a

Red Tory A Red Tory is an adherent of a Centre-right politics, centre-right or Paternalistic conservatism, paternalistic-conservative political philosophy derived from the Tory tradition. It is most predominant in Canada; however, it is also found in the ...

and was part of the circle known as the

Big Blue Machine The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC; ), often shortened to the Ontario PC Party, or simply the PCs, colloquially known as the Tories, is a centre-right political party in Ontario, Canada. During its uninterrupted governance from 1 ...

that helped keep the Ontario Tories in power under Robarts and Davis. He once ran for public office losing to Communist J.B. Salsberg of the

Labor-Progressive Party The Labor-Progressive Party (LPP; ) was the legal Front organization, front of the Communist Party of Canada and its provincial wings from 1943 to 1959. It was established amid World War II after a number of prominent Communist Party members w ...

after World War II. In April 1975 his daughter Joanne Goodman was killed in a highway accident. He named a lecture series at the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO; branded as Western University) is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thame ...

which every year invites a history to give a series of lectures to the University community In 1992, Goodman was named to the

Security Intelligence Review Committee The Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC; ) was a committee of Queen's Privy Council for Canada, Privy Councillors that was empowered to serve as an independent oversight and review body for the operations of the Canadian Security Intellige ...

and was appointed to the

Queen's Privy Council for Canada The King's Privy Council for Canada (), sometimes called His Majesty's Privy Council for Canada or simply the Privy Council (PC), is the full group of personal advisors to the monarch of Canada on state and constitutional affairs. Practically, ...

. His autobiography, ''The Life of the Party'', was published in 1988. He is also an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

. Goodman died following a heart attack.

References

*Rob Feguson
`Patriot and philanthropist' Toronto lawyer was Tory stalwart Received Order of Canada in 1983
''Toronto Star'', August 24, 2006

External links

Order of Canada Citation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goodman, Edwin A. 1918 births 2006 deaths Jewish Canadian politicians Lawyers in Ontario Canadian King's Counsel Canadian political consultants Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Officers of the Order of Canada Royal Ontario Museum Osgoode Hall Law School alumni