Edmond P. Blanchard (May 31, 1954 – June 27, 2014) 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 ...

jurist A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyzes and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal education in law (a law degree) and often a Lawyer, legal prac ...

and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

. Blanchard was born in Atholville,

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

. He studied at

Dalhousie University Dalhousie University (commonly known as Dal) is a large public research university in Nova Scotia, Canada, with three campuses in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Halifax, a fourth in Bible Hill, Nova Scotia, Bible Hill, and a second medical school campus ...

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...

where he earned a

Bachelor of Commerce A Bachelor of Commerce (BCom or B Com) is an undergraduate degree in commerce, accounting, mathematics, economics, and management-related subjects. The degree is mainly offered in Commonwealth nations. Structure Bachelor of Commerce The Bac ...

degree in 1975 and a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

degree in 1978. He practised law in

Campbellton, New Brunswick Campbellton is a city in Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada. Situated on the south bank of the Restigouche River opposite Pointe-à-la-Croix, Quebec, Pointe-à-la-Croix, Quebec, Campbellton was officially ...

until 1987 when he was elected to the

Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick The Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick () is the deliberative assembly of the New Brunswick Legislature, in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. The assembly's seat is located in Fredericton. It was established in Saint John ''de jure'' ...

in the 1987 general election as a member of the

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, which won every seat in the legislature. He joined the cabinet as the

Minister of State for Mines Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

in 1989 and, following his re-election in

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

, was appointed

Minister 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 ...

and carried several other ministerial responsibilities. He was re-elected to a third term in the 1995 election and given the senior portfolio of

finance minister A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfoli ...

. His good looks, fluent

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, and success as Minister of Finance made him a strong candidate to succeed

Frank McKenna Francis Joseph McKenna (born January 19, 1948) is a Canadian businessman and former politician and diplomat. He is currently Chair of Brookfield Corporation and Deputy Chairman of the Toronto-Dominion Bank. He served as Canadian Ambassador ...

for the Liberal leadership in 1998. After announcing he was considering the possibility, he opted not to contest the leadership. Blanchard continued in the finance ministry after

Camille Thériault Camille Henri Thériault (born February 25, 1955) is a Canadian politician from New Brunswick. He served as the 29th premier of New Brunswick from 1998 to 1999. Early life The son of Joséphine Martin and Norbert Thériault, a former provinc ...

became

Premier of New Brunswick The premier of New Brunswick ( (masculine) or (feminine)) is the first minister and head of government for the Canadian province of New Brunswick. The premier of a Canadian province is much like the prime minister of Canada. They are normally ...

and was re-elected to his Campbellton riding in

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

. He served briefly in

opposition Opposition may refer to: Arts and media * ''Opposition'' (Altars EP), 2011 EP by Christian metalcore band Altars * The Opposition (band), a London post-punk band * ''The Opposition with Jordan Klepper'', a late-night television series on Comedy ...

before being appointed to the

Federal Court of Canada The Federal Court of Canada, which succeeded the Exchequer Court of Canada in 1971, was a national court of Canada that had limited jurisdiction to hear certain types of disputes arising under the Parliament of Canada, federal government's Canadi ...

in 2000, shortly thereafter he also took a seat on the

Court Martial Appeal Court of Canada The Court Martial Appeal Court of Canada (CMAC) () hears appeals from Courts-martial of Canada ("court martial, courts martial"). In Canada, courts martial are presided over by independent military judges from the office of the Chief Military J ...

. When the Federal Court of Canada was split into the Federal Court and the

Federal Court of Appeal The Federal Court of Appeal () is a Canadian appellate court that hears cases concerning federal matters. History Section 101 of the Constitution Act, 1867 empowers the Parliament of Canada to establish "additional Courts for the better Admi ...

in 2003, he took a seat on the Federal Court while maintaining his post on the Court Martial Appeal Court. In 2004, he became Chief Justice of the Court Martial

appeals court An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear a case upon appeal from a trial court or other lower tribunal. Appellate ...

and a member of the

Canadian Judicial Council The Canadian Judicial Council (CJC; ) is the national council of the judiciary of Canada, overseeing the country's Federal judge, federal judges. The Council has 44 members, composed of chief justices and associate chief justices. It is chaired ...

. He died in 2014 after almost ten years as a member of the council, where he served as a member of the Education Committee and the Judicial Conduct Committee. Blanchard died on June 27, 2014, after a short illness.

References

Profile of Edmond P. Blanchard at the Federal Court of Canada
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blanchard, Edmond 1954 births 2014 deaths Dalhousie University alumni New Brunswick Liberal Association MLAs Members of the Executive Council of New Brunswick Lawyers in New Brunswick Canadian King's Counsel Judges in New Brunswick People from Restigouche County, New Brunswick Politicians of Acadian descent Ministers of finance of New Brunswick Judges of the Court Martial Appeal Court of Canada 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick