James Lorimer Ilsley, (January 3, 1894 – January 14, 1967) was a Canadian politician and jurist. He was born in Somerset, Nova Scotia, the son of Randel Ilsley and Catherine Caldwell. Ilsley was educated at Acadia University and

Dalhousie University Dalhousie University (commonly known as Dal) is a large public research university in Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the fou ...

and was admitted to the Nova Scotia bar in 1916. In 1919, he married Evelyn Smith. Ilsley practised law in

Yarmouth Yarmouth may refer to: Places Canada *Yarmouth County, Nova Scotia **Yarmouth, Nova Scotia **Municipality of the District of Yarmouth **Yarmouth (provincial electoral district) **Yarmouth (electoral district) * Yarmouth Township, Ontario *New ...

and Halifax, Nova Scotia until he was elected to the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

as a Liberal in the 1926 election. He survived the 1930 election that sent the Liberals into Opposition. When the party returned to power in the 1935 election, Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King brought Ilsley into

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 * Filing ...

as Minister of National Revenue. In 1940, he was promoted to Minister of Finance. He held that position for the duration of World War II during a period of massive expansion in expenditure due to the war effort. He was recognized for his service in 1946 when he was appointed to the

Imperial Privy Council The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians who are current or former members of ei ...

, and given the honorific of "Right Honourable". The same year, he became Minister of Justice. He served in that position until he retired from politics in 1948. The next year, he was appointed to the Nova Scotia Supreme Court and became Chief Justice of Nova Scotia in 1950. He served in that capacity until his death in 1967 in Halifax at the age of 73. J. L. Ilsley High School, opened in 1971 and located in Spryfield, Nova Scotia, bears his name.

Electoral record

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ilsley, James Lorimer 1894 births 1967 deaths Canadian Ministers of Finance Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Nova Scotia Liberal Party of Canada MPs Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Canadian members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Lawyers in Nova Scotia Canadian King's Counsel People from Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia