Timothy John Murphy (born August 7, 1959) is a former

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 ...

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 ...

and was the

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

of the Prime Minister's Office under

Paul Martin Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and retired politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006. Th ...

's government. He was CEO of

McMillan LLP McMillan LLP is a Canadian business law firm serving public, private and not-for-profit clients across various industries in North America and around the world. With offices in Canada's major centres – Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa and Mo ...

between 2022 and 2024, and is the current chair of the

Windsor–Detroit Bridge Authority The Windsor–Detroit Bridge Authority (WDBA; ) is the Canadian federal Crown corporation responsible for administering the construction and future operation of the Gordie Howe International Bridge between Windsor, Ontario and Detroit, Michigan. ...

Background

Tim Murphy was born in

Barrie Barrie is a city in Central Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay. Although it is physically in the county, Barrie is politically independent. The city is part ...

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 ...

. He obtained a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree from Queen's University in 1982 and a law degree from the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

. He practiced law with

Blake, Cassels & Graydon Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP (Blakes) is an international corporate law firm with offices in Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver, New York City, and London. History Blakes was launched in 1856 after Dominick Edward Blake was calle ...

and also served as a special advisor to

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

Ian Scott and a senior advisor to Ontario

Minister of Education An education minister (sometimes minister of education) is a position in the governments of some countries responsible for dealing with educational matters. Where known, the government department, ministry, or agency that develops policy and deli ...

Sean Conway Sean Conway may refer to: * Sean Conway (swimmer) (born 1981), British-Zimbabwean athlete, author and speaker *Sean Conway (businessman) (born 1984), American entrepreneur *Sean Conway (Canadian politician) Sean Conway (born July 24, 1951) is a ...

. In 1989–90, he ran the Ontario Campaign during

's first unsuccessful bid for the leadership of the

Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada (LPC; , ) is a federal political party in Canada. The party espouses the principles of liberalism,McCall, Christina; Stephen Clarkson"Liberal Party". ''The Canadian Encyclopedia''. and generally sits at the Centrism, ...

. In 2022 he became CEO of

. He lives in Toronto with his wife and daughter.

Politics

When Ian Scott resigned his legislative seat in late 1992, a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

was called for April 1, 1993 to replace him. Murphy ran to succeed Scott as the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

member for St. George—St. David, and was successful in both winning the nomination and defeating Progressive Conservative

Nancy Jackman Nancy Ruth Rowell Jackman (born January 6, 1942) is a Canadians, Canadian heiress, activist, philanthropist and former Senate of Canada, Canadian senator. Prime Minister of Canada, Prime Minister Paul Martin appointed her to the Senate on Marc ...

by 2,232 votes in the by-election. St. George—St. David, which is now part of

Toronto Centre Toronto Centre () is a federal electoral district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1872 to 1925, and since 1935, under the names Centre Toronto (1872–1903), Toronto Centre (1903– ...

, included the

Church and Wellesley Church and Wellesley is an gay village, LGBT-oriented enclave in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is roughly bounded by Gerrard Street (Toronto), Gerrard Street to the south, Yonge Street to the west, Charles Street to the north, and Jarvis Street ...

neighbourhood, the largest

gay village A gay village, also known as a gayborhood or gaybourhood, is a geographical area with generally recognized boundaries that is inhabited or frequented by many lesbian, gay, bisexuality, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people. Gay vil ...

in Ontario. Although Murphy is not himself gay, he soon emerged as a leading spokesperson in the Ontario legislature for progressive legislation pertaining to the rights of same-sex couples, introducing a

private member's bill A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in wh ...

in 1993 which would have partially extended spousal benefits.David Rayside
''On the Fringe: Gays & Lesbians in Politics''
He was one of only three Liberal MPPs, along with

Jean Poirier Jean Poirier (born January 17, 1950) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1984 to 1995 who represented the Ottawa area riding of Prescott and Russell. Background Poiri ...

and

Dianne Poole Dianne Poole (born June 28, 1949) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. She served as a Ontario Liberal Party, Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1987 to 1995. Background Poole has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Socio ...

, to support Bill 167, the

Bob Rae Robert Keith Rae (born August 2, 1948) is a Canadian diplomat and former politician who is the current Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations since 2020. He previously served as the 21st premier of Ontario from 1990 to 1995, leader of the ...

government's more sweeping same-sex benefits package in 1994, and was critical of Liberal leader

Lyn McLeod Lyn McLeod (born ) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. She served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1987 to 2003. McLeod was a cabinet minister in the Liberal government of David Peterson from 1987 to 1990, and served as leade ...

's decision to oppose the bill. Murphy was defeated in the 1995 provincial election, losing his seat to Progressive Conservative

Al Leach Allan F. Leach (December 9, 1935 – October 18, 2024) was a former transportation executive and politician in Ontario, Canada. In the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s, he was the head of GO Transit and later the Toronto Transit Commission. He was ...

by 337 votes while New Democratic candidate

Brent Hawkes Brent Hawkes (born June 2, 1950) is a Canadian gay rights activist and clergyman at the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC), also known as the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches (UFMCC), which is an international LGBT-affirmi ...

was a close third.

Later life

He returned to practicing law with

McCarthy Tétrault McCarthy Tétrault LLP is a Canadian law firm specializing in business law, litigation services, tax law, real property law, labour and employment law, with offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Montréal, Québec City, London (UK), as well ...

, and served for a time as president of the Ontario Liberal Party. He supported

Dwight Duncan Dwight Duncan (born 3 January 1959) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1995 to 2013 who represented ridings of Windsor—Walkerville, Windsor—St. Clair and Winds ...

's bid for the Ontario party leadership in 1996. On June 28, 2001, Murphy was hired by Canadian

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 ...

Paul Martin as a senior political advisor. When Martin became Prime Minister in late 2003, he appointed Murphy as his chief of staff. Murphy was considered to be one of the most influential figures in the Canadian Prime Minister's Office, helping formulate policy matters as well as coordinating meetings with ministers and departments and with foreign heads of state. After the Martin government was defeated in the 2006 federal election, Murphy returned to Toronto where he joined the law firm of McMillan Binch Mendelsohn. Murphy served as a political panelist on

Global Global may refer to: General *Globe, a spherical model of celestial bodies *Earth, the third planet from the Sun Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 198 ...

's coverage of the 2006 Liberal leadership convention. He was co-chair of the Wynne campaign in the Ontario provincial election. In 2016 he was part of the founding team of McMillan Vantage Policy Group, a national full-service public affairs consultancy—the only one of its kind anchored in a national law firm offering services to Canadian-based and international clients. He is an adjunct Professor at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law teaching the Law and Policy of Public Private Partnerships at the JD and LLM levels. He is a frequent commentator on

CBC News Network CBC News Network (formerly CBC Newsworld) is a Canadian English-language specialty news channel owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). It is Canada's first all-news channel, and the world's third-oldest television service of this ...

's ''

Power & Politics ''Power & Politics'' is a Canadian television news program focused on national politics, which airs live daily on CBC News Network from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Time weekdays and as a syndicated podcast. The program is produced from the CBC Ott ...

'', and has also written articles for Policy Options, The Walrus, Canadian Public Administration Journal and The Globe and Mail, Ottawa Citizen and Toronto Star. In 2021, he was appointed as the chair of the

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Murphy, Tim 1959 births Living people Canadian people of Irish descent Chiefs of staff of the Canadian Prime Minister's Office Ontario Liberal Party MPPs People from Barrie Queen's University at Kingston alumni University of Toronto alumni Lawyers in Ontario 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario