Walter Surma Tarnopolsky (August 1, 1932September 15, 1993) was a Canadian judge, legal scholar, and pioneer in the development of

human rights law International human rights law (IHRL) is the body of international law designed to promote human rights on social, regional, and domestic levels. As a form of international law, international human rights law is primarily made up of treaties, ag ...

and civil liberties in Canada.

Background and education

Walter Surma Tarnopolsky was born on August 1, 1932, in Gronlid, Saskatchewan, to parents of Ukrainian descent. He was educated at the

University of Saskatchewan The University of Saskatchewan (U of S, or USask) is a Universities in Canada, Canadian public university, public research university, founded on March 19, 1907, and located on the east side of the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon, Saskatch ...

, receiving his BA in 1953 and his LLB in 1957. After completing his undergraduate education, he attended

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

, receiving his MA in 1955. He subsequently received his LLM from the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

Career

Tarnopolsky taught law at several Canadian universities, specializing in the fields of human rights and civil liberties. Between 1959 and 1983, he was a professor of law at the

University of Windsor The University of Windsor (UWindsor, U of W, or UWin) is a public university, public research university in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's southernmost university. It has approximately 17,500 students. The university was incorporated by ...

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 ...

York University York University (), also known as YorkU or simply YU), is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, and it has approximately 53,500 students, 7,000 faculty and staff, ...

, and the

University of Ottawa The University of Ottawa (), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a Official bilingualism in Canada, bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ot ...

. He briefly served as the vice-president (Academic) of York University in 1972 and was the dean of Law at the University of Windsor from 1968 to 1972. From 1977 to 1983, he was a member of the

United Nations Human Rights Committee The United Nations Human Rights Committee is a treaty body composed of 18 experts, established by a 1966 human rights treaty, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The Committee meets for three four-week sessions per yea ...

. From 1977 to 1982, he was the president of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association. In 1985, he was appointed to the

Court of Appeal for Ontario The Court of Appeal for Ontario (frequently mistakenly referred to as the Ontario Court of Appeal) (ONCA is the abbreviation for its neutral citation) is the appellate court for the province of Ontario, Canada. The seat of the court is Osgoode Ha ...

. He served on the Court of Appeal until his death on 15 September 1993 in Toronto.

Publications

* ''Discrimination and the Law in Canada'' (1982) * "Freedom of the press" in ''Newspapers and the Law'' (1981) * ''The Canadian Bill of Rights'' (1966, 1975)

References

External links

Walter Surma Tarnopolsky fonds
via

Library and Archives Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; ) is the federal institution tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is the 16th largest library in the world. T ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tarnopolsky, Walter 1932 births 1993 deaths Alumni of the London School of Economics Canadian legal scholars Canadian officials of the United Nations Canadian people of Ukrainian descent Judges in Quebec Justices of the Court of Appeal for Ontario United Nations Human Rights Committee members