Canada high court rules New Brunswick language rights require bilingual lieutenant governor – JURIST

The Supreme Court of Canada held on Friday that the person who holds the office of New Brunswick’s Lieutenant Governor must be able to perform their official functions in both official languages: English and French. A unilingual appointee violates the equality of status between the two languages in the provincial government.

Section 16(2) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees the equality of status, rights and privileges between English and French in all executive and legislative institutions of New Brunswick. The six-justice majority found that the section represents a “lasting social pact” between the linguistic communities to preserve minority language rights and establish a genuine partnership in the government. The justices also considered that the province’s Lieutenant Governor–the highest-ranking officer of a province–is inseparable from its sole office holder; thus, the appointment holds a unique symbolic effect. Chief Justice Richard Wagner concluded that appointing a unilingual Lieutenant Governor can undermine the rights of the Francophone community in the province.

On the other hand, the dissent would have held that the charter provision guarantees institutional bilingualism without requiring the officer holder to be bilingual personally. Justice Malcolm Rowe warned that the ruling may have the effect of imposing the bilingual requirement on other provincial roles such as the Premier; thus, the majority risked amending the Constitution “in the guise of constitutional interpretation” and overstepping the executive power to appoint the Lieutenant Governor.

Responding to the ruling, Nicole Arseneau-Sluyter, President of Société de l’Acadie du Nouveau-Brunswick (SANB), said:

The SANB will always be there, as a watchdog for the linguistic rights of the Francophone community in New Brunswick before the courts, before governments, before anyone. We are proud to have taken these steps to reaffirm the equality of linguistic communities. It is not always easy, but we will continue to fight for our rights.

In 2019, former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recommended Brenda Murphy as New Brunswick’s lieutenant governor, citing her extensive experience improving poverty and gender inequality. She served three times as a municipal councillor before her appointment. Her term of office ended on January 22, 2025. In its Friday statement, SANB expressed gratitude to Murphy’s contributions to the province, maintaining that the lawsuit sought to defend a constitutional principle.

The group initiated the lawsuit shortly after Murphy’s appointment. While provincial Chief Justice Tracey DeWare sided with the appellant, the provincial appellate court held that a bilingual lieutenant general is not necessary to advance institutional bilingualism as the charter guarantees. Responding to DeWare’s ruling, Murphy said she valued the importance of official bilingualism and had developed relationships with the Francophone communities in the province.

Relatedly, the province is reviewing its Official Languages Act. One of the central struggles is balancing language obligations with staff shortages in public services. Francophone rights groups, the NB Francophone Seniors’ Association, and SANB advocated for covering nursing homes in the act, arguing that senior citizens must be able to understand their service providers to receive quality services.