Province wants constitutional change to allow for say in judicial appointments

By ZOE MASON on March 31, 2026.

The government of Alberta is requesting changes to the constitution that would enable Alberta to have more control over judicial appointments.

At a press conference Monday, Premier Danielle Smith and Minister of Justice Mickey Amery announced a motion aimed at updating judicial procedures.

Amery says this motion does not reflect a dissatisfaction with the work of current justices.

“This amendment is aimed squarely at Alberta’s longstanding challenges with Ottawa, not with the courts themselves,” he said.

Under Section 96 of the Constitution Act, the federal government appoints judges to provincial superior courts. Alberta is calling for an amendment that would grant the province a formal role in those selections.

Under the proposed framework, the federal government would make an appointment based on a list of candidates recommended and approved by Alberta.

Ottawa would have to amend the constitution in order to grant the province this authority.

Last week, Smith sent a joint letter together with the Premiers of Quebec, Saskatchewan and Ontario asking Prime Minister Mark Carney asking for a greater provincial role in the appointment process.

One of the government initiated questions on the ballot of this fall’s referendum asks Albertans whether they would support the government of Alberta pursuing constitutional amendments that would allow provincial governments to select justices appointed to provincial King’s Bench and Appeal courts.

This motion will pre-empt the results of that question.

Smith says the province has a unique opportunity to collaborate with other provinces in moving this objective forward now. She also says the changes in this motion will not go “quite as far” as what the referendum question proposes.

Last Tuesday, federal Justice Minister Sean Fraser told CBC his government had not reconsidered their position that they would maintain the process as it currently stands. Fraser said the judicial appointments process was functioning and that avenues already exist for consultation with the provinces.

“The federal Justice Minister Sean Fraser has simply written off our request for greater collaboration and co-operation with our federal counterparts when it comes to this process,” said Amery.

Amery says his government has not seen the progress they were hoping through “diplomatic routes,” and that he hopes the motion prompts more consequential changes.

He says the province would consider withholding funding for these appointments if the federal government maintains that stance.