Robert Sedgewick (judge)

For other people named Robert Sedgewick, see Robert Sedgewick (disambiguation).

Robert Sedgewick (May 10, 1848 – August 4, 1906) was a Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada.

The Honourable Robert Sedgewick
The Honourable Mr. Justice Robert Sedgewick, May 1896
Puisne Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada
In office February 18, 1893 – August 4, 1906
Nominated by	John Sparrow David Thompson
Preceded by	Samuel Henry Strong
Succeeded by	Lyman Duff
Personal details
Born	(1848-05-10)May 10, 1848 Aberdeen, Scotland
Died	August 4, 1906(1906-08-04) (aged 58) Chester, Nova Scotia
Alma mater	Dalhousie University

Early life and education

Born in Aberdeen, Scotland, Sedgewick's family immigrated to Nova Scotia while he was still an infant. He was educated at Dalhousie University in Halifax, graduating in 1867. He articled in Cornwall, Ontario, in the private practice of John Sandfield Macdonald, who was at that time both the Premier and the Attorney General of Ontario. Sedgewick was called to the bar in Ontario in 1872, and in Nova Scotia in 1873 following his return to the province.

Career

Sedgewick established a private practice in Halifax, and subsequently played an essential role in the establishment of the law school at Dalhousie in 1883. He was created a Dominion Queen's Counsel in 1881.

Beginning in the 1870s, Sedgewick became active in the Conservative Party of Canada. The connections thus established would serve him well, as his friend and former Halifax colleague John Sparrow David Thompson, who had become the federal Minister of Justice, appointed Sedgewick as Deputy Minister of Justice in February 1888. In this capacity, he played an important role in the establishment of the first national Criminal Code, which was enacted in 1892. Thompson, who had by then become the Prime Minister of Canada, also appointed Sedgewick to the Supreme Court of Canada on 18 February 1893, a position he was to hold until his death in 1906. He was a member of the North British Society.

References

• "Robert Sedgewick". Dictionary of Canadian Biography (online ed.). University of Toronto Press. 1979–2016.
• Supreme Court of Canada Biography