Manitoba Chief Judge to Discuss Court System Reform

The Honourable Raymond E. Wyant, Chief Judge of the Manitoba Provincial Court, will be the guest lecturer at the Chief Justice Thane A. Campbell Lectureship in Law on Thursday, June 7 at the University of Prince Edward Island. His presentation, which is open to the public, is called "Undergoing a Front End Alignment and#150; The Experience of Manitoba's Provincial Court." It will focus on ways to provide better service delivery and improved response to the needs of those who are caught up in the wheels of the ever-spinning criminal justice system.

Judge Wyant was instrumental in reforming the Manitoba court system and successfully reducing court delay times in cases of domestic violence. Known as the Domestic Violence Front End Project, it received the 2006 United Nations Public Service Award and the 2005 Gold Award for excellence in public sector service delivery from the Institute of Public Administration of Canada.

Before his appointment as Chief Judge, Raymond Wyant was Deputy Director for Prosecutions with the Crown Attorney's Department in Winnipeg and past Senior Crown Attorney in charge of youth prosecutions. He has also practiced as a criminal defense lawyer. He is the current Chair of the Canadian Council of Chief Judges and a member of the National Committee on Justice Efficiencies and Access to the Justice System.

The Chief Justice Thane A. Campbell Lectureship in Law is co-sponsored by UPEI and the Law Foundation of Prince Edward Island. In 1991 the Law Foundation created an endowment at UPEI to provide a stimulating series of lectures in honor of Chief Justice Thane A. Campbell, former Premier of PEI and first Chancellor of UPEI.

The lecture will take place on Thursday, June 7 at 7:30 pm in McMillan Hall, W.A. Murphy Student Centre, UPEI. Following the speech, there will be an opportunity for questions and discussion. Members of the public are invited to attend. There is no charge and refreshments will be served.