32nd Viscount Bennett Memorial Lecture Series
"The Ring of Truth, the Clash of Lies: If Only it Were that Simple" by Madam Justice C. Lynn Smith
On February 22nd the UNB Faculty of Law hosted the 32nd Viscount Bennett Lecture, given by Madam Justice C. Lynn Smith of the British Columbia Supreme Court. Held in the Mary Louise Lynch Room at Ludlow Hall and attended by faculty, students and local members of the judiciary and bar, Justice Smith spoke on the assessment of credibility in matters before the court. Her lecture was titled "The Ring of Truth, the Clang of Lies: If Only it Were that Simple". Justice Smith
Biography of Madam Justice C. Lynn Smith
Throughout her career, Justice Smith has had an important influence on issues of law and society. Justice Smith earned an Honours B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Calgary in 1967, and an LL.B. from the University of British Columbia in 1973. After clerking for the Chief Justice of British Columbia, she practised law in Vancouver from 1974 to 1981 with the firm of Shrum, Liddle & Hebenton (now McCarthy Tétrault) first as an associate and then as a partner.
In 1981, Justice Smith joined the Faculty of Law at the University of British Columbia and served as its Dean from July 1, 1991 - June 30, 1997. With the enactment of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, she co-founded the Women's Legal Education and Action Fund which has provided leadership in the development of women's equality rights in the Canadian legal system. She was named Queen's Counsel in 1992.
Justice Smith has published work significant work in fields such as civil litigation and evidence, human rights, Charter equality rights and women's equality. Recent publications include: W. Black and L. Smith, “The Equality Rights”, (2005), 27 Supreme Court Law Review (2nd) 315 (reproduced in G.A. Beaudoin & E. Mendes, eds., The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, 4th ed. (2005)); Smith, L., “Judicial Education on Context“ (2005), 38 U.B.C. L. Rev. 569 – 582.
On June 23, 1998 she was appointed a Justice of the Supreme Court of British Columbia. Justice Smith has, in the time since her appointment to the bench been actively engaged in continuing education for judges. She was a member of the Board of Governors of the National Judicial Institute from 1996 – 2001 and worked in the development of a number of its programs. She has also acted more recently as the Executive Director of that organization.
Viscount Bennett Lecture Series
The Viscount Bennett Lecture was established under the terms of the will of Viscount Bennett of Mickleham, Calgary and Hopewell. Born at Hopewell Cape, Richard Bedford Bennett (1870-1947) had a long and distinguished career as lawyer, politician and statesman, serving as prime minister from 1930 to 1935. In 1941 he was raised to the peerage of the United Kingdom. In commemoration of Viscount Bennett’s life and career, this Lecture Series promotes greater appreciation of the role of law in contemporary society.
