Cree Court Judge Recognized By Law Society

Cree Court Judge Recognized By Law Society

Friday, March 30, 2007 at 15:02

An Aboriginal judge from the Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation has been honoured with the C. Willy Hodgson Award for his contributions to the legal profession and the community.

The Law Society of Saskatchewan has bestowed the award on provincial court judge Gerry Morin for his work with the Cree court circuit in northern Saskachewan and his achievements in the community.

The Cree court enables Cree speakers to communicate in their own language during court proceedings. It was established to ensure testimony, instructions and rulings are not lost in translation.

Morin was sworn in as a judge in 2001.

Aside from sitting as judge of the Cree court, Morin has also been the president of the Prince Albert Indian Metis Friendship Centre and a member of the Prince Albert Raiders Board of Directors.

This is not the first award for Morin. He was appointed as Queen’s Counsel Designate in 1999 – the first Aboriginal lawyer to receive the designation in Saskatchewan.

Former judge Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond received the C. Willy Hodgson Award last year. She has since left to take an advocacy role for children and youth in B.C.