February 10, 2004
Ottawa, Ontario

NEWS RELEASE

The Government of Canada today announced that Mr. Justice John H. Gomery of the Quebec Superior Court has agreed to lead an independent public inquiry into questions surrounding the government’s sponsorship and advertising activities, as outlined in the Auditor General’s report released today.

Mr. Justice Gomery will be asked to begin his work as soon as possible and complete it on an urgent basis.

Mr. Justice Gomery will be appointed as a Commissioner under Part 1 of the Inquiries Act. He will have all the powers set out in the Act, including the authority to hold public hearings, summon witnesses and to gather such evidence as needed to conduct the inquiry.

The Commission of Inquiry will have full authority to examine past behaviour in these programs with a view to formulating recommendations to prevent any abuses, breaches of ethics or mismanagement in the future.

The details of the terms of reference of the Commission will be finalized in consultation with Mr. Justice Gomery and made public upon completion.

A biographical note is attached.


BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Born August 9, 1932, John Howard Gomery was raised and schooled in Montreal. He studied at McGill University (B.A. 1953, B.C.L. 1956).

He was admitted to practice law as a member of the Quebec Bar in 1957. He joined the law office which is today known as Fasken, Martineau, Dumoulin that same year, becoming partner in 1966. In 1972, he was named Queen’s Counsel. His areas of expertise are family law, commercial litigation and bankruptcy.

Mr. Justice Gomery was appointed to the Quebec Superior Court for the District of Montreal in 1982. In 1999, he was named President of the Copyright Board with a three-year mandate, renewed in 2002 for an additional three years. During that time, he has continued to fulfil his functions as Justice of the Superior Court.

Mr. Justice Gomery has been active in various committees of the Canadian Bar Association and the Bar of Quebec. He served as President of the Comité Général des Juges de la Cour supérieure du Québec, President of the Family Law Committee from 1983 to 1993 and has been a member of the Rules of Practice Committee since its inception.

He is married to Pierrette Rayle, Judge of the Quebec Court of Appeal. They have four children.