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Members of the Commission

Chief Commissioner Renée Dupuis has had a private law practice in Quebec City since 1973 where she specializes in the areas of aboriginal peoples, human rights, and administrative law. Since 1972 she has served as legal advisor to a number of First Nations and aboriginal groups in her home province, including the Indians of Quebec Association, the Assembly of First Nations for Quebec and Labrador, and the Attikamek and the Innu-Montagnais First Nations, representing them in their land claims negotiations with the federal, Quebec, and Newfoundland governments and in constitutional negotiations. From 1989 to 1995, Madame Dupuis served two terms as commissioner of the Canadian Human Rights Commission and she is chair of the Quebec Bar's committee on law relating to aboriginal peoples. She has served as consultant to various federal and provincial government agencies, authored numerous books and articles, and lectured extensively on administrative law, human rights, and aboriginal rights. She is the recipient of the Quebec Bar Foundation's 2001 Award for her book Le statut juridique des peuples autochtones en droit canadien (Carswell), the 2001 Governor General's Literary Award for Non-fiction for her book Quel Canada pour les Autochtones? (published in English by James Lorimer & Company Publishers under the title Justice for Canada's Aboriginal Peoples) and the YWCA's Women of Excellence Award 2002 for her contribution to the advancement of women's issues. In June 2004, the Quebec Bar Association bestowed on her the Christine Tourigny Merit Award for her contribution to the promotion of legal knowledge, particularly in the field of aboriginal rights. She was appointed as a Member of the Order of Canada in 2005. She was one of the first recipients of the Advocatus emeritus award, created by the Quebec Bar in 2007. Madame Dupuis is a graduate in law from the Université Laval and holds a master's degree in public administration from the École nationale d'administration publique. She was appointed Commissioner of the Indian Claims Commission on March 28, 2001, and Chief Commissioner on June 10, 2003.

Daniel J. Bellegarde is a member of the Little Black Bear First Nation in southern Saskatchewan. Educated at the Qu’Appelle Indian Residential School and the University of Regina’s Faculty of Administration, he has also received specialty training at various universities and professional development institutions. Mr Bellegarde has held several senior positions with First Nations organizations, including socio-economic planner for the Meadow Lake Tribal Council and president of the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies. He was first Vice-Chief of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations, holding the treaty land entitlement and specific claims portfolio, as well as the gaming, justice, international affairs and self-government portfolios. He is currently the president and senior governance coordinator of the Treaty 4 Governance Institute, an organization mandated to work with Treaty 4 First Nations to develop and implement appropriate governance processes and structures. He has served on various boards and committees at the community, provincial and national levels, including the Canadian Executive Service Organization. Mr Bellegarde was appointed Commissioner of the Indian Claims Commission on July 27, 1992, and continues to serve in this capacity. He also served as Co-Chair of the Commission, from 1994 to 2000.

Jane Dickson-Gilmore is an associate professor in the Law Department at Carleton University, where she teaches such subjects as aboriginal community and restorative justice, as well as conflict resolution. Active in First Nations communities, she has served as an advisor for the Oujé-Bougoumou Cree First Nation Community Justice Project and makes presentations to schools on aboriginal culture, history, and politics. In the past, she provided expert advice to the Smithsonian Institution – National Museum of the American Indian on Kahnawake Mohawks. Ms Dickson-Gilmore has also been called upon to present before the Standing Committee of Justice and Human Rights and has been an expert witness in proceedings before the Federal Court and Canadian Human Rights Commission. Ms Dickson-Gilmore was born in Alberta and raised in British Columbia. She graduated from the London School of Economics with a PhD in law and holds a BA and MA in criminology from Simon Fraser University. Ms Dickson-Gilmore was appointed Commissioner of the Indian Claims Commission on October 31, 2002.

Alan C. Holman is a writer and broadcaster who grew up on Prince Edward Island. In his long journalistic career, he has been an instructor at Holland College in Charlottetown, PEI; editor-publisher of a weekly newspaper in rural PEI; a radio reporter with CBC in Inuvik, NWT; and a reporter for the Charlottetown Guardian, Windsor Star, and Ottawa Citizen. From 1980 to 1986, he was Atlantic parliamentary correspondent for CBC-TV news in Ottawa. In 1987, he was appointed parliamentary bureau chief for CBC radio news, a position he held until 1994. That same year, he left national news reporting to become principal secretary to then-PEI Premier Catherine Callbeck. He left the premier's office in 1995 to head public sector development for the PEI Department of Development. Since the fall of 2000, Mr Holman has worked as a freelance writer and broadcaster. He was educated at King's College School in Windsor, NS, and Prince of Wales College in Charlottetown, where he makes his home. He was appointed Commissioner of the Indian Claims Commission on March 28, 2001.

Sheila G. Purdy was born and raised in Ottawa. Between 1996 and 1999, she worked as an advisor to the government of the Northwest Territories on the creation of the Nunavut territory. Between 1993 and 1996, she was senior policy advisor to the Minister of Justice and the Attorney General of Canada on matters related to the Criminal Code and aboriginal affairs. In the early 1990s, Ms Purdy was also special advisor on aboriginal affairs to the Leader of the Opposition. Previously, she provided legal services on environmental matters, and worked as a legal aid lawyer representing victims of elder abuse. After graduating with a law degree from the University of Ottawa in 1980, Ms Purdy worked as a litigation lawyer in private practice until 1985. Her undergraduate degree is from Carleton University, Ottawa. Ms Purdy is on the executive of the Canadian Biodiversity Institute, the Advisory Council of Canadian Arctic Resources Committee, and the Women's Legal, Education and Action Fund (LEAF). She was appointed Commissioner of the Indian Claims Commission on May 4, 1999.