The Honourable Lorne Clarke

The Nova Scotia Legal Aid Commission recognizes the contribution of The Honourable Lorne Clarke, Retired Chief Justice of Nova Scotia, to what we now call “Access to Justice.” The Honourable Lorne Clarke passed away this past weekend. His obituary is here: http://thechronicleherald.ca/obituaries/1366599-clarke-the-hon.-lorne

It is worth highlighting that The Honourable Lorne Clarke took an ongoing interest in Legal Aid. Our first Executive Director, Gord Murray, QC, served with The Honourable Lorne Clarke on the Law Reform Advisory Commission. He remembers him as a “scholar and a progressive thinker and more than that he was a gentleman. He was a friend to legal aid.”

I met The Honourable Lorne Clarke early on in my tenure as Executive Director. He had a knack for making people feel special.  I began sending him our Annual Reports. He would take the time to call and chat or send a note after reading these. He took an interest in all that Legal Aid was doing. I would like to share with you a comment The Honourable Lorne Clarke made in a letter to me a few years ago: “It took much effort and foresight to bring the Legal Aid Commission into existence and practice but once here it has become an integral part of our life and the quality of our living.”

Karen Hudson, QC
Executive Director
NS Legal Aid Commission