3. Overview of the Department of Justice

Office of the Deputy Minister and Associate Deputy Ministers

Shalene Curtis-Micallef
Deputy Minister of Justice and Deputy Attorney General of Canada

Appointed pursuant to subsection 3(1) of the Department of Justice Act, the Deputy Minister is responsible for the management and direction of the Department.

Under subsection 3(2) of the Department of Justice Act, the Deputy Minister is ex officio the Deputy Attorney General of Canada, except in respect of the powers, duties and functions that the Director of Public Prosecutions is authorized to exercise or perform under subsection 3(3) of the Director of Public Prosecutions Act.

The Deputy Minister supports the Minister to achieve the Government’s objectives through four broad roles: Manager of the Department, Chief Policy Advisor, Accounting Officer and Management of Litigation.

Manager of the Department

As the Department’s top public servant, the Deputy Minister has overall responsibility for managing the Department of Justice.

In addition, as a member of the community of deputy ministers and deputy heads, the Deputy Minister of Justice shares responsibility with colleagues in other government departments and agencies for contributing to the overall leadership of the public service under the direction of the Clerk of the Privy Council.

Chief Policy Advisor

The Deputy Minister acts as principal policy advisor to the Minister on matters within the Minister’s responsibility and authority. She coordinates policy development and ensures the departmental implementation of the Minister’s initiatives and priorities. She also advises on coherent policy development and management of the Minister’s portfolio.

Accounting Officer

The Financial Administration Act provides that deputy ministers and deputy heads of government entities are designated accounting officers for their organizations. Under the legislation, the responsibilities of accounting officers arise within the framework of ministerial responsibility and accountability to Parliament. Accounting officers are required to appear before parliamentary committee to answer questions regarding the responsibilities and duties relating to departmental management. These responsibilities include managing departmental resources in accordance with legislation, and federal government policies and procedures, maintaining effective systems of internal control, and approving departmental accounts.

Management of Litigation

The Deputy Attorney General oversees and directs all litigation conducted by or on behalf of the Crown, including litigation under the Extradition Act and the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Act.

Following the creation of the Public Prosecution Service of Canada in 2006, the Deputy Attorney General retained a role as advisor to the Attorney General with respect to the exercise of powers reserved to the Attorney General under the Director of Public Prosecutions Act and may be called upon to intervene in proceedings raising questions of public interest or assume the conduct of a prosecution.

In addition, certain decisions in litigation matters involving international relations, national defence and national security are made by the Deputy Attorney General. This includes the delegation of authority to officials within the Department who may authorize disclosure of information under section 38 of the Canada Evidence Act. This provision governs the protection and disclosure of information that is sensitive or potentially injurious to international relations or national defence or national security if released.

Associate Deputy Ministers

Isabelle T. Jacques
Associate Deputy Minister of Justice

Samantha Maislin Dickson
Associate Deputy Minister of Justice

Appointed pursuant to subsection 3(3) of the Department of Justice Act, the Associate Deputy Ministers have the rank and status of a deputy head of a department and performs such powers, duties and functions under the Deputy Minister.

While the Deputy Minister leads the Department and remains accountable for all decisions and actions taken within the Department, all sectors and portfolios of the Department report to the Deputy Minister and Associate Deputy Ministers. Although they each have specific areas of responsibility, their leadership approach enables any of them to lead as one on any issue at any given time.

Office of the Deputy Minister and Associate Deputy Ministers’ Team

Chief of Staff, Director General and Senior General Counsel

Julie Adair

Legal Team

Martha Butler, Manager and Senior Counsel

Ministerial Secretariat

Yanike Legault, Senior Director, Ministerial Secretariat
Zachary Healy, Director, Cabinet and Parliamentary Affairs Unit
Mélanie Bélanger, Manager, Ministerial Liaison Unit
David Boucher, Manager, Ministerial Correspondence Unit

Departmental Advisor

Tyler Paquette, Acting Senior Counsel

Executive Assistants

Shawn Béchamp, Executive Assistant to Deputy Minister Curtis-Micallef
Kelly Butler, Executive Assistant to Associate Jacques
Clunie François-Maurice, Executive Assistant to Associate Maislin Dickson
Josiane Deslauriers, Executive Assistant to the Chief of Staff, Director General and Senior General Counsel

Business Management Services

Adam Seaby, Director of Business Management
Anik Gorley, Manager of Business Management

Driver and Administrative Support

Stéphane Tremblay

Key Weekly Meetings

Min-DM

The Min-DM is a weekly meeting between the Deputy Minister, the Associate Deputy Ministers, the Minister, their Chiefs of Staff, the Minister’s Office exempt staff and the Departmental Advisor. Senior departmental executives and experts may also participate by invitation to provide in-depth briefing on files and issues. The Min-DM provides a forum for the exchange of information, in-depth discussions on files and issues, and for the provision of advice on the management and advancement of files.

Bilateral with the Minister

A weekly bilateral meeting between the Minister, Minister’s Chief of Staff, the Deputy Minister, and the Associate Deputy Ministers is held to discuss emerging issues and files.

Bilateral with the Minister’s Chief of Staff

The Deputy Minister and the Associate Deputy Ministers meet weekly with the Minister’s Chief of Staff to discuss the management of files.

The Deputy Minister’s Chief of Staff meets weekly with the Minister’s Chief of Staff to discuss operational issues.

Legal Team

Martha Butler
Manager and Senior Counsel

The members of the Legal Team advise on a broad range of high-priority files and support the Office of the Deputy Minister and Associate Deputy Ministers in providing timely and responsive legal advice. They contribute to the implementation of departmental and Government of Canada priorities. They attend briefings of the Minister’s Office on behalf of the Deputy Ministers to ensure continuity and consistency in the provision of legal advice. They work closely with each other and with the rest of the Deputy Ministers’ Office and support departmental sectors in providing strategic legal advice to the Offices of the Minister and Deputy Ministers to ensure the Department is providing legal advice from a whole-of-government perspective.

Ministerial Secretariat

Yanike Legault
Senior Director

The Ministerial Secretariat provides advisory and executive services to support the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, the Deputy Minister and Deputy Attorney General of Canada and Associate Deputy Ministers in fulfilling their responsibilities to Parliament and Cabinet, in advancing ministerial and departmental initiatives and priorities and in meeting their obligations and commitments to the Canadian public, key partners and stakeholders, provinces and territories and the Government of Canada.

This includes providing strategic advice, guidance and executive operational services in support of Cabinet and parliamentary activities, legislation and regulation, the federal Budget exercise, correspondence, outreach campaigns, invitations, briefing needs as well as managing a wide array of Justice portfolio organizations issues such as Governor in Council appointments. The Ministerial Secretariat also provides executive operational and advisory support on transition-related activities, proactive disclosure and compliance under the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act.

The team is headed by the Senior Director’s Office and is composed of three units who work in close collaboration with the Offices of the Minister and Deputy Ministers, departmental sectors, Justice portfolio organizations, and other government departments and central agencies with a view to enhancing information-sharing and supporting decision-making across the Department.

Cabinet and Parliamentary Affairs Unit

Zachary Healy
Director

The Cabinet and Parliamentary Affairs Unit (CPAU) monitors and manages Cabinet and parliamentary activities as well as acts as the primary liaison between the Minister’s Office and the Department on these matters. The CPAU provides integrated strategic advice on parliamentary procedures and Cabinet process and develops strategies, approaches, parliamentary plans and recommendations to advance the Cabinet, parliamentary, legislative and regulatory agenda, including on the Department’s overall strategic framework.

The CPAU prepares, coordinates and reviews briefing materials for the Minister’s use at Cabinet and before Parliament. It also manages all Parliamentary Returns, the tabling before Parliament of annual reports and other special reports and documents such as Charter Statements, serves as the departmental liaison with parliamentary committee clerks in managing parliamentary relations and provides support for Question Period. The CPAU also leads the annual Budget submission exercise for Justice, including liaising with Justice portfolio organizations.

Ministerial Liaison Unit

Mélanie Bélanger
Manager

The Ministerial Liaison Unit (MLU) serves as the primary liaison for information going to and coming from the Offices of the Minister and Deputy Ministers. The MLU provides executive operational and administrative services related to briefing needs, including domestic and international meetings and events such as federal-provincial-territorial meetings. The MLU also oversees the organization of departmental briefing meetings for the Minister and their Office.

The MLU also provides strategic advice, recommendations and guidance to enhance coordination and horizontal sharing of information to support decision-making and risk management across the Department and reports on all matters related to the management and flow of information.

Ministerial Correspondence Unit

David Boucher
Manager

The Ministerial Correspondence Unit (MCU) manages, develops and implements departmental systems, processes and procedures for the preparation, production, review, analysis and approval of replies to correspondence for the signature of the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada and the Deputy Ministers.

The MCU provides strategic advice, recommendations and reports on all matters related to the management of correspondence, including managing strategic assessments of incoming requests to the Minister and the Deputy Minister from the public, federal/provincial/territorial representatives, Parliamentarians, and key stakeholders, as well as monitoring and identifying trends that may require special responses. The MCU also supports departmental outreach campaigns addressed to various stakeholders done by massive mail-out exercises.

Business Management Unit

Adam Seaby
Director

The Business Management Unit provides integrated and strategic business and operational support to the Offices of the Minister and Deputy Ministers, including analyzing business needs and issues and recommending approaches and initiatives to align plans with departmental business strategies and goals, as well as, the provision of day-to-day financial, human resources, information management, administrative and other support services.

Members of the Executive Committee and their Areas of Responsibility

Business and Regulatory Law Portfolio

Michael Sousa
Assistant Deputy Minister

The Business and Regulatory Law Portfolio provides a full range of strategic legal services to approximately 40 client departments, agencies and other federal entities, through 12 departmental Legal Services Units (LSUs). The LSUs play a key role in supporting their clients’ policy, operational and legislative priorities by providing integrated legal advisory services and litigation and drafting support services.

The 12 LSUs are co-located with their respective client departments, and provide legal support to a wide variety of other departments and agencies:

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, including the Canadian Food Inspection Agency;
Canadian Heritage, including Library and Archives Canada, Women and Gender Equality Canada and Sport Canada;
Competition Bureau;
Employment and Social Development Canada / Veterans Affairs Canada;
Environment and Climate Change Canada, including Parks Canada and the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada;
Fisheries and Oceans Canada, including the Canadian Coast Guard;
Global Affairs Canada, supporting the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, International Trade, and International Development;
Health Canada, including the Public Health Agency of Canada;
Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, including the Canadian Space Agency, and the National Research Council of Canada;
Natural Resources Canada;
Public Services and Procurement Canada / Shared Services Canada; and
Transport Canada / Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada.

BRLP Centres of Expertise and Specialized Unit

The Portfolio also includes two centres of expertise and a specialized coordinating unit.

The Centre for Business and Technology Law (CBTL) is a centre of expertise in business and technology law. The CBTL provides legal advisory services in 1) corporate and commercial law; 2) intellectual property law; 3) technology law, including artificial intelligence and digital government; and 4) federal real property and immovable. The CBTL provides strategic legal advice and ensures consistency of legal positions and practices throughout federal departments and agencies in these four practice areas.

The Centre of Expertise in Procurement Law (COEPL), housed in the Public Services and Procurement Canada / Shared Services Canada LSU, has the exclusive mandate for providing procurement legal advice to all Department of Justice clients. The COEPL also conducts the litigation of procurement complaints before the Canadian International Trade Tribunal.

The Resource Development Coordination Unit (RDCU) is a specialized unit responsible for the coordination of the Department of Justice legal support on major resource development files. Given the multi-client and multidisciplinary nature of these files, the RDCU works collaboratively with LSUs to ensure that the Department of Justice is providing consistent and whole-of-government legal advice to its clients on resource projects.

Central Agencies Portfolio

Riri Shen
Assistant Deputy Minister

The Central Agencies Portfolio manages the legal issues related to several of the central agency functions of government. The Portfolio provides advisory, legislative and litigation services in a wide range of areas including:

Financial institutions;
Pension and benefits;
Federal financial transfers to the provinces and territories;
Tax policy, trade issues, securities and capital markets regulation;
Money laundering, terrorist financing and financial administration;
Crown corporations;
Information and privacy;
Digital government and official languages;
Public service employment and labour law; and
Development and implementation of the federal budget.

The Portfolio’s main clients are the Department of Finance, the Treasury Board Secretariat, the Public Service Commission, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions of Canada, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada, and the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada.

The Portfolio also provides specialized labour and employment litigation and advisory services to the entire core public administration as well as all separate agencies.

Communications Branch

Charles Stanfield
A/Director General

The Communications Branch provides advisory and planning services to support the Minister of Justice as principal spokesperson for the Department in communicating departmental policies, programs, priorities and decisions to the public. Services are provided in media relations, media monitoring and analysis, issues management, strategic communications advice, event coordination and support and digital engagement.

The Branch develops communications plans, news releases, media lines, speeches, graphic design and digital content across multiple platforms. The Branch partners with other government departments and agencies to ensure that litigation communications are well coordinated, clear and effective in communicating the Crown’s position on legal matters. The Branch is also responsible for coordinating paid advertising, public opinion research, online consultations and publishing activities.

The Branch is headed by the Director General’s Office and is composed of three main units who support the Offices of the Minister and Deputy Ministers and senior departmental officials in ensuring that communications with the public are well coordinated, effectively managed and responsive to the needs of the audience:

Corporate, Consultations and Policy Communications Unit;
Employee Communications and Digital, Creative and Language Services Unit; and
Public Affairs and Regional Coordination Unit.

Indigenous Rights and Relations Portfolio

Laurie Sargent
Assistant Deputy Minister

The Indigenous Rights and Relations Portfolio provides legal advisory and litigation support services on a wide range of Aboriginal law, Indigenous rights and Northern Affairs matters to the whole of government. In particular, the Portfolio works to support the policy, operational, and legislative priorities of its two major clients, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada and Indigenous Services Canada, including to improve strategic management of legal and litigation risks. The Portfolio also supports the Minister of Justice on Indigenous justice policy and reconciliation-related matters and in fulfilling their responsibilities under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act.

The Portfolio plays a leadership role in coordinating and integrating Justice Canada’s advice on Indigenous legal and policy issues across Justice Canada in the advisory, negotiations, litigation, and policy contexts.

The Portfolio is composed of the following units:

Aboriginal Law Centre;
Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada/Indigenous Services Canada Legal Services Unit;
Indigenous Justice Revitalization Centre;
Strategic Planning and Business Management Unit; and
United Nations Declaration Act Implementation Secretariat.

Internal Audit and Evaluation Sector

Tricia Goulbourne
Chief Audit and Evaluation Executive

The Internal Audit and Evaluation Sector supports the Department by providing independent and objective assurance to management on the adequacy and effectiveness of risk management, internal control and governance processes. The Sector also ensures that programs, policies and initiatives continue to be relevant, effective and efficient. The Sector is composed of the following units:

Internal Audit Branch

The Internal Audit Branch conducts assurance and advisory engagements, which add value by assessing and contributing to the continuous improvement of the Department’s risk management, internal control, and governance processes.

Evaluation Branch

The Evaluation Branch carries out objective and credible evaluations of the Department’s policies, programs, operations and services, and provides advice regarding departmental and program-level performance measurement.

Professional Practices Branch

The Professional Practices Branch acts as the liaison between the Department and external assurance providers, including central agencies. It also conducts sector planning and delivers the quality assurance program.

Management Sector

Bill Kroll
Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Financial Officer

The Management Sector provides a suite of internal services to assist the Department in meeting its policy and program priorities, building a workplace of choice, and delivering high-quality legal services to the Government of Canada. The Sector is composed of the following units:

Finance and Planning Branch

The Finance and Planning Branch supports the Deputy Minister’s role as Chief Accounting Officer. It provides objective advice on the overall stewardship of the Department’s financial management and its performance, and it develops and provides guidance on corporate documents such as Memoranda to Cabinet, Treasury Board submissions, Departmental Plans, and Departmental Results Reports. The Branch is also responsible for procurement in the Department.

Human Resources Branch

The Human Resources Branch provides human resources management, including learning and leadership development, official languages, recruitment, compensation, labour relations, classification, and talent/performance management, and offers services to foster a respectful, healthy and safe work environment.

Anti-Racism and Anti-Discrimination Secretariat

The Anti-Racism and Anti-Discrimination Secretariat supports the Department in becoming a representative, diverse and inclusive organization by developing and implementing frameworks, processes, training and tools to eradicate systemic racism and discrimination in our organization and in the provision of services.

Legal Practices Branch

The Legal Practices Branch promotes and ensures consistency, efficiency, continuous improvement, and innovation in federal legal practices through the development of policies, tools and analytics. The Branch supports the professional needs of Justice’s legal professionals, including timekeeping, reporting, case management, and Corporate Counsel Office services. The Branch also supports legal knowledge management, legal learning and development, paralegal services, and leads the Department in the use of business analytics and artificial intelligence.

The Branch also assumes responsibility for access to information and privacy services, including certain aspects of proactive disclosure.

Information Solutions Branch

The Information Solutions Branch provides advice, guidance and solutions to the Department in the areas of information management, information technology, including its security, library services, and Open Government.

The Branch also provides select services to the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, the Office of the Federal Ombudsperson for Victims of Crime, and the Law Commission of Canada.

Corporate Services Branch

The Corporate Services Branch implements the Department’s Safety and Security Program and manages accommodations and facilities nationally. It also provides a full range of integrated strategic and business management services to the Management Sector and serves as an executive support mechanism for many of the Department’s corporate governance functions.

National Litigation Sector

Shane Spelliscy
Assistant Deputy Attorney General

The National Litigation Sector supports the Government and mitigates risks and manages the law before, during, or as a result of litigation. The Attorney General of Canada has responsibility for all litigation for or against the Crown, any department, or Crown agent corporations, but not for criminal prosecutions, which are handled by the Public Prosecution Service of Canada. The litigation function within the Department of Justice is managed by the Sector at headquarters, the regional offices, and some specialized departmental Legal Services Units. The Assistant Deputy Attorney General has functional and coordination responsibility for all litigation conducted by or on behalf of the Department of Justice.

The National Litigation Sector is also responsible for extradition; mutual legal assistance requests and related litigation; the review of alleged miscarriages of justice applications^{Footnote 2}; national security litigation; class action and mass litigation to which Canada is a party; the Agent Affairs Program; and litigation support services and technology.

The Assistant Deputy Attorney General is the Government’s chief legal adviser in matters relating to litigation by and against the Crown.

Elizabeth Richards
Chief General Counsel

The Senior General Counsel reports directly to the Deputy Minister and serves as a national resource and pre-eminent authority on issues related to litigation and its practice. She is a direct resource to the Deputy Ministers, offering advice, and strategic guidance on a wide range of highly complex, cross-cutting matters and issues which are national in scope, have the broadest government, societal, economic and legal implications, to ensure that legal and litigation advice is coordinated and responsive to Government interests.

The Senior General Counsel leads teams in the conduct of highly complex and significant litigation and negotiations of national interest, profile, risk and impact. In this capacity, the Senior General Counsel is a mentor to counsel across the country, sharing her vast experience relating to oral and written advocacy, providing assistance with complex procedural and strategic issues and advice on various aspects of cases, including points of law, preparation of arguments and case strategy.

Regional Offices

The regional offices form part of the National Litigation Sector and provide litigation and advisory services to federal departments and agencies operating across the country.

Atlantic Region

David Hansen
Regional Director General

The Atlantic Regional Office, located in Halifax, provides legal services to federal departments and agencies in Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland and Labrador. The Atlantic Regional Office’s areas of practice include litigation, Aboriginal law, commercial law, real property, public safety, defence, immigration, public law, regulatory law, and tax law services. Regional counsel represent the Government of Canada at various tribunals and all levels of court in the four Atlantic provinces.

Quebec Region

Valérie Tardif
Regional Director General

The Quebec Regional Office has an office in Montreal and another in Ottawa. It is composed of lawyers – members of the Quebec Bar, notaries – members of the Chambre des notaires, and other legal and administrative professionals. The Quebec Regional Office provides legal services to federal departments and agencies in Quebec. It represents the Attorney General of Canada in proceedings before Quebec provincial tribunals, administrative tribunals and the Federal Courts, as well as before the Supreme Court of Canada. It deals with cases involving issues in many areas of law affecting the Crown and falling under private law, governed by Quebec civil law, and/or Quebec public law.

National Capital Region – Civil Litigation Sector

Catherine Lawrence
Director General

The Civil Litigation Section, located in Ottawa, provides litigation services to all federal departments and agencies in Ottawa, Eastern Ontario and Northern Ontario. The Civil Litigation Section’s areas of practice include administrative law, constitutional law, immigration law, corporate and commercial law, privacy law, national security law and aboriginal law before all levels of provincial, territorial and federal courts, commissions of inquiry, federal and provincial administrative tribunals, and international panels.

Ontario Region

Carla Lyon
Regional Director General

The Ontario Regional Office, located in Toronto, provides legal services to federal client departments and agencies throughout Ontario. The Ontario Regional Office’s areas of practice include civil litigation, immigration law, extradition, Aboriginal law, public law, and tax law services with some advisory services, primarily in the area of real property. Ontario Regional Office counsel represent the Government of Canada before various federal and provincial administrative tribunals and all levels of federal and provincial courts, including the Supreme Court of Canada.

Prairie Region

Voula Karlaftis
Regional Director General

The Prairie Regional Office provides legal services to federal departments and agencies operating in offices in Alberta (Calgary and Edmonton), Saskatchewan (Saskatoon), and Manitoba (Winnipeg). The Prairie Regional Office’s main areas of practice are civil litigation involving Aboriginal law, tax law, regulatory law, public law, immigration law, and extradition and advisory services. Counsel represent the Government of Canada at various tribunals and at all levels of court.

British Columbia Region

Sandra Weafer
Regional Director General

The British Columbia Regional Office is located in Vancouver, with a sub-office in Victoria. The Regional Office provides legal services to more than 40 federal departments and agencies in British Columbia. The British Columbia Regional Office’s areas of practice are Aboriginal law, tax law, public safety, defence and immigration, extradition, central agency, business and regulatory matters. Regional counsel represent the Government of Canada at various tribunals and at all levels of court.

Northern Region

Alex Benitah
Regional Director General

The Northern Regional Office has offices in the Northwest Territories (Yellowknife) and in Yukon (Whitehorse); it also has lawyers co-located with Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada in Nunavut (Iqaluit). The Northern Regional Office provides litigation and advisory services to federal departments operating in the three northern territories. Its main areas of practice are in relation to Aboriginal law, public safety, real property, business and regulatory matters. Counsel represent the Government of Canada at various tribunals and all levels of court.

Privy Council Office Legal Services Sector

Jodie van Dieen
Counsel to the Clerk of the Privy Council and Assistant Deputy Minister

The Privy Council Office (PCO) Legal Services Sector provides legal advice and services to PCO and its portfolio Ministers, in support of Cabinet and the whole-of-government decision-making.

The Sector advises PCO on the operation of the Cabinet decision-making system as well as on a wide range of program, policy, legislative and litigation activities. For example, the Sector supports PCO on matters involving Governor in Council and Senate appointments, House of Commons and Senate agenda and activities, intergovernmental relations, and other policy matters facing the Government.

In addition, the Sector serves as a centre of expertise on legal issues surrounding confidences of the King’s Privy Council. In this regard, the Sector supports the Clerk of the Privy Council as custodian of confidences and in the exercise of the Clerk’s statutory duties in the context of judicial or quasi-judicial proceedings, and pursuant to requests for access to confidences.

The Sector also supports PCO in litigation respecting their responsibilities such as Parliament (the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons), elections (the Minister of Democratic Institutions), intergovernmental matters (Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs), and PCO decisions under the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act. The Sector also provides legal support to the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General.

Policy Sector

Owen Ripley
Senior Assistant Deputy Minister

The Policy Sector supports the Minister in their responsibility for policy leadership in the areas of criminal law, youth criminal justice, victims’ rights, Indigenous justice, family law and access to justice. The sector does this primarily by developing policy advice and options in relation to legislation such as the Criminal Code, the Youth Criminal Justice Act and the Divorce Act. To support better decision-making, the Sector develops and advances the Department’s research plan, including data collection.

The Sector administers the Department’s funding programs (grants and contributions) to support a variety of public policy objectives, including access to justice, support for victims, training and Indigenous and community justice. Funding is delivered through provinces and territories, Indigenous governments and partners, as well as civil society organizations.

The Sector supports the Minister of Justice in provincial, territorial and international engagement. On the international front, the Sector coordinates the Department’s work to provide technical assistance to other countries looking to develop their justice systems. The Sector is comprised of the following units:

Criminal Law Policy Section;
Family Law and Youth Justice Policy Section;
Programs Branch;
Policy Integration and Coordination Section;
International Development Section; and
Access to Justice Secretariat.

Public Law and Legislative Services Sector

Sarah Geh
Assistant Deputy Minister

The Public Law and Legislative Services Sector provides specialized legal advisory services and policy advice across government and plays a fundamental role in drafting and developing federal legislation and regulations.

The Sector has centres of legal expertise in the following areas:

Constitutional, administrative and international law
Human rights law;
Information and privacy law;
International trade and investment law;
Judicial affairs;
Official languages law; and
Legislative and regulatory law.

Legislative Services Branch

The Legislative Services Branch drafts bills and regulations in both official languages harmoniously with Canada’s two legal systems.

Secretariat of the Action Committee on Modernizing Court Operations

The Secretariat is housed in the Judicial Affairs Section of the Sector and supports the work of the Committee, co-chaired by the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada and the Chief Justice of Canada.

Public Safety, Defence and Immigration Portfolio

Alain Langlois
Assistant Deputy Minister

The Public Safety, Defence and Immigration Portfolio’s provides advisory, legislative and litigation services in the following main areas of expertise: national security law, corrections and conditional release, immigration and refugee law, border law, national defence law, law enforcement, and international criminal law.

The Portfolio’s main client departments and agencies are:

Public Safety Canada;
Correctional Service of Canada;
Parole Board of Canada;
Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP);
Canadian Security Intelligence Service;
Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA);
Department of National Defence;
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC); and
Communications Security Establishment.

The Portfolio is also responsible for the Department of Justice’s Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes (CAHWC) Section, which offers legal support to the CAHWC Program partners (CBSA, IRCC and the RCMP) in fulfilling their mandate to deny safe haven in Canada to individuals believed to have committed or been complicit in war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide.

Tax Law Services Portfolio

Jade Boucher
Assistant Deputy Minister

The Tax Law Services Portfolio provides advice and litigation services to the Canada Revenue Agency and is responsible for the management of the law in all areas of tax law.

The Portfolio’s experience encompasses areas of practice such as:

Taxation law;
Collections, bankruptcy and insolvency;
Charities law;
Access to information and privacy;
Administrative law; and
Ministerial governance.

The Portfolio provides legal services across the country in coordination with the Department’s regional offices. Its in-depth expertise in tax law and related areas allows the Portfolio to mobilize resources best suited to respond to the evolving legal needs of the Canada Revenue Agency.

Organizational Chart

Date modified:: 2025-09-11