Key Takeaways:
- When Justice Mahmud Jamal was appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada last year, he made history as the country’s first person of colour to serve on the court.
- Jamal was born in Kenya to an Indian family and raised in England before relocating to Edmonton to attend high school with his family.
Justice Mahmud Jamal made history when he was appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada last year, becoming the nation’s first person of color to sit on the court.
Jamal chatted with CTV National News National Affairs Correspondent Omar Sachedina ahead of his one-year anniversary on the bench in July to reflect on his year on the bench and discuss the importance of race and representation in the legal system.
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“Every judge has a responsibility in the office,” Jamal explained to Sachedina, “but certainly I felt a responsibility to the individuals who are looking up to me who don’t know me but are looking up to me in terms of the job in the office and what it means to them.”
Jamal was born in Kenya to an Indian family and grew up in England before moving to Edmonton with his family to attend high school. He went on to study law at McGill University and Yale Law School after earning an economics degree from the University of Toronto.
Jamal was appointed to the Supreme Court on Canada Day in 2021, replacing retiring Justice Rosalie Abella after serving on the Court of Appeal for Ontario.
“One of the nine seats behind me is taken by Justice Mahmud Jamal. “And he provided us a rare behind-the-scenes peek at what life is like for the justices who sit on the country’s top bench,” Sachedina said from the Supreme Court building in Ottawa’s courtroom.
Source: CTV News
