Mary Dawson (civil servant)
Mary Elizabeth Dawson CM KC (June 23, 1942 – December 24, 2023) was a Canadian lawyer and civil servant who was the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner of Canada. She was appointed under the Parliament of Canada Act on July 9, 2007 as the Conflict of Interest Act came into force until her term of office came to an end on January 8, 2018.
Mary Dawson
Early life and education[edit]
Dawson was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and moved to Toronto, Ontario, at age 11.[1] She graduated with a Bachelor of Civil Law from McGill University in 1966. She then graduated from Dalhousie University with a Bachelor of Laws in 1970.[2] She also earned a Diplôme d’études supérieures en droit (droit public) from the University of Ottawa. She was a member of the Nova Scotia Barristers' Society and the Law Society of Ontario while also retaining her membership in her original Bar, the Bar of Quebec, until her retirement from the Department of Justice.
Justin Trudeau[edit]
Justin Trudeau's vacation visit to Bell Island in December 2016 and concomitant helicopter ride on a private aircraft controlled by the Aga Khan raised an investigation by Dawson, insofar as Canadian government ethics rules prohibit a prime minister or cabinet minister from accepting travel on a private aircraft unless prior Ethics Commission clearance is secured.[3] The Ethics Commission determined that Trudeau's, or his wife and children's, vacations to Bell Island in December 2014, March 2016, and December 26, 2016 to January 4, 2017, "could reasonably be seen to have been given to influence Mr. Trudeau in his capacity as prime minister." Trudeau said he was "sorry" for these violations of federal laws.[4][5]