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Far be it from me to disagree with Constance Backhouse but no, a judge ruling and then meeting with a party to a case to receive "a gesture of gratitude" is not okay. https://leaderpost.com/news/saskatchewan/judges-appearance-at-teepee-after-ruling-stirs-up-debate">https://leaderpost.com/news/sask...
Maybe Backhouse is right that our ethical understanding of judging has evolved such that judges need to "reach out" and make a "special effort to connect" but I think that prospect is troubling, and there are consequences that flow from that. 2/n
First, we must remember that impartiality has as much to do with perception as anything else. If judges are perceive a playing favourites within different segments of society, we weaken the sinews of faith in the justice system. 3/n
Second, and to this I don& #39;t think legal scholars/the legal community pay sufficient heed: judicial independence is a 2-way street. We say traditional notions of democratic accountability don& #39;t apply to judges precisely on the expectation that they remain above the political fray.
Similarly, we push back against certain forms of criticism/condemnation of individual judges in order to preserve a perceive impartiality and & #39;apolitical& #39; nature of the court. 5/n
If we have decided judges may now enter symbolic politics then the balancing effect of that is that they be subject to greater behavioural scrutiny, skepticism, and indeed, accountability. I& #39;m not sure the legal community is ready for that.
