New Heritage Minute Celebrates Bora Laskin Français
The new Minute celebrates the life and achievements of Bora Laskin, the first Jewish Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and a jurist renowned for his groundbreaking decisions. Born in Fort William (now Thunder Bay) ON to Russian immigrant parents, he went on to earn degrees at University of Toronto and then Harvard Law School, earning exceptionally high marks at both. Despite that, he initially had difficulty finding work in Toronto, where antisemitism was common at the time. He did manage a return to the University of Toronto to teach and played a key role in revamping the law faculty. In 1965, Laskin was appointed to the Ontario Court of Appeal, and his reputation grew as a champion of civil liberties. In 1970, Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau appointed him to the Supreme Court of Canada, where he became known as the "Great Dissenter," due to his frequent disagreements with fellow members of the largely conservative court. In 1973 Laskin was named Chief Justice.
The London, ON-born Victor Garber, an Emmy nominated actor, is widely known for his key roles in Titanic (1997), Legally Blonde (2001), and Family Law (2021-). "I am honoured to be playing Bora Laskin in [this] Heritage Minute," said Garber, who describes himself as being of 'Polish Jewish' descent. "Being a part of this has been so eye-opening. I urge everybody to take a vital interest in the history of Canada."
"Bora Laskin's impact as one of the foremost legal minds in Canadian history, in the face of pervasive antisemitism cannot be overstated," said Anthony Wilson-Smith, President and CEO of Historica Canada. "His work has shaped the legal landscape of Canada to this day."
The Minute, filmed in November 2024 in Toronto, was produced by Historica Canada in conjunction with Accomplice Content Supply Co. It was made possible through funding from the Government of Canada. The law firm of Norton Rose Fulbright is a presenting sponsor, and in-kind equipment support was provided by Sunbelt Rentals. Mike Masters served as producer, with Charles Wahl as director (Little Grey Bubbles), and Sam Rosenthal and Drew Carnwath (The Hogtown Collective) as co-writers. The Right Honourable Beverley McLachlin, Canada's longest-serving chief justice and first woman appointed to the position, provided end narration on the English version of this Minute. The end narrator for the French version is the Honourable Yves Fortier, one of the world's leading international arbitration practitioners and a former Ambassador to the United Nations. Both narrators serve on the pro bono board of directors for Historica Canada.
On this production, Historica Canada consulted with Dr. Philip Girard, associate editor of the Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History, and Dara Solomon, Executive Director of the Ontario Jewish Archives. John Laskin, former Justice of the Court of Appeal for Ontario and Bora Laskin's son, participated in the scripting process.
Historica Canada is a charitable organization offering programs in both official languages aimed at enhancing Canadians' knowledge of history and the values of citizenship. The Heritage Minutes collection, which now consists of more than 100 productions, is a bilingual Canadian series comprised of 60-second short films, each depicting a significant person, event, or story in Canadian history.
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