OTTAWA – A new Chief Military Judge (CMJ) of the Canadian Forces (CF) has been designated and a fourth military judge has been appointed. Colonel Mario Dutil, originally from Québec City, is the new CMJ and Lieutenant-Colonel Jean-Guy Perron, from Earlton, Ont., is the latest military judge. Both officers assumed their new roles on June 2.
“Colonel Dutil brings extensive judicial knowledge and experience to the position of Chief Military Judge,” said Defence Minister Gordon O’Connor. “Lieutenant-Colonel Perron has a wealth of experience in both Canadian and international law and is a welcome addition to the panel of military judges. I congratulate them both.”
Col. Dutil was called to the Québec Bar in 1983 and enrolled in the CF as a legal officer in 1984. He has acted as a prosecutor and defence counsel and appeared as counsel before the Court Martial Appeal Court. Notably, Col. Dutil was a senior counsel to the National Defence Act (NDA) Amendment Team that developed, drafted, and implemented NDA amendments and accompanying regulations in 1998. Col. Dutil, who holds a Master of Laws degree from the University of Ottawa, has been a military judge since January 2001. In addition to his duties as commanding officer of the Office of the CMJ, Col. Dutil is responsible for assigning military judges to preside at courts martial.
Col. Dutil replaces Col. Kim Carter, who recently retired from the Canadian Forces and is now the Ombudsman for the Province of British Columbia.
Lt.-Col. Perron joined the CF in 1983 as an infantry officer. He was selected for the Military Legal Training Plan and began his studies at the University of Ottawa in 1990. Lt.-Col. Perron was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1995 and subsequently was employed as a CF legal officer. He has served as the legal advisor on international operations in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Rwanda and Uganda, as Assistant Judge Advocate General in Ottawa, and as the commanding officer of the Canadian Forces National Counter-Intelligence Unit. More recently, he was the legal advisor to the commander of Canada Command. His military judge appointment is for a five-year term.
The CMJ is designated pursuant to section 165.24 of the National Defence Act. Military judges are appointed by the Governor in Council pursuant to section 165.21 of the Act. They serve within the Office of the Chief Military Judge, which is a CF unit independent of the chain of command. Military judges preside at courts martial and other military proceedings such as the judicial review of pre-trial custody.
-30-
Note to editors: For more information, visit the website of the CMJ at http://www.forces.gc.ca/cmj
