BILL NO. 155
(as introduced)
1st Session, 64th General Assembly
Nova Scotia
71 Elizabeth II, 2022
Government Bill
Public Prosecutions Act
(amended)
The Honourable Brad Johns
Attorney General and Minister of Justice
First Reading: April 11, 2022
Second Reading: April 14, 2022
Third Reading: April 22, 2022 (LINK TO BILL AS PASSED)
Explanatory Notes
(a) clarifies that the requirement for the Director of Public Prosecutions to have 10 years at the Bar of Nova Scotia or of another province of Canada is a total of years served as a barrister;
(b) requires the Director of Public Prosecutions to be appointed on the recommendation of the Attorney General, limits the Director’s term to seven years and provides that the Director may not be re-appointed; and
(c) updates the title of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
Clause 2 establishes the procedure for the appointment of a Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions and provides that the present incumbent remains in office until the incumbent resigns, retires or is terminated.
An Act to Amend Chapter 21
of the Acts of 1990,
the Public Prosecutions Act
1 (1) Clause 5(1)(a) of Chapter 21 of the Acts of 1990, the Public Prosecutions Act, is amended by adding "with a total" immediately after "barrister" in the first line.
(2) Clause 5(1)(b) of Chapter 21 is amended by
(a) adding ", on the recommendation of the Attorney General," immediately after "Council" in the first line; and
(b) striking out "of the Trial Division" in the third and fourth lines.(3) Subsection 5(1) of Chapter 21 is further amended by adding immediately after clause (b) the following clause:
- (ba) shall be appointed for a term of seven years and is not eligible to
be re-appointed;
2 Section 7 of Chapter 21 is repealed and the following Section substituted:
- 7 (1) The Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Attorney General, appoint a barrister in the public service with a total of at least ten years standing at the Bar of Nova Scotia or of another province of Canada to be Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions for a term of five years.
(2) The person appointed under subsection (1) may be re-appointed for one additional term of up to five years by the Governor in Council on the recommendation of the Attorney General.
(3) The Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions is responsible to the Director of Public Prosecutions and may exercise all of the powers and authority of the Director of Public Prosecutions and, for that purpose, is a lawful deputy of the Attorney General.
(4) Notwithstanding subsections (1) and (2), the Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions in office when this Section comes into force continues in office until the Deputy Director resigns, retires or is terminated.
This page and its contents published by the Office of the Legislative Counsel, Nova Scotia House of Assembly, and © 2022 Crown in right of Nova Scotia. Created April 27, 2022. Send comments to legc.office@novascotia.ca.
