Dalton McCarthy (October 10, 1836 – May 11, 1898), or D'Alton McCarthy, was a Canadian lawyer and parliamentarian. He was the leader of the "Orange" or Protestant Irish, and fiercely fought against Irish Catholics as well as the French Catholics. He especially crusaded for the abolition of the French language in Manitoba and Ontario schools. McCarthy was first elected to the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

in the 1878 federal election as a Conservative. An Irish-born Protestant, McCarthy was stridently anti- Catholic and anti-

French Canadian French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fren ...

. He broke with the Conservatives in the 1890s, running and being re-elected as an Independent Member of Parliament (MP) in the 1891 election. He appears to have been associated with the Equal Rights Party which ran in that election but did not run as their candidate. It was his firm, Boulton & McCarthy in Barrie, that was the first incarnation of what is now Canada's largest law firm, McCarthy Tétrault. He appeared in the

Supreme Court of Canada The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC; french: Cour suprême du Canada, CSC) is the Supreme court, highest court in the Court system of Canada, judicial system of Canada. It comprises List of Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada, nine justices, wh ...

in the significant constitutional case of

Citizens Insurance Co of Canada v Parsons ''Citizens Insurance Co of Canada v Parsons'' is a major Canadian constitutional case decided by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, at that time the highest court of appeal for the British Empire. The case decided a significant issue o ...

, arguing successfully on behalf of two individuals claiming compensation under fire insurance policies.''Citizens' and The Queen Ins. Cos. v. Parsons; Western Ins. Co. v. Johnston'' (1880), 4 SCR 215.
/ref> The case helped establish the scope of provincial jurisdiction in contract matters. He also defended Emily Stowe in the 1879

abortion trial of Emily Stowe The abortion trial of Emily Stowe was a famous early Canada, Canadian judicial decision on abortion in Canada. The case involved Dr. Emily Stowe, one of Canada's first female Physician, doctors. Stowe was acquitted, which was a rare outcome for a ...

. McCarthy was a founder of the "

Imperial Federation League The Imperial Federation League was a 19th-century organisation which aimed to promote the reorganisation of the British Empire into an Imperial Federation, similarly to the way the majority of British North America confederated into the Dominion ...

", which proposed uniting the United Kingdom and the emerging

dominions The term ''Dominion'' is used to refer to one of several self-governing nations of the British Empire. "Dominion status" was first accorded to Canada, Australia, Dominion of New Zealand, New Zealand, Dominion of Newfoundland, Newfoundland, Un ...

under a central Cabinet government responsible to an Imperial Parliament elected from throughout the Empire. McCarthy ran his own slate of McCarthyite candidates in the 1896 election, but was the only one elected. Following the 1896 election, McCarthy forged an alliance with Wilfrid Laurier's Liberal Party. He would likely have been appointed to

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

in 1898 had he not died following a carriage accident. McCarthy was a key figure in the Manitoba Schools Question, and a major proponent in pushing English only in legislatures, courts, and schools of Western Canada.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:McCarthy, Dalton 1836 births 1898 deaths Lawyers in Ontario Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) MPs Independent MPs in the Canadian House of Commons Irish emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Manitoba Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario People from Blackrock, Dublin Politicians from Simcoe County Pre-Confederation Ontario people Accidental deaths in Ontario Canadian Protestants

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