Edmund Leslie Newcombe, (February 17, 1859 – December 9, 1931) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

lawyer, civil servant, and

Puisne Justice A puisne judge or puisne justice (; from french: puisné or ; , 'since, later' + , 'born', i.e. 'junior') is a dated term for an ordinary judge or a judge of lesser rank of a particular court. Use The term is used almost exclusively in common law ...

of 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 ...

Early life

Born in

Cornwallis, Nova Scotia Cornwallis Park is a rural community in Annapolis County, Nova Scotia, Annapolis County, Nova Scotia, Canada. As of the 2021 Canadian census, 2021 census, the population was 488, an increase of 1.9% from 2016. History The community is located ...

, the son of John Cumming Newcombe and Abigail H. Calkin, he received a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in 1878 and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

degree in 1881 from

Dalhousie University Dalhousie University (commonly known as Dal) is a large public research university in Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the fou ...

. He received a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

degree in 1881 from the short-lived University of Halifax.

Career

In 1882, he was called to the Nova Scotia Bar and started to practise law. In 1893, he became Deputy Minister of Justice and was called to the Ontario Bar, and was appointed

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

shortly after. As Deputy Minister, he was responsible for all the legal work of the Canadian government. He frequently appeared in person in front of the Supreme Court of Canada and the

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 Augus ...

, appearing in more than thirty cases in front of the latter. He was appointed CMG in 1909. In 1924, he was appointed to the Supreme Court and served until his death in 1931.

References

External links

Supreme Court of Canada biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Newcombe, Edmund Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada Canadian Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George 19th-century Canadian civil servants 20th-century Canadian civil servants Schulich School of Law alumni Canadian Presbyterians 1859 births 1931 deaths Canadian King's Counsel