James Lorimer Ilsley, (January 3, 1894 – January 14, 1967) 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 ...

politician and jurist. He was born in Somerset, Nova Scotia, the son of Randel Ilsley and Catherine Caldwell. Ilsley was educated at

Acadia University Acadia University is a public, predominantly undergraduate university located in Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada, with some graduate programs at the master's level and one at the doctoral level. The enabling legislation consists of the Acadia ...

and

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 ...

and was admitted to the Nova Scotia bar in 1916. In 1919, he married Evelyn Smith. Ilsley practised law in Yarmouth and

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348,634 people in its urban area. The ...

until he was 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 ...

as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

in the 1926 election. He survived the 1930 election that sent the Liberals into

Opposition Opposition may refer to: Arts and media * ''Opposition'' (Altars EP), 2011 EP by Christian metalcore band Altars * The Opposition (band), a London post-punk band * '' The Opposition with Jordan Klepper'', a late-night television series on Com ...

. When the party returned to power in the 1935 election,

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

William Lyon Mackenzie King William Lyon Mackenzie King (December 17, 1874 – July 22, 1950) was a Canadian statesman and politician who served as the tenth prime minister of Canada for three non-consecutive terms from 1921 to 1926, 1926 to 1930, and 1935 to 1948. A Li ...

brought Ilsley into

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 ...

Minister of National Revenue The minister of national revenue (french: ministre du revenu national) is the minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), as well as the administration of taxation law and collection. T ...

. In 1940, he was promoted to

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

. He held that position for the duration of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

during a period of massive expansion in expenditure due to the war effort. He was recognized for his service in 1946 when he was appointed to the

Imperial Privy Council The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians who are current or former members of ei ...

, and given the honorific of "Right Honourable". The same year, he became

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...

. He served in that position until he retired from politics in 1948. The next year, he was appointed to the

Nova Scotia Supreme Court The Nova Scotia Supreme Court is a superior court in the province of Nova Scotia. The Supreme Court consists of 25 judicial seats including the position of Chief Justice and Associate Chief Justice. At any given time there may be one or more addit ...

and became Chief Justice of Nova Scotia in 1950. He served in that capacity until his death in 1967 in Halifax at the age of 73.

J. L. Ilsley High School J.L. Ilsley High School is a Canadian high school located in Spryfield in the eastern part of Halifax, Nova Scotia. The school is named after James Lorimer Ilsley, a former federal cabinet minister who served in Prime Minister William Lyon Macke ...

, opened in 1971 and located in

Spryfield, Nova Scotia Spryfield is community within the urban area of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. History The land now known as Spryfield was first occupied by the Miꞌkmaq people, who hunted and fished at Beaver Lake (now called Long Lake). The Miꞌkmaq would ...

, bears his name.

Electoral record

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ilsley, James Lorimer 1894 births 1967 deaths Canadian Ministers of Finance Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Nova Scotia Liberal Party of Canada MPs Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Canadian members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Lawyers in Nova Scotia Canadian King's Counsel People from Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia