William Andrew MacKay (March 20, 1929 – January 12, 2013) 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 and former judge, civil servant, legal academic, and university president.

Education and early career

Born in Halifax,

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 four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

, the son of Robert Alexander MacKay and Mary Kathleen Junkin, MacKay received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1950, a Bachelor of Law degree in 1953, and a Master of Law degree in 1954 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 was called to the Nova Scotia Bar in 1954 and was created a

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 ...

in 1973. He joined the

Department of External Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...

in 1954 where he worked as a Foreign Services Officer. From 1955 to 1957, he was an Assistant Secretary of the Royal Commission on Canada's Economic Prospects.

Academic career

In 1957, he became an assistant professor at Dalhousie University. He was an associate professor from 1959 to 1961 and was made a professor in 1961. From 1960 to 1961, he received a Ford Foundation Fellowship to study at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. In 1963, he became the George Munro Professor of Law. From 1964 to 1969, he was the dean of the Faculty of Law and the Weldon Professor of Law. From 1969 to 1988, he was professor. From 1969 to 1980, he was a vice-president at Dalhousie University. From 1980 to 1986, he was the eighth president and vice-chancellor.

Judicial career

From 1967 to 1986, he chaired the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission. In 1988, he was appointed Justice of the

Federal Court of Canada The Federal Court of Canada, which succeeded the Exchequer Court of Canada in 1971, was a national court of Canada that had limited jurisdiction to hear certain types of disputes arising under the federal government's legislative jurisdiction. ...

(Trial Division). He retired in 2004. From 2004 to 2007, he was as a Deputy Judge of the Federal Court. In 2008, he was appointed an ad hoc Information Commissioner.

Death

Local newspapers reported that Dr. Mackay died suddenly on January 12, 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mackay, William 1929 births 2013 deaths 20th-century Canadian civil servants Canadian legal scholars Canadian university and college chief executives Canadian university and college faculty deans Canadian university and college vice-presidents Dalhousie University alumni Dalhousie University faculty Harvard University alumni Judges in Nova Scotia Lawyers in Nova Scotia People from Halifax, Nova Scotia Canadian King's Counsel