Talk:Richard Wagner (judge)

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Administrator of the Government of Canada

He took office as Administrator on January 23, 2021 after swearing the oath of office. See tweet from Brian Platt: https://twitter.com/btaplatt/status/1353765957462876160

Section VIII of the Letters Patent 1947 state:

Provided further that no such powers or authorities shall vest in such Chief Justice, or other judge of the Supreme Court of Canada, until he shall have taken the Oaths appointed to be taken by Our Governor General.

19:51, 25 January 2021 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Jagislaqroo (talk • contribs)

Infobox

When Mary Simon assumes the governor generalship. I assume we'll be deleting the Administrator bit from the infobox, per how it's done with the other chief justices & justices who served as administrator during such governor general vacancies? GoodDay (talk) 22:53, 6 July 2021 (UTC)[reply]

I agree with this. It's fine to mention in the article itself, even the lead, but it strikes me as out-of-place in the infobox— taking what is a temporary position and putting it front-and-centre. It's not as if Wagner's extended time as administrator is unprecedented, either… per List of governors general of Canada#Administrators, Lyman Duff and Bora Laskin were Administrators for 4 and 5 months, respectively (shorter than Wagner's time— but not by much), yet nobody ever felt the need to put that in their infoboxes. I think it's best to follow that here, too. — Kawnhr (talk) 23:59, 26 July 2021 (UTC)[reply]

I strongly disagree. Whereas the previous Chief Justices and other justices served as Administrator on a very short basis, Wagner was the Administrator for over six months - during which he performed very significant actions, including granting royal assent to the Budget and other significant COVID-19 legislation and issuing numerous Orders-in-Council related to the government's COVID-19 response. He also received more ambassadors and signed more commissions than any other Administrator, and his service as Administrator is the longest in Canadian history. It is, thus, a significant moment in his career, and ought to be mentioned in the infobox. Do not delete. 76.71.157.66 (talk) 18:32, 27 July 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Consensus at WP:CANADA & here, is to leave it out, following precedent in the other cases. GoodDay (talk) 18:40, 27 July 2021 (UTC)[reply]

PS - Lyman Duff & Bora Laskin also served several months as administrators, so Wagner isn't a special case. GoodDay (talk) 18:45, 27 July 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Wagner's activities are not even unusual. Just look at this page on GG.ca, which includes an overview of what each administrator did in their brief period. Many of them granted royal assent to various bills or gave speeches to the throne, and Taschereau even proclaimed the ascension of the Queen (It's actually Laskin who had the most significant time as administrator: hosting the PM of Japan, accompanying a Royal Tour and presiding over a general election). — Kawnhr (talk) 18:56, 27 July 2021 (UTC)[reply]

GoodDay and Kawnhr are correct. Wagner's stint as administrator currently seems more significant than any other due to recentism, sure. but in the mists of history it really won't seem that unusual anymore compared to Taschereau, Duff or Laskin. It's just a standard part of the chief justice's job description to step in as administrator if and when necessary, and just isn't anything particularly special or unprecedented. (Didja know that even Beverley McLachlin did a short stint as administrator during Adrienne Clarkson's term, due to temporary health issues? Betcha didn't, because it just doesn't matter that much.) So consensus at WP:CANTALK was to leave the role in the infobox while he was the incumbent, but to not leave it there permanently once Mary Simon was sworn in. No different from Taschereau, Duff or Laskin, who do not have their stints as administrator permanently enshrined in their infoboxes — Wagner really wasn't more special than any of the others just because he was more recent. It's kinda like how nobody (not just on Wikipedia, but nobody nowhere on earth) has ever been arsed to compile a list of everybody who was ever acting prime minister of Canada for a very short period while the real prime minister was out of town or incapacitated — it's just not that important in the grand scheme of things. Bearcat (talk) 02:21, 28 July 2021 (UTC)[reply]