'your honour' — ontario court in windsor beefs up with four new judges
criminal and other legal cases in windsor’s busy courtr...
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'your honour.' daniel topp of topp law, winner of the professional of the year award, is shown may 17, 2023, at the windsor-essex regional chamber of commerce 2023 business excellence awards. he's now been appointed as one of four new ontario court of justice judges in windsor.
dan janisse
/
windsor star
criminal and other legal cases in windsor’s busy courtrooms should proceed at a brisker pace as the province boosts the number of judges in the local ontario court of justice.
although their work has already begun, four new judges, each boasting hefty career backgrounds focused on criminal cases, will be officially sworn in on monday.
two of the newest ontario court of justice appointees are from windsor and therefore already intimately familiar with the local justice scene. but ilana mizel and daniel topp bring experience from opposite sides of the courtroom, with the former coming from the crown’s office, which prosecutes cases, and the latter having spent years defending the criminally charged.
the other two new judges are london-based adam campbell, an assistant crown attorney the past 18 years, and gregory mcgivern, a chatham private practice lawyer and agent for the public prosecution service of canada (handling federal cases).
with the ontario attorney general’s pre-christmas announcement of the pending appointments (candidates are recommended by the judicial appointments advisory committee), the complement of judges at the ontario court of justice in windsor jumped from seven to 11, the office of the chief justice said in an email to the star. two are replacing retiring judges — one already gone, the other departing in june — so the overall head count of local ocj judges will be at 10 by the summer.
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the four fresh appointments are “absolutely” good news for windsor, said evie lipton, the new president of the windsor-essex criminal lawyers’ association. she took over that position from topp.
“the delays in courts, getting people to trial, that’s probably been one of our first and foremost concerns,” lipton told the star.
according to a recent star report, the “overwhelming majority” of inmates held at windsor’s overcrowded south west detention centre are so-called remand cases — people who have been merely charged with criminal offences and are awaiting their day in court.
“everybody has a vested interest making sure these cases get to trial,” said lipton. whether it’s the client, defence and prosecution lawyers, or witnesses, she added, “everyone has a different reason to have a case heard without delays.”
sharon nicklas, chief justice of the ontario court of justice, will preside at the swearing in of the new judges on monday afternoon in a twin set of ceremonies at their workplace — the downtown courthouse at 200 chatham st. e.
justices mizel and mcgivern will be sworn in at 1 p.m. and topp and campbell at 4 p.m.
one of four new judges appointed to the ontario court on justice in windsor, ilana mizel is shown in windsor on may 1, 2024.
dan janisse
/
windsor star
as an assistant crown attorney since 2011, mizel has prosecuted murders and other complex cases before the superior court of justice and ontario court of justice. among her highest-profile cases was the conviction of the killer of single-mom autumn taggart in her windsor apartment bedroom by a stranger.
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mizel taught criminal law at the university of windsor’s law faculty the past 10 years and has been active as a volunteer in the community, including as legal supervisor overseeing youth programs with pro bono students canada, as a parent board member with latchkey child care and learning centre, and as a member of arch disability law centre.
topp, focused exclusively on criminal law the last 22 years, was the recipient of the 2023 professional of the year award by the windsor-essex regional chamber of commerce as “someone who demonstrates excellence in their field of business and positively influences the community.”
in addition to being an active member of the windsor-essex law association and the community legal aid advisory board, topp was elected chair of a windsor school parent council and has coached little league baseball for the windsor south canadians.
justice campbell has prosecuted complex cases, including major homicides, in both official languages. he has been a leader with habitat for humanity and been a musical performer with the london lawyers feed the hungry program.
justice mcgivern is a dedicated volunteer in the chatham-kent community, including as guest speaker at schools and as a mentor to students and a university practice judge.
daniel topp, shown arriving at windsor’s superior court on dec. 4, 2020, in his role as a defence counsel, is exchanging his lawyer robes for those of a judge.
nick brancaccio
/
windsor star
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there are a number of considerations for where new judges go. the fresh windsor appointees, for example, include one judge who can preside over cases in french, while another will preside over courts in chatham and sarnia.
“the ontario court of justice is our busiest court, that’s where most cases are heard,” said lipton.
while court backlogs and case delays are a concern, “we have a legal system canadians need to take pride in,” she added. “even people behind the scenes all work so hard.”
major criminal cases, like murder (except for preliminary hearings handled in ocj), are dealt with at the superior court of justice across the street in downtown windsor.
last year also saw new windsor scj appointments: jacqueline horvat was announced in july to replace justice kirk munroe, who retired last february; and justice jasminka kalajdzic replaced renee pomerance, who was elevated last summer to the court of appeal for ontario.
windsor justice paul howard in november was appointed regional senior judge for southwest ontario, the position vacated by pomerance.
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