“Called within the Bar of K.C.” From K.C. to Q.C. to K.C.

By Brenda McCafferty

This tribute is inspired by lawyer Frank Newson’s’ article, 1983 entitled “Q.C. to K.C. to Q.C.” found within the Law Society of Alberta, Heritage Committee records at LASA (Committee member Alexander Andrekson).

The reign of K.C.’s:

King George VI died suddenly in his sleep on February 6, 1952. He ascended the throne following the abdication of his brother King Edward VIII in 1936 and was predeceased by his father King George V who reigned as monarch from 1910 to 1936.

Frank Newson’s reflections on the death of George VI in 1952:

We all found out we were Q.C.’s and wondered what would be required of us to claim it. It was hoped that we would not have to pay $100.00 for a new certificate when some of us had barely got used to the first one. However, we received no direction and gradually got used to the Victorian Q.C.[i]

The Honourable Justice Frank Ford, the unofficial “Chief of Protocol” amongst the judiciary, advised it would be sufficient if during the period of official mourning of King George VI the judiciary were to have a lengthwise crease impressed into their “Tabs” and had soft white cuffs sewn to the cuffs of their jackets. These were called “Weepers” and their purpose was to enable counsel to wipe his eyes if he should be overcome with grief in Court at the thought of the death of the late sovereign.

 

When Queen Elizabeth II ascended to the throne in 1952, the first Alberta appointed Q.C.’s occurred soon after on December 31, 1953, by Alberta Attorney General Appointment Order #1804/53:

Bury, Douglas C.

Davis, Grier Rider

Dechene, Andre M.

Livingstone, John Andrew

McCormick, Edward Joseph

McCorry, James

McDermid, Neil D.

McLaws, Donald Preston

McNeill, Noel John

Morrow, William George

Ross, James Alexander (Roll #447) = earliest roll number entered on the list

Ross, William Stanley

Sanford, Percy Leroy

According to Frank Newson:

The language of the letters patent awarding the K.C. is involved, but the general idea is, after advising the solicitor of his appointment, to inform him that he takes precedence immediately after the date of the next previous appointments, the present recipients to take precedence amongst themselves according to the dates of their respective calls to the Bar.[ii]

Law Society roll numbers are assigned chronologically by bar admission date which determine seniority in accordance with the tradition. For example, an appointed Q.C. in 1953 is required to yield precedence to all those appointed alongside, regardless of the dates of their respective calls to the Bar. The senior members of the Bar take precedence as entitled. Younger members of the Bar (junior / behind in university) must yield precedence accordingly.

One day, several years from now, the initials Q.C. after the names of counsel will seem to be very quaint as it did following Queen Victoria’s era.

What historically does the appointment specify?

According to 1968/1969 memos by The Honourable R.A. Cawsey and W.H. Hurlburt:

An appointee should have a distinguished record of competence in his/her profession as determined by fellow members of the profession and the Judges. He should be an individual who has had no serious misconduct record against him/her with the Law Society; should have spent a great deal of time in trial work; and should be known as a competent Counsel. The appointment recognizes outstanding ability in a practicing lawyer who has made a contribution to the law, practice of the profession generally, or to society at large and the appointment should not be restricted to those who appear in court. A minimum age limit of forty is suggested. A Queen’s Counsel can be revoked when a member ceases to remain in good standing.[iii]

Alberta’s first and second K.C. appointments following the death of Queen Elizabeth II:

1. Miles G. Atkinson, Q.C. appointment date: December 19, 1973

 

In Calgary, Miles Gibson Atkinson was the first lawyer to be transferred to K.C. on September 8, 2022. He passed away six days after Queen Elizabeth on September 14, 2022, aged 93 years. Miles was the most senior Q.C. to automatically become K.C. in Alberta, having been appointed in 1973. On the day of the Queen’s death, Miles’ wife Rosemary Atkinson, donned her best ‘Queen-esque’ Scottish attire and visited his care home. He was later heard professing to staff, he was visited in person by the Queen herself.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Milvain, MacDonald, Cheeseman, & Moore law firm:

 

Miles Gibson Atkinson was born on July 11th, 1929, in Iroquois Falls, Ontario. He graduated from the University of New Brunswick he graduated with a BSc in Geology in 1950. Upon moving to Alberta in 1950, Atkinson worked as an oil scout. During this time, he met his future partner Basil Cheeseman, and their conversations concerning the law contributed to a desire to change professions. In the fall of 1952, Atkinson entered Dalhousie Law School, graduating with an LLB in 1955. After first articling and being Called to the Bar in Fredericton, Atkinson moved back to Calgary, where he joined his previous acquaintances, being called to the Bar of Alberta on October 23rd, 1957. On December 19th, 1973, Miles Atkinson was named Queen’s Counsel, and retired from practice in 1996.

 

 

 

2. The Honourable William (Bill) E. Wilson, Q.C. appointment date: January 30, 1978

Birth date: June 17, 1933

Appointed Justice, Court of Queen’s Bench: March 1, 1991

In Edmonton, the Honourable William E. Wilson, Q.C. (roll # 1833) died September 11, 2022 (aged 89), three days following Her Majesty’s death. Wilson’s father The Hon. Ernest Brown Wilson, was born in Innisfail, Alberta, in 1904 and attended the University of Alberta, graduating with a B.A. in 1925 and an LL.B. in 1927. After admission to the bar on November 23, 1928, Ernest Wilson began practice with R.D. Tighe which later evolved into the law firm of Cairns, Ross, Wilson, and Wallbridge in Edmonton.

Son Bill Wilson, who articled at his father’s law firm, made many donations to LASA over the years, including a valuable set of correspondence between his father and L.Y. Cairns, K.C. while Ernest served oversees during the second world war. Matters concerning the fate of the law practice of Tighe & Wilson following the death of Tighe, and the emergence of the Cairns, Ross, Wilson, and Wallbridge firm are detailed in the letters at LASA. A paper written by Justice William E. Wilson, son of E.B. Wilson on this subject entitled “Memories of an Old-Fashioned Prairie Law Office, 1946-1952”, were featured in past issues of LASA’s newsletter ‘Architypes’.

Making their mark in Alberta legal history

It is very befitting that two Alberta legal icons, both of whom took an interest in legal history, and were lifelong supporters of LASA, achieved their rightful mark in Alberta legal history. Miles G. Atkinson, K.C. and The Honourable Bill E. Wilson, K.C. were legal community architypes.

A letter dated September 9, 2022, from the Minister of Justice and Solicitor General to the Law Society of Alberta reviewed the legal effect of the succession of the Crown to His Majesty King Charles III on these appointments and concluded current Queen’s Counsel (QC) designations will automatically become King’s Counsel (KC). The office continues and the designation changes to reflect the change in monarch. A person appointed as Queen’s Counsel who passed away prior to September 8, 2022, held only the office of Queen’s Counsel and not the office of King’s Counsel. Referring to now-deceased Q.C.’s as Q.C.’s has the historical benefit of linking the honour of their appointments to her late Majesty’s reign. They were appointed Q.C.’s, carried out their law practice as Q.C.’s, and passed on with the title of Q.C. in reverence to the great Elizabethan II era and all it stood for.

[i] As above

[ii] From LASA, 86-00-01, Alexander Andrekson fonds. Heritage Committee – Newson, Frank, ‘Q.C. to K.C. to Q.C.,’ Vol no. 1, File no. 18, 1983

[iii] From LASA, 05-02-01, Law Society of Alberta fonds. Secretary’s General Correspondence. King’s Counsel and Queen’s Counsel, Vol no. 207, File no. 1829, 1968-1969