Justice Earl Wilson reprimanded by Canadian Judicial Council — No longer on the bench after pattern of bullying self-represented persons

Anyone in Alberta’s legal community who has witnessed former Justice Earl C. Wilson in action — especially if they were unfortunate enough to appear before him self-represented — will not be surprised that he was formally reprimanded by the Canadian Judicial Council (CJC). 

For years, self-represented persons have described his conduct as biased, condescending, and outright bullying which often left their cases unfairly compromised. This blog has documented Justice Wilson's troubling behaviour in the case of the self-represented plaintiff Carbone on which this blog reports (see previous posts here and here), including of him being removed from her case (see post here).

And now, in what feels like a long-overdue reckoning, the Canadian Judicial Council has recently released its finding after a report to them concerning his misconduct toward another self-represented person.

The Canadian Judicial Council Review Panel report released on April 1, 2025, concluded that Justice Wilson acted with misconduct toward a self-represented woman during a 2024 hearing. The judge dismissed her attempts to speak, humiliated her, made patronizing comments and mimicked her voice. His behaviour was described as belittling, condescending, and inappropriate, with his tone falling well short of what is expected of someone entrusted with such authority.

The CJC Panel found that his tone and comments failed to uphold even the most basic standards of civility and respect required of judges. While they stopped short of recommending his removal, they did issue a formal reprimand under section 102 of the Judges Act — a rare and serious step. They concluded this outcome was necessary to reinforce public confidence in the justice system.

Justice Wilson acknowledged his inappropriate tone, but for many self-represented persons who’ve experienced similar treatment from him, this will likely feel too little, too late.

Shortly after the CJC decision was issued in April 2025, Justice Wilson was no longer listed as a member of the judiciary. It appears this was the final straw. One can only hope he uses his time away from the bench to reflect deeply on the harm he caused — to the self-represented persons who came before him expecting justice but left feeling degraded and unheard, to the fairness of their cases, and to the integrity of the justice system as a whole.