Canada. Royal Commission on the Honourable Leo A. Landreville : The Commission to Inquire into the Dealings of the Honorable Mr. Justice Leo A. Landreville with Northern Ontario Natural Gas Limited or Any of its Officers, Employees or Representatives, or in the Shares of the Said Company, and to Advise Whether, in the Opinion of the Commissioner, Anything Done by Mr. Justice Landreville in the Course of Such Dealings Constituted Misbehaviour in his Official Capacity as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Ontario, or Whether the Honorable Mr. Justice Landreville has by Such Dealings Proved Himself Unfit for the Proper Exercise of His Judicial Duties was established under Order in Council P.C. 128, 19 January 1966, under Part I of the Inquiries Act (R.S.C., 1952, c.154) and on the recommendation of the Minister of Justice. The Commission was mandated to inquire into and report upon the dealings of the Honourable Mr. Justice Leo A. Landreville with Northern Ontario National Gas Limited or any of its officers, employees or representatives, or in the shares of the said company, and to advise whether in the opinion of the Commissioner, anything done by Mr. Justice Landreville in the course of such dealings constituted misbehaviour in his official capacity as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Ontario, or whether he has by such dealings proved himself unfit for the proper exercise of his judicial duties. The commissioner was Ivan Cleveland Rand. The secretary was Helen M. Roney.
Leo Landreville was Mayor of Sudbury in July 1956 when the Sudbury City Council approved a franchise with Northern Ontario Natural Gas Company Limited (NONG) to supply natural gas to the city. Landreville resigned as Mayor on 30 September 1956 shortly after his appointment as judge of the Supreme Court of Ontario.
In 1964, Landreville was charged under Section 104 (1)(b) and (e) of the Criminal Code with having accepted a benefit as consideration in obtaining the adoption of a resolution by the City of Sudbury of a franchise agreement with NONG. He was acquitted of these charges at a preliminary hearing in Magistrate's court in the District of Sudbury, on 8 October 1964.
The benefit referred to at the preliminary hearing was a one year option offered to Landreville, to purchase 10,000 shares of NONG at .50 per share. On 12 February 1957, Landreville, while serving as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Ontario, received 7,500 paid up shares of NONG from Continental Investment Corporation Limited of Vancouver. The broker for Continental had sold 2,500 shares of the original 10,000 offered to Landreville which was sufficient to pay off his account for the NONG stock. Landreville subsequently sold his NONG shares in 1957 at a profit of 17,000.
Despite the dismissal of the charges against Landreville in 1964, rumours persisted that he had acted improperly by accepting the NONG shares and should have resigned from the bench.
On 14 March 1965, a Special Committee of the Law Society of Upper Canada reported on Landreville's conduct as a judge. The report, adopted by the Benchers of the Law Society on 23 April, contained a resolution calling for Landreville's removal. A copy of the Law Society's report was sent to the federal Minister of Justice. Following the receipt of the report, the Minister of Justice asked the judge to resign from office. But, Landreville denied any wrongdoing and refused to resign.
Subsequently, there were demands in Parliament that the judge be called before a parliamentary committee to account for his actions. Instead, the Minister of Justice appointed a judicial inquiry, on 19 January 1966, into Landreville's dealings with NONG and whether he should continue to exercise his judicial functions.
Less than a year after the Commission terminated, Landreville resigned from the Supreme Court of Ontario. His resignation, dated 7 June, and effective on 30 June, was announced in the House of Commons on 8 June. The announcement was made just before the Senate was scheduled to open debate on a motion to remove Landreville from the bench. (See Inquiry Re: The Honourable L.A. Landreville, 1966, Ottawa, 1966).
Hearings of the commission were held in Vancouver, Sudbury, Toronto and Ottawa from 14 March to 27 April 1966. The commission filed 172 exhibits. RG33-92 General Inventory
