A Cyclopædia of Canadian Biography: Brief biographies of persons distinguished in the professional, military and political life, and the commerce and industry of Canada, in the twentieth century — John Shaqi
A Cyclopædia of Canadian Biography: Brief biographies of persons distinguished in the professional, military and political life, and the commerce and industry of Canada, in the twentieth century
History
A Cyclopædia of Canadian Biography: Brief biographies of persons distinguished in the professional, military and political life, and the commerce and industry of Canada, in the twentieth century
Canada -- Biography
=Jetté, The Hon. Sir Louis=, Chief Justice and late Lieutenant-Governor,
was born at L’Assomption, P.Q., on January 15, 1836. He is the son of
the late Amable Jetté, who married Miss Caroline Gauffreau, the daughter
of a wealthy planter of Guadaloupe, in the West Indies. Finishing the
full course of study at the College of L’Assomption, he became a member
of the Provincial Bar, establishing himself as a legal practitioner in
the city of Montreal, where in a few years he came to be recognized as
an astute advocate as well as a prospective candidate for political
honors. In 1870 his legal fame was enhanced by the part he took
professionally in the famous Guibord Case, and by his service before the
Privy Council in England in behalf of the Provincial Government of
Quebec. At length, in 1872, he was elected member for Montreal East,
defeating Sir George E. Cartier, the French-Canadian colleague of Sir
John A. Macdonald. When the Liberal Leader, the Hon. Alexander Mackenzie
was Prime Minister, Mr. Jetté was offered the position of Minister of
Justice, but accepted in preference a place on the Bench. This he
retained for twenty years up to 1898, when he was appointed
Lieutenant-Governor of his native province. While still practising his
profession in Montreal, he became Professor of Civil Law in Laval
University and a Dean of its Faculty, having been honored by the same
with the degree of LL.D., as well as by Bishop’s College University with
a D.C.L. and by Toronto University with an LL.D. In 1891 he was
appointed Chairman of the Royal Commission charged with the
investigation of affairs connected with the Baie-des-Chaleurs Railway,
finally refusing to agree, however, to the decision of his two
colleagues. The several other offices he has filled are many and
important. After his term as Lieutenant-Governor had expired, he was
given a second term. And at the end of his second term he was appointed
Chief Justice of the Court of King’s Bench, retiring in 1911. Few
Canadians have had so many honors conferred upon them as has Sir Louis
Jetté. These include his university degrees; his knighthood from the
King of England; his Legion of Honour from France, of which he is a
Commander; the many addresses he has received from his fellow-members of
the Bar, as well as from the people; not to speak of his receptions by
King George and his late royal father, King Edward, and His Holiness the
Pope. He has been associated with the Société de Legislation Comparée;
with the Société d’Histoire Diplomatique of Paris (France); was a member
of the Alaska Boundary Tribunal; a Director of the Montreal Polytechnic
School; a member of the Council of Public Instruction, and an honorary
member of the Literary and Historical Society of Quebec. In his earlier
years he was a contributor to certain city journals, having been editor
of one of them known as “L’Ordre.” His “Observations Relating to the
Code of Civil Procedure” proves him to be possessed of a wide vision and
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