United Nurses of Alberta congratulates Madam Justice Ritu Khullar on her appointment to the Court of Appeal of Alberta

United Nurses of Alberta was delighted to learn today of the appointment of Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Ritu Khullar, Q.C., as a justice of the Court of Appeal of Alberta.

Jody Wilson-Raybould, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, announced the appointment in a media release. Justice Khullar replaces Madam Justice S.J. Greckol, who elected to become a supernumerary judge effective January 1, 2018.

Before her appointment to the Court of Queen’s Bench in March 2017, Justice Khullar represented UNA in many cases, including at the Supreme Court of Canada in December 2016 when the union received intervenor status in a case related to addictions in the workplace, an issue about which UNA has been advocating for many years.

UNA argued in that case that an addiction should be seen as a disability, not a condition for which a nurse should be punished by and employer or professional association.

From 1998 until 2017, Justice Khullar practiced law in Edmonton with Chivers Carpenter, focusing on labour and employment, privacy, administrative, human rights, and constitutional law. She became managing partner of the firm in 2009.

Justice Khullar has also lectured at the University of Alberta and served on numerous committees of the Canadian Bar Association. She has acted in a pro bono capacity in numerous significant cases, including representing the Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund before the Supreme Court of Canada.