An icon in the criminal justice field, a pillar of Queen’s Law and a beloved professor who has taught thousands of students, Don Stuart retires on June 30, following 48 years with the Faculty.  Alumni, faculty, staff and students honoured the man and his illustrious career at Celebrate Queen’s Law in Toronto on April 24.  

Justice David Stratas, Law’84, LLD’12, of the Federal Court of Appeal, spoke of Stuart’s contributions to the legal profession, the judiciary and the academy. “Don Stuart has taught a large swath of the entire legal profession and enough judges to fill several courts, and then some too,” he said. “No member of the academy anywhere at any time has exercised more dominance and influence over a field of law, to say nothing of the field of criminal law, one so essential to our human rights and civil liberties.” 

There is another trait in Stuart that Stratas said may be the best of all. “His office door was always open; his commitment to mentoring and helping students in need, for both educational and personal reasons, is legendary. You see?  Amongst all his big characteristics – a big brain, a big commitment, big excellence, and big work ethic -- Professor Stuart has a big beating heart.”

Pam Hrick, Law’13, an associate with Stockwoods LLP, spoke of what she calls “The Don Stuart Experience – a transformative experience that generations of Queen’s Law students have had – each one a little different.” 

Her experience involved “learning the foundations of criminal law from a man on whose intellectual strength the Supreme Court of Canada has built some of its best criminal law jurisprudence, receiving a master class on the fundamental importance of the rights of the accused in a criminal justice system that pits the individual against the awesome power of the state, and an education about Charter justice delivered by the man who literally wrote the book.” 

Like Stratas, she highlighted Stuart’s strong dedication to his students. “The Don Stuart Experience never ended at the threshold of a classroom door,” she said referring to the steady stream of students who would meet with him in his office, where he has spent every Monday through Friday with his door open when not in class. “I put to you that Professor Stuart’s greatest contribution is the impact he has had in developing students into critically-thinking lawyers and members of the academy. Our profession, our criminal justice system and our society are stronger for his contribution to them.” 

Professor Nick Bala, Law’77, was one of Stuart’s first students at Queen’s and the two have been colleagues for four decades and “cell mates” with adjacent offices for the last half of those years. “People ask why Don is retiring now,” Bala said to the crowd. “Beverley McLachlin recently retired as Chief Justice of Canada. Don has continued writing and says he ‘wants the last word’ and he’s going to get it.” 

While Stuart has made “incredible contributions as Canada’s leading and most prolific criminal law scholar, and as a teacher of criminal scholars, leading criminal lawyers and outstanding jurists,” Bala pointed out, “he was also concerned about all members of the community, not just the gifted and the ‘stars’.” This included getting jobs for all students and supporting the John Howard Society. 

Bala has witnessed the many students flocking to Stuart’s door over the years. He also knows about Stuart requiring every one of his first-year students to meet with him for a one-on-one 10-minute discussion of a case in a lecture theatre, where they were trained to project their voices. “That’s been part of what Don has done as an incredibly as dedicated teacher,” Bala explains.  “His students have always appreciated this opportunity, but also found it a bit intimidating and have taken to referring to it “going for interrogation to Dontonamo.”

Professor Don Stuart, then took the podium, telling how lucky he has bee to be at Queen’s, and of the privilege he felt to work with criminal law colleagues Ron Delisle, Allan Manson, Lisa Dufraiment and Gary Trotter. He also expressed his confidence in recent faculty hires in the area, Lisa Kerr, Lisa Kelly and Noah Weisbord. He should know. He has mentored them all. 

“I am very proud of our record of strength in criminal law and the way it transfers from Queen’s to jobs for students,” Stuart said. And even though he is retiring, he’ll still be contributing to that strength as he continues to teach Criminal Procedure while spending more time with his family. 

Shortly after the tribute to Don Stuart, the Stuart-Delisle Fund, to support the Faculty’s criminal law program, was endowed. This fund is used to maintain and enhance the strength and reputation of the program, to facilitate part-time teaching and lecturing by criminal practitioners and judges, and to provide students with additional opportunities to gain practical skills and learn about criminal practice careers. And it is yet more proof that the legacy of not one, but two Queen’s criminal law giants will live on to benefit more generations of students at Queen’s Law.  

Read more about Don Stuart’s storied career in Queen’s Law Reports 2018.
Check out more photos and read about Celebrate Queen’s Law in Toronto. 

We've also found a tape of Don presenting on "Reading a Case" from the Queen's Law archives -- see Don in action in 1992 on YouTube.