She was an assistant Crown attorney in Toronto
Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada David Lametti has announced the appointment of Catherine H. Rhinelander as a judge of the Superior Court of Justice of Ontario in Toronto.
Before her appointment to the bench, Rhinelander was an assistant Crown attorney at the criminal law division of the Ministry of the Attorney General of Ontario in Toronto. She began her legal career as a defence counsel with a criminal law firm in Toronto. She went on to establish her practice in 1996. Rhinelander joined the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General a year later, where she was initially assigned to the guns and gangs unit. Her work involved complex prosecutions of cases that relied heavily on intercepted private communications. She was part of a team representing Ontario at the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG). She has also presided as a deputy judge in Small Claims Court.
Rhinelander was involved in various legal organizations and initiatives throughout her career. She was a member of the Death Investigation Oversight Council, the Committee on Diversity and Inclusivity, the Indigenous Bar Association, and the Aboriginal Law Summer Student Program. Additionally, she co-chaired the Indigenous Advisory Group of the Law Society of Ontario.
Rhinelander has shared her expertise as a guest lecturer at the University of Toronto. She has also presented at conferences and assisted in designing courses for Crown attorneys in Ontario.
Rhinelander is a member of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation in Treaty #8 territory and the daughter of a residential school survivor. She obtained her Bachelor of Laws from Dalhousie University and was called to the Ontario bar in 1993.
"I wish Justice Rhinelander every success as she takes on her new role. I am confident she will serve Ontarians well as a member of the Superior Court of Justice of Ontario," Lametti commented.
