Under his leadership, Czutrin saw the successful expansion of the unified family court
The Law Society of Ontario has awarded an honourary Doctor of Laws degree to family law specialist George Czutrin during its May 27 Convocation meeting.
LSO treasurer Teresa Donnelly presented the degree recognizing Czutrin’s dedication to access to family justice.
Czutrin, who has practised family law throughout his career, was appointed as senior judge of the Family Court of the Superior Court of Justice in Toronto in December 2013 and remained in the position until January 2020. During this stint, he successfully guided the expansion of the Unified Family Court, winning the support of all levels of court leadership, the family bar and the provincial and federal governments.
Czutrin, who is also a writer, speaker and educator, remains committed to the province-wide expansion of unified family courts, which he believes is the “single most important” factor in improving access to family justice and the consistent application of family law.
“Throughout his career, Justice Czutrin has been a champion of issues related to family law,” Donnelly said in a Law Society Gazette article. “His leadership in the courts has had a positive impact on countless families in Ontario and has earned him the respect of the judiciary, the legal profession, justice partners and Ontarians.”
The LSO bestows honorary doctorates to distinguished practitioners each year in recognition of their exemplary achievements in the legal profession, the rule of law or the cause of justice.
In a career spanning more than four decades, Czutrin has been active in the family law bar. He was appointed to the unified family court in Hamilton – now known as the Family Court of the Superior Court of Justice – in 1993. With the unified court’s first expansion in 1995, Czutrin became the family local administrative judge in Hamilton and remained in that role until his transfer to Toronto in 2007, where he served as a judge of the Superior Court of Justice.
Apart from the honorary doctorate degree, Czutrin is a recipient of several prestigious awards, including the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC) International’s John E. VanDuzer Distinguished Service Award in 2011, the Ontario Bar Association’s Award for Excellence in Family Law in Memory of James McLeod in 2018 and the AFCC 10th Anniversary Ontario Award of Excellence in Family Justice.
