Berger, Thomas R. (1933 - 2021)

Thomas Rodney Berger was born in 1933 in Victoria, BC. His father was in the RCMP, so Berger moved a lot as a child, attending elementary school in BC and Saskatchewan before going to high school in North Vancouver. After getting his BA and law degree at UBC, he was called to the bar in 1957. Berger was elected at age 29 to the House of Commons. In 1969 he was counsel to the Nisga'a in Calder vs British Columbia, a case that inaugurated the concept of Aboriginal title in Canadian law. He filed a writ in the BC Supreme Court which alleged that Aboriginal title had never been extinguished, and First Nations maintained their ownership of the land. He was the youngest judge appointed to the Supreme Court in the 20th century, where he served for 12 years. During that time he headed many inquiries, including the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry, to determine the social, environmental and economic impact of the proposed Arctic Gas pipeline. Upon his recommendation, the Government of Canada rejected the proposal and approved an alternate route. Canada also adopted his recommendation to establish a wilderness park in the Northern Yukon to protect one of the last great caribou herds of North America, and to impose a moratorium on major development in the Mackenzie Valley to enable aboriginal land claims to be settled. Berger’s public intervention in 1981 was instrumental in the inclusion of aboriginal rights in the new Canadian Constitution. After he resigned from the bench in 1983, he led the Alaska Native Review Commission. For three years, he taught at UBC, then returned to practicing law in Vancouver. In 1990 he received the Order of Canada; in 1991 he wrote A Long and Terrible Shadow, examining European values and native rights in North and South America from 1492-1992. From 1991 to 1992 he served as vice-chairman of the World Banks’ Sardar Sarovar Inquiry in India. In 2003, he wrote One Man’s Justice, an account of his work as a lawyer. Berger held honorary degrees from 13 universities.