William Carlos Ives

William Carlos Ives (October 30, 1873 – July 10, 1950) was a Canadian provincial politician and provincial Supreme Court Justice.

The Honourable

William Carlos Ives
Ives in the 1930s, while sitting on the provincial supreme court
Supreme Court of Alberta
Personal details
Born(1873-10-30)October 30, 1873
Compton, Quebec, Canada
DiedJuly 10, 1950(1950-07-10) (aged 76)
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
NationalityCanadian
Alma materMcGill University

Early life

William Carlos Ives was born in Compton, Quebec on October 30, 1873.[1] His family moved to the Alberta District in the Northwest Territories shortly after he was born. When he reached his teenage years he left home to work his first job as a cowhand. He left the territories to attend McGill University and graduated in 1899. Ives became a lawyer in Montreal shortly after graduating and worked in the city for two years before moving back to Alberta.[2]

Political career

Ives moved to the town of Lethbridge in 1901 and joined a legal firm partnering with established lawyer Charles Conybeare.[3] He soon became interested in provincial politics and joined the Conservatives.

Ives ran twice as a candidate for the Alberta provincial Conservative party. He ran for the first time in the Lethbridge electoral district in the 1905 Alberta general election. He was defeated by former Northwest Territories MLA Leverett DeVeber in a hotly contested race.[4]

Ives ran for a second time in the Lethbridge City electoral district. He again finished second, this time in a three way race ahead of incumbent Labor MLA Donald McNabb but was defeated by Liberal candidate William Ashbury Buchanan. Ives was unable to expand his popular vote garnering the exact total as his run for office in 1905.[5]

Judicial career

Ives left his practice in Lethbridge moving to Calgary in 1914 after he was appointed to be a judge for the Supreme Court of Alberta. He retired from his judicial career in 1944.[2] Early in his career he became known by the nickname of the "Cowboy Judge".[6]

Ives presided over the scandalous seduction trial of United Farmers Premier John Brownlee. After the jury verdict came down, Ives threw out the jury decision in favour of the plaintiffs and dismissed the case; the Supreme Court of Canada eventually overturned Ives' decision The trial scandalized the United Farmers government and helped lead to its defeat in the 1935 Alberta general election.[7]

Late life

After retiring from the judiciary, Ives remained at the Cochrane Ranch, just outside Calgary. He died in Calgary in 1950.[8][2]

References
  2. "Justice William Ives". Alberta Heritage Foundation. Retrieved 2008-07-23.
  3. David Finch (November 13, 2007). "Law Society Marks 100 years of contributions to Alberta" (PDF). Calgary Herald. p. B2.
  4. "Lethbridge electoral district results 1905 general election". Alberta Heritage Foundation. Retrieved 2008-07-23.
  5. "Lethbridge City electoral district results 1909 general election". Alberta Heritage Foundation. Retrieved 2008-07-23.
  6. Greenwood, Frank; Beverley Boissery (2000). Uncertain Justice: Canadian Women and Capital Punishment 1754-1953. Dundurn Press Ltd. pp. 189. ISBN 1-55002-344-6.
  7. "Services After Seduction". Time Magazine. July 16, 1934. Retrieved 2008-07-23.
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