When a superior court judge is acting in a judicial capacity, is he or she immune from lawsuits?
Alberta, Canada
The following excerpt is from Manson v. Canada (Justice), 2004 ABQB 499 (CanLII):
It is settled law that when a superior court judge (as each of these defendants is), is acting in a judicial capacity (as were each of these defendants) he or she is protected from lawsuits on the principal of absolute immunity. Morier v. Rivard, 1985 CanLII 26 (SCC), [1985] 2 S.C.R. 716.
The plaintiffs argue that the judges should be immune from civil liability only when they are acting in good faith and with reasonable cause. That is simply not the law with respect to superior court judges. Indeed, it is clear from Morier v. Rivard that the immunity extends to judges even if they are alleged to have acted maliciously and corruptly.
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