Department of Justice (Canada)
Canadian federal department
The Department of Justice (French: Ministère de la Justice) is a department of the Government of Canada that represents the Canadian government in legal matters. The Department of Justice works to ensure that Canada's justice system is as fair, accessible and efficient as possible. The department helps the federal government to develop policy and to draft and reform laws as needed. At the same time, it acts as the government's legal adviser, providing legal counsel and support, and representing the Government of Canada in court.
The department's responsibilities reflect the double role of the Minister of Justice, who is also by law the Attorney General of Canada: in general terms, the Minister is concerned with the administration of justice, including policy in such areas as criminal law, family law, human rights law, and Aboriginal justice; the Attorney General is the chief law officer of the Crown, responsible for conducting all litigation for the federal government.
While the role of the Minister of Justice has existed since 1867, the department was not created until 1868. The headquarters of the Department of Justice is located in Ottawa at St. Andrew's Tower (284 Wellington St, Ottawa, ON K1A 0H8), a modern low rise office tower built in 1987.
The 54th and current Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada is Sean Fraser.
History
At the time of Confederation in 1867, the Province of Canada had two Crown Law Departments, one for Canada West (now Ontario) and one for Canada East (now Quebec).
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Department of Justice (Canada)” is canadian federal department. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Department, Justice and Canada, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “canadian federal department” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 18, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1058376. VIAF identifies the subject as 122688549. The Library of Congress control number is n50035313. Authority coordinates are 45.420, -75.704. 4 of 5 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1867, 1868 and 1987.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Department of Justice (Canada)”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Department of Justice (Canada) primary sources, Department of Justice (Canada) archive and Department research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Department of Justice (Canada)”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Department of Justice (Canada)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.