Coughlan is general counsel at the Department of Justice in Edmonton
Catherine Coughlan, general counsel at the Department of Justice Canada in Edmonton has been appointed a prothonotary of the Federal Court.
As a civil litigator, Coughlan has appeared in courts across Canada at both the superior and appellate levels. While the recent emphasis on her practice was in the area of class actions, she dedicated much of the last 15 years to the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, widely regarded as the largest class action settlement in Canadian history. She assisted in the negotiation of the settlement and remained lead counsel for Canada in the decade-long implementation of its terms.
Coughlan has been a guest lecturer at continuing legal education events and law schools. She earned her Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws from the University of Alberta and was admitted to the Bar of Alberta in 1985.
Other new appointments to the Federal Court include Avvy Yao-Yao Go, clinic director at the Metro Toronto Chinese and Southeast Asian Legal Clinic in Toronto, who is appointed a judge, and Mandy Aylen, Prothonotary of the Federal Court in Ottawa, who is appointed a judge. Dr. Vanessa Rochester, counsel at Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP in Montréal, is also appointed a Judge of the Federal Court.
L.E. Trent Horne, Partner at Aird & Berlis LLP in Toronto, is appointed a prothonotary of the Federal Court.
“I wish Justices Go, Aylen, and Rochester, as well as prothonotaries Coughlan and Horne, every success as they take on their new roles. I am confident they will serve Canadians well as members of the Federal Court,” said The Hon. David Lametti, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada.
Prothonotaries are full judicial officers and exercise many of the powers and functions of Federal Court judges. Their authority includes mediation, case management, practice motions (including those that may result in a final disposition of the case, regardless of the amount in issue), as well as trials of actions in which up to $50,000 is claimed.
