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Martine Richard is a Canadian public servant who served as the interim conflict of interest and ethics commissioner of Canada. She was appointed on 27 March 2023, succeeding Mario Dion. Richard's appointment was intended to be interim for a six-month period, until a regular appointment was made, but she resigned several weeks after the appointment.

In the days after her appointment, opposition parties criticized her appointment to the role, due to her perceived closeness to the government. She is Dominic LeBlanc's sister-in-law.

Prior to her appointment as interim commissioner, Richard worked in the commissioner's office since 2013, having served as a senior legal adviser and investigator since 2015. During investigations into the SNC-Lavalin affair, she recused herself from at least two investigations due to perceived conflict of interest. In 2018, Richard also recused herself from an investigation of LeBlanc in which he was found to have violated the Conflict of Interest Act for awarding a lucrative fishing licence to a company linked to his wife's cousin.

On 18 April 2023, a motion was passed at the House of Commons Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics to review the appointment and require Richard and LeBlanc to testify. The following day, Richard resigned as ethics commissioner, returning to her previous role as a lawyer in the ethics commissioner's office.

References

1. Cnockaert, Jesse (29 March 2023). "Interim ethics commissioner with family connection to Intergovernmental Affairs Minister LeBlanc raises red flags for critics". The Hill Times. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
2. ^ CBC News (19 April 2023). "Interim ethics commissioner with family ties to minister steps down". CBC News. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
3. Raycraft, Richard (15 May 2023). "Conflict of interest and ethics probes on hold until new commissioner is named, MPs told". CBC News. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
4. ^ Major, Darren (30 March 2023). "Opposition cries foul after minister's in-law appointed interim ethics commissioner". CBC News. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
5. Raycraft, Richard (31 March 2023). "PM defends appointment of cabinet minister's sister-in-law to top ethics post". CBC News. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
6. Walsh, Marieke (30 March 2023). "Ottawa stands by appointment of cabinet minister's sister-in-law as interim ethics commissioner". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
7. Paez, Beatrice (8 April 2019). "Ethics czar's senior counsel exercised 'abundance of caution' in recusal from SNC probe over potential conflict". The Hill Times. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
8. "Integrity of The Office of the Ethics Commissioner questioned after Democracy Watch confirms Dion's senior counsel is related to Liberal cabinet minister by marriage". Ottawa Life Magazine. 15 April 2019. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
9. Passifiume, Bryan (30 March 2023). "Uproar as Liberal cabinet minister's relative appointed interim ethics commissioner". National Post. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
10. The Editorial Board (11 April 2023). "The Liberals' many ethics gaffes cast a long shadow". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
11. Harris, Kathleen (18 May 2018). "Dominic LeBlanc found in conflict of interest over lucrative fishing licence". CBC News. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
12. The Canadian Press (19 April 2023). "Dominic Leblanc's sister-in-law steps down as interim ethics watchdog after committee launches probe". CBC News. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
13. Levitz, Stephanie (19 April 2023). "Who's to blame for the ethics commissioner quitting? Pierre Poilievre's MPs, say the Liberals". Toronto Star. Retrieved 19 April 2023.

• 21st-century Canadian civil servants
• Living people