Searching for Justice: An Autobiography (Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History)

__Searching for Justice__ is Kaufman's remarkable story in his own words. It is the tale of adversity overcome in a crucial period of Canadian legal history.

The Honourable Fred Kaufman has been a distinguished figure in Canadian law for a half century. Born into a middle-class Jewish family in mid-1920s Vienna, Kaufman escaped to England on the eve of the Second World War. In 1940, he was interned as an 'enemy alien' and sent to Canada. Released in 1942, Kaufman stayed in Canada where he went on to university and law school in Montreal.

Kaufman was called to the Bar of Quebec in 1955 and practiced criminal law for eighteen years, taking part in many of the famous cases of that period. In 1960, he secured the release of a young Pierre Elliott Trudeau from prison, and in 1973, Trudeau returned the favour by personally informing Kaufman of his appointment to the Quebec Court of Appeal, where he served for eighteen years, including one as Acting Chief Justice of Quebec. Since his retirement in 1991, Kaufman has led numerous commissions and inquiries, most notably the investigation into the wrongful conviction of Guy Paul Morin and the two-year reassessment of the Steven Truscott case.

Searching for Justice is Kaufman's remarkable story in his own words. It is the tale of adversity overcome in a crucial period of Canadian legal history.

"The Honourable Fred Kaufman has been an important figure in Canadian law for half a century. Born in 1924 into a middle-class Jewish family in Vienna, Kaufman escaped to England on the eve of the Second World War. In 1940, he was interned as an 'enemy alien' and sent to Canada. Released in 1942, Kaufman remained in Canada, where he graduated from university and worked as a reporter for the Montreal Star." "Kaufman was eventually drawn to the legal profession and was called to the Bar of Quebec in 1955. He practised criminal law for eighteen years, taking part in many of the famous cases of that period. In 1973, he became the first criminal lawyer to be appointed to the Quebec Court of Appeal, where he served with distinction for eighteen years. Since his retirement in 1991, Kaufman has led numerous commissions and inquiries, including the investigation into the wrongful conviction of Guy Paul Morin and the recent reassessment of the Steven Truscott case." "Searching for Justice is an autobiography of a remarkable man, one who overcame considerable adversity and went on to become one of the leading lights in Canadian law."--Jacket Contents 7 Foreword 9 Preface 11 1. In the Beginning 13 2. Safe Haven 37 3. Guest of His Majesty 45 4. Freedom Regained 65 5. Newspaper Days 73 6. The Asbestos Strike 86 7. Law School 91 8. A New Career 103 9. Insanity and Other Matters 122 10. A Future Prime Minister 130 11. To Be Hanged by the Neck 133 12. St Vincent de Paul 145 13. Of Heart Transplants and Other Things 155 14. The Tax That Wasn't 163 15. The Computer Riot 169 16. McGill Frangais 177 17. Apprehended Insurrection 182 18. The Art of Cross-Examination 197 19. Some Personal Notes 206 20. Politics 220 21. The Bench 228 22. Return to Practice 246 23. Guy Paul Morin 265 24. Nova Scotia 288 25. Four More Investigations 300 26. The Truscott Case 319 Epilogue 331 Notes 337 Index 357 Publications of the Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History 373