Making a Difference in the Public Sector - A Conversation with Paul Dubé

I recently had the pleasure of sitting down virtually with Paul Dubé, the seventh Ombudsman of Ontario, to discuss his career in the public sector. Since April 2016, Paul has conducted independent and impartial reviews and investigations of complaints about the administration of public sector bodies. In May 2019, his role expanded to include investigating concerns about the services provided by children’s aid societies and residential licensees in the child and youth sector, and the provision of French language services by government agencies.Over the last four years, Paul has issued a series of reports highlighting public sector maladministration and systemic problems, and promoting positive change for Ontarians.

I asked Paul whether he had ever considered a career in the public sector during his legal studies at the Universities of Edinburgh or Windsor. While he had not, he reasoned that his many years practicing as a criminal defence lawyer were a public service of sorts. He had grown up listening to his father and uncles arguing passionately about the law, which instilled in him a desire to help people.

Paul also spent time as a Vice-Chair and Alternate Chair of the New Brunswick Labour and Employment Board. At the Board, he had the opportunity to apply the principles of administrative law, his favourite law school subject, to real life problems. However, it was not until 2007 that he made the transition to a full-time position in the public sector, becoming the first federal Taxpayers’ Ombudsman. After years of defending individual rights and litigating the Charter, he was intrigued by the prospect of setting up an office to uphold the new Taxpayer Bill of Rights.