Catherine Fraser

Catherine Anne Fraser (born August 4, 1947) is a Canadian lawyer and judge who was the chief justice of Alberta from March 12, 1992, until July 30, 2022. As chief justice of Alberta, Fraser was also chief justice of the Court of Appeal for the Northwest Territories (since 1992) and the Nunavut Court of Appeal (since its creation in 1999).

Early years Fraser was born in Campbellton, New Brunswick and moved to Edmonton in 1958. Her mother worked as a teacher and her grandparents were immigrants from Lebanon and Ukraine. One of her first jobs was working in the women's section of a department store; she was paid $35 a week, five dollars less than her male colleague who worked in the men's section. Fraser stated in a 2014 interview with the Edmonton Journal that "it brought home to [her] the differences in how men and women were being treated during that era in our society."

Due to Canadian mandatory retirement for justices at age 75, Chief Justice Fraser's term would have ended on August 4, 2022. However, Chief Justice Fraser retired effective July 30, 2022. Her replacement, Ritu Khullar, was sworn in on February 23, 2023.

Awards She was recognized with a YWCA Tribute to Women Award. In 1996 she received the University of Alberta Alumni Association's Distinguished Alumni Award. On May 10, 2007, she received an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Calgary.

Fraser was made a member of the Alberta Order of Excellence in 2024.