The Hon. Irving Andre

Irving Winston Andre was born in Curacao in 1957 to Dominican parents who migrated for oil refinery employment during World War II. His family returned to Dominica in 1961, where Andre received his early education. His father, despite limited opportunities due to his illegitimate birth, maintained an extensive library and strongly emphasized education, enabling five children to attend secondary school simultaneously despite financial constraints. Andre’s academic excellence earned him a scholarship to study at the University of the West Indies, where he graduated with first-class honors in English, History, and Philosophy in 1981, receiving a gold medal for best performance in humanities.

After completing his Bachelor’s degree and working briefly as a teacher, Andre began doctoral studies in History at Johns Hopkins University in 1982. He experienced his first direct encounters with racism in Baltimore and left the program in 1984 to join his wife in Canada. He enrolled at Osgoode Hall Law School, financing his studies through work at the Workers’ Compensation Board and as a student prosecutor at Old City Hall. After graduation in 1988, he articled with the Ontario government and subsequently worked as an Assistant Crown Attorney in Brampton from 1991-1993.

Andre established a successful criminal defence practice in1994, handling high-profile cases including representing police officers facing racial discrimination and defending Patrick Critton, the only successful airplane hijacker in Canadian history. While serving as a judge, Andre completed his LL.M. (2006) and Ph.D. in Law (2010) from Osgoode Hall, writing his doctoral dissertation on drug couriers. He was appointed to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in November 2002 and became the local administrative judge for criminal matters in Brampton in 2010. Throughout his career, Andre has been actively involved in community organizations and has authored numerous books on Dominican history, fiction, and biography.

This description was written by AI and may contain some inaccuracies.