Obit: Justice Walter Stayshyn was a cross between ‘Perry Mason and Santa Claus’
Former Superior Court Justice Walter Stayshyn is being remembered for his compassion and intelligence on the bench, and also his work in the community outside of the courts.
Stayshyn - who died Dec. 16 at age 87 - served on the bench for 35 years, overseeing cases from frauds to murders, but also found time to be involved in such groups as the Hamilton-Wentworth District Health Council, where he served as chair. He chaired a Hamilton hospitals action committee which worked on solving common problems between the city's hospitals.
The Dundas resident - he also lived in Ancaster - also served on the board of St. Joseph's Villa, Hamilton-Wentworth AIDs Steering Committee, Hamilton-Wentworth Legal Aid, the former Mount Mary Academy in Ancaster and as honorary chair of the Hamilton-Wentworth Multiple Sclerosis Society Carnation Campaign. His wife, Katherine, had MS and he won the Caregiver of the Year from Hamilton MS in 1997. He received the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal in 2002.
Justice Stayshyn ruled from the bench with compassion when it was warranted and with a firm hand when in his view a participant in a criminal prosecution was acting in bad faith," said former Hamilton Spectator reporter Barb Brown, who covered the courts for 20 years.
He was a vigorous defender of the Constitution. On a personal level, he had a kind, gentle disposition and served his community in Hamilton well by giving his time to a number of health service organizations, such as the district health council and Multiple Sclerosis Society."
Stayshyn's son Ted, a Hamilton lawyer, said his father was community focused all his life.
Many people ask me to describe my father, I would do so by saying that he was a cross between Perry Mason and Santa Claus," said Ted. He had a highly intelligent legal mind that could solve even the most complex issues, but outside the courtroom he was a big, jovial larger-than-life man who loved to laugh and help others."
Stayshyn was appointed a county court judge in 1975. He was made a justice of the Ontario Superior Court in 1990 and, between 1996-1999, was local administrative judge for the judicial district of Hamilton-Wentworth. He became a supernumerary judge in 1999.
He retired in 2009, and was so well thought of he was given the rare honour of a swearing-out ceremony overseen by his best friend and former law partner, Justice Nick Borkovich, and Justice James Turnbull. Stayshyn was one of the judges who developed pretrial conferences to help judges and lawyers sort out legal issues. They are now in the Ontario Rules of Practice.
Turnbull recounted a story which he said showed his friend had a special nature. His first murder case was before Stayshyn in 1976, and Turnbull got a ruling from the Supreme Court of Canada to bolster a legal argument. Turnbull accidentally gave Stayshyn the lone dissenting decision and not the one backed by eight of the justices. Turnbull recalled Stayshyn just smiled.
He understood the anxiety a young lawyer had before the court," Turnbull said. I never forgot that. Some judges would have ground you into the ground and humiliated you. He was just a lovely guy."
Stayshyn was born Nov. 14, 1934, to Ukrainian immigrants, Theodore and Theresa Stayshyn. His father worked at International Harvester and his mother was a dressmaker. He attended Gibson Public School and Central Secondary School, where he was a star athlete on the basketball court and football field.
He graduated in 1958 with a B.A. from McMaster University and went to Osgoode Hall. He graduated in 1961 and articled with John L. Agro, QC. He was called to the bar in 1963, and he and Borkovich founded their firm in 1964. Borkovich died in 2017.
After Stayshyn retired, he became office administrator at his son's law office.
In 2012, Stayshyn's family suffered a tragedy when his daughter Katherine was killed in Oakville by her estranged husband. The judge spoke lovingly about his daughter to the Oakville Beaver, calling her an amazing person.
Stayshyn is survived by his son Ted, six grandchildren and his sister Irene. He was predeceased by his wife Katherine in 2006 and daughter Katherine in 2012. His sister Eleanor died in August 2021.
Daniel Nolan can be reached at dannolanwrites@gmail.com