Bob dedicated his professional life to serving Canadians.

His entire career was devoted to the pursuit of justice, to the fair and equitable administration of the criminal law, to the development of jurisprudence, and to the education and mentorship of generations of counsel.

Bob joined the Department of Justice, Ontario Regional Office, Prosecution Section in 1977. From 1986 onward, he served as their Coordinator of Criminal Appeals. In 2006, Bob retired from the federal public service as Senior General Counsel and joined the Ministry of the Attorney General for Ontario, Crown Law Office — Criminal.

In his more than 44 years of public service, Bob prosecuted all manner of cases on behalf of the federal and provincial Crown. He appeared before all levels of court, including numerous trials of large-scale frauds, appeals in the Court of Appeal for Ontario and appearances at the Supreme Court of Canada. Some of Bob’s most recognizable cases include R. v. Duarte, [1990] 1 S.C.R. 30, R. v. Garofoli, [1990] 2 S.C.R. 1421, Lavallee v. Canada (Attorney General), 2002 SCC 61; R. v. National Post, 2010 SCC 16 and R. v. Brassington, 2018 SCC 37.

Bob has been recognized with many awards. In 2010, he was awarded the Law Society Medal for outstanding service within the profession. In 2020, Bob was awarded the Commitment to Justice Award by the Federal, Provincial and Territorial Heads of Prosecutions Committee, in recognition of his dedication to serving the Canadian public and furthering the ideals of justice through his prosecutorial career.

Bob also served as both an educator and an author. He was a long-time instructor of trial advocacy at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law. As well, he frequently lectured to the judiciary, legal professionals and law enforcement across the country. He was recognized nation-wide as an expert in search and seizure, electronic surveillance, and the law of privilege. He authored many articles and legal texts on these and other subjects.

Above all, Bob was a mentor. Multiple generations of lawyers benefited greatly from Bob’s unerring guidance, sage advice, deep knowledge of the law and good humour.

Those who were lucky enough to come into his orbit leaned heavily on Bob for assistance. Bob loved his family, life, people and the law. To the very end, that love never waned. Bob made more of his time than most people have or ever will. Bob’s contributions to so many people over so many years elude textual description. He is missed, but his memory lives on through his impact on the law and in the minds of so many.