George Valin is amazed at how time flies.
Nearly 28 years to the day he was sworn in as a judge, Valin was saying his goodbyes to legal colleagues and his family.
In fact, his swearing out ceremony today in courtroom 302 at the North Bay Courthouse, is the same spot, in the same room he sat getting sworn in on January 24th, 1991.
“I recall telling my family to fasten your seatbelts you will be in for a heck of a ride,” stated Valin during his closing remarks during the one-hour ceremony.
“I don’t know where time has gone and enjoyed all my time on the bench.”
A number of speakers from different perspectives of the legal world spoke glowingly about Valin’s career.
“I did not do so well in front of him but all my clients got a fair shake,” recalled Gregory Ellies when he appeared in front of Valin as a lawyer before he became an administrative judge.
Paul Trenker, from the Nipissing Law Association stated that Valin was “born to be a judge.”
Trenker recalled that Valin’s great grandfather was the first judge in Nipissing District, his uncle was a judge too, and his father was a lawyer.
“He didn’t become a judge by chance he was destined to be one,” Trenker said about Valin.
“He had no choice but to become one. He has always looked like a judge by stature and manner.”
It did not matter what legal office spoke about Valin, because all of them had the same type of message about him. That he was always fair no matter if the judgement was in their favour or not.
“I would tell my colleagues that you are lucky because you have drawn one of best judges in the province,” said Paul Larsh, recently retired from the Nipissing District Crown Attorney’s Office.
“He was fair minded, and you always left feeling like you were listened to. He was an intellectually honest judge,” continued Larsh.
At the end Valin, was visibly touched by all the kind words sent his way. He thanked his family at home and his family at the courthouse for helping him throughout the years.
“This is a surreal experience for me and I don’t know if I deserve all the compliments given to me but I appreciate them,” he said.
Enjoy your retirement Judge.
