Who We Are

Bruce Preston has worked for the Courts Administration Service in Toronto since 1989. He has moved to progressively more senior positions, and is presently an Assessment and Taxation Officer. Since 2010, Bruce has participated in justice reform initiatives for court registrars, administrators and judges in Ghana and Jamaica with regard to caseflow management, records management, judicial case management, and scheduling. As part of these initiatives he developed a records management system for the Jamaica Parish Court. In 2017, he worked half time with the UNDP in Jamaica. He has a Master’s degree from Brock University specializing in Judicial Administration (1987), and since that time has completed continuing education courses related to dispute resolution, decision-writing, negotiation, and running a fair hearing. He is currently completing a Master’s degree in pastoral care and counseling at McMaster University. Bruce is married and has two children.

Connect on LinkedIn.

Dr. Ian Greene, Professor Emeritus at York University in Toronto. Dr. Greene has taught public policy and administration at York University since 1985. He brings to his teaching the insights gained from four years of work in Alberta's public service. He was assistant to the Minister of Consumer Affairs in the early 1970s, and was Assistant to the Regional Director of Social Services in Southern Alberta from 1982-85. Dr. Greene has published extensively on the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Court Organization and management, and public sector ethics. He is a frequent media commentator on judicial decision-making, ethical issues in government, and anti-corruption measures. Dr. Greene has led training sessions for judges and court administrators from China, Viet Nam, Nigeria, and Jamaica. He is co-author of a book celebrating the Federal Court at 50 years, which will be launched in 2021.

Connect on LinkedIn.

Diana Lowe, QC, now retired, is the former Executive Counsel to the Associate Chief Justice of the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta and former Deputy Executive Director of the Court. Diana holds Bachelors and Masters degrees in Law (LLB, University of Alberta, 1984) (LLM, University of Edinburgh, 1991), and is currently pursuing a PhD in Public Policy. In January 2008 she was appointed Queen’s Counsel.

Diana has extensive experience in systems reform, and is currently co-leading the Reforming the Family Justice System initiative (RFJS). The RFJS is a collaborative action initiative, designed to effect system-wide change in the family justice system in Alberta. The initiative recognizes that family breakdown is common and brings with it many challenges for parents and their children. These challenges are compounded by the current family justice system, which is adversarial in nature, complex and costly for families. Collaborators have adopted a Theory of Change which holds that “family justice issues are primarily social, relationship and financial, that contain a legal element”. This logic of change grounds the work and will help collaborators to achieve the key outcome that families (parents and children) will thrive, even while undergoing changes to their structure.

(Colleague and Advisor) Dr. Carl Baar is a Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Brock University and Adjunct Professor of Political Science at York University. His doctorate is from the University of Chicago. Over the past 40 years he has been recognized as one of the world's leading authorities on the organization and management of courts and court systems. He has been involved in several international development projects and his advice has been considered and implemented by judges in Australia, Singapore, Pakistan and Ethiopia.