Glen Rutland to become next NWT legislature clerk

Glen Rutland is to become the new clerk of the Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly from April 1, 2023.

A vote among MLAs to recommend Rutland in the role, considered a formality, took place in the legislature on Tuesday. Commissioner Margaret Thom appoints each clerk on the advice of MLAs.

Outgoing clerk Tim Mercer had already announced his intention to retire next month.

The clerk is equivalent to a deputy minister, ensuring the legislature’s smooth running.

Kam Lake MLA Caitlin Cleveland, making the motion to recommend Rutland, said Mercer had provided “20 years of dedicated service to the last six legislative assemblies.”

Rutland has a decade’s experience at the legislature according to his LinkedIn profile. He says he spent nearly six years contracted to the institution as a deputy law clerk while working for law firm Lawson Lundell, then became the deputy clerk in 2019, temporarily taking over as acting clerk when Mercer was placed on administrative leave in 2021.

He describes himself on LinkedIn as an “experienced lawyer and public servant providing expert advice on parliamentary procedure.”

In a news release published after Tuesday’s vote, Speaker of the House Frederick Blake Jr said Rutland had a “vast knowledge of rules, procedures, practices and precedent.”