Praying for our Supreme Court

At the entrance of the building are two bronze statues, 3 metres in height,

which were erected in 1970. The statue on the right side is named Iusticia

(JUSTICE) and holds a partially hidden sword. The statue on the left side is

named Veritas (TRUTH) and holds a book inscribed "Veritas". They are ten

feet tall set on granite bases so that they stand at the base line of the

building. They are set in front of the projecting bays but not aligned with

the secondary axes.

These statues were created by the prominent sculptor Walter S. Allward of

Toronto. In 1912, he was commissioned to sculpt a memorial of King Edward

VII of Britain. The allegorical figures of Truth and Justice were chosen to

be part of this memorial because Allward hoped that "...through Truth and

Justice war might cease, and Peace descend over the earth."

By 1920, Allward had completed the plaster version of the statues Truth and

Justice. That same year he was commissioned to sculpt the Vimy Ridge

Memorial in France. Before he left, Allward made alloy casts of the two

figures that were to be stored until the rest of the huge memorial could be

completed. The memorial to Edward VII was never completed. Truth and Justice

were forgotten until 1969, when the crated statues were found buried under a

Department of Public Works parking lot. The hilt of Justice's sword had been

damaged and a new one was sculpted by Eleanor Milne of Wakefield, Québec.

The statues were placed in their new location, on the steps of the SCC

building, in August 1970.