Peter showler biography

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Peter was a legal scholar, educator, and an advocate for vulnerable people, particularly refugees.
Showler Peter: Peter Showler is adjunct professor, law, University of Ottawa, consultant, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, and associate, Human Rights Research and Education Centre.

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Thirteen stories that tell more about Canada's refugee system than any academic treatise.

Although more than thirty thousand refugee claims are decided in Canada every year, the personal stories behind them are never heard by the Canadian public. Peter Showler exposes the dilemmas and choices faced by participants in the refugee determination process in this collection of thirteen vignettes that focus on the roles played by the participants - legal counsel, federal court judges, interpreters, hearing officers, and, of course, claimants and board members.

Showler uses satire to expose the prejudices, myopia, ignorance, provincialism, and lack of sensitivity that mark the decisions of officials. Refugee Sandwich attacks the patronage-based system of appointment and re-appointment and its sometimes tragic consequences, revealing the wide gulf between legal ideal and legal fact. Against a historical analysis of human rights abuses from a dozen countries, the author offers a sympathetic rendering of the predicament of the refugee claimant as well as a critical look at some of the mo

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Mr. Peter Showler (Director, Refugee Forum, Human Rights Research and Education Centre, University of Ottawa) at the Citizenship and Immigration Committee

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Good afternoon to the members of the committee.

I have provided you with two written briefs. The first deals with the bill's changes to the refugee claim process. The second addresses the policies underlying the anti human-smuggling provisions of the bill. There is a detailed biography in the first package.

You will see that I have worked as a lawyer representing refugees. I was a member of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada for more than six years deciding refugee claims. I was then the chairperson of the Immigration and Refugee Board for three years, with a managerial perspective on managing the resources of the refugee claim system. Finally, I have been an academic studying refugee systems and the international protection of refugees.

In making a recommendation I want you to know that I view the refugee system from all four perspectives. Certainly, I do not view myself as a member of any

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In Memoriam: Remembering Peter Showler

Published on November 27, 2023

It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to our colleague and partner, Peter Showler, who passed away in October. Peter was a legal scholar, educator, and an advocate for vulnerable people, particularly refugees. He will be remembered as a dedicated and compassionate champion for justice.

Peter’s long-standing relationship with Maytree was marked by a passion for fairness and a commitment to the people seeking asylum in Canada. He inspired and informed our work, principally on advancing changes to our refugee protection system. He had a particular knack for transforming complex issues into practical opportunities to build a better society, and understood the need to focus on the human impact of public policy choices.

He brought this expertise to his decade-long tenure on the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, first as a member and then as its Chair, and shared it with the next generation of advocates and scholars at the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Law. He was the Director of the Ref