Daniel A. Bellemare - Biography
On March 1, 2009, Daniel A. Bellemare MSM, Q.C. took office as Prosecutor of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL). As such he is responsible for the investigation and the eventual prosecution of those involved in the 14 February 2005 attack against former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and several others.
Prior to that, from January 2008 to the end of February 2009, Mr. Bellemare served as Commissioner of the United Nations International Independent Investigation Commission (UNIIIC) into the bombing that caused the death of several persons, including the former Prime Minister of Lebanon, Rafik Hariri.
Prior to his appointment as Head of UNIIIC in November 2007, he was Special Advisor to the Deputy Minister of Justice and Deputy Attorney General of Canada (2006-2007) and Assistant Deputy Attorney General (Criminal law), from June 1, 1993 to December 2006, making him, when he retired in September 2007, the longest standing holder of that position in the history of the Department of Justice. He was responsible for all of criminal prosecutions initiated in the name of the Attorney General of Canada.
From 1983 to 1988, he was the deputy Director and then the Director of the Criminal Law Amendments Section of the Department. In 1988, he was appointed Director of the Legal Services Unit of the Department of the Solicitor General where he served until 1993.
Between 1976 and 1983, he worked as a federal prosecutor in Montreal for the Department of Justice of Canada.
He holds a Law degree from the University of Ottawa and a Master Degree in Law from the University of Montreal. He was called to the Quebec Bar in 1976.
A founding member of International Association of Prosecutors in 1995, Mr. Bellemare was a member of the Executive Committee of the association since its creation until his retirement in December 2006. In 2007, he was elected “Honorary Member” of the Association. He is also a member of the Senate of the Association.
Throughout his career, Mr. Bellemare lectured on criminal law issues to the Bar Admission courses, and to the police and legal communities, both in Canada and abroad. He has published extensively in Canadian academic journals and he also published three books (“Comment Déposer Devant les Tribunaux: Le Témoignage du Policier”, -also published in English under the title “How to Testify in Court: The Police Officer's Testimony”; “L'Hébertisme Au Québec”; and “L'Écoute Electronique au Canada” (Electronic Surveillance in Canada)
In 2003, he was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal (MSM) by the Governor General of Canada for his work which has “enhanced the international reputation of Canada and the high standards of its justice system.” He was appointed Queen’s Counsel (Q.C.) in 1990 and in 1993 was awarded the Commemorative Medal for the 125th Anniversary of the Confederation. In 2008, the Quebec Bar Association awarded Mr. Bellemare the honorific title of "Advocatus Emeritus (Ad.E.)" in recognition of his professional excellence and outstanding contribution to the legal profession.
Mr. Bellemare was born in Canada in May 1952.
