Philip Givens

Philip Givens
Name	Philip Givens
Birth date	1918
Birth place	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Death date	1995
Death place	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Occupation	Judge, Politician, Lawyer
Offices	Mayor of Toronto (1963–1966); Member of Parliament for York South (1968–1972)

Philip Givens was a Canadian jurist and politician who served as Mayor of Toronto and later as a Member of Parliament. He was active in Ontario and federal politics during the 1960s and 1970s and played a role in civic policy, cultural patronage, and legal adjudication. Givens's career intersected with municipal reform, parliamentary debates, and judicial appointments that linked him to many leading figures and institutions of mid‑20th century Canada.

Early life and education

Born in Toronto, Ontario, Givens grew up amid communities connected to York, Toronto, Montreal, and broader Jewish diasporic networks influenced by figures such as Mordecai Richler and institutions like Holy Blossom Temple. He attended local schools and proceeded to legal studies at an Ontario law faculty associated with the Law Society of Upper Canada and universities comparable to University of Toronto and Osgoode Hall Law School. His formative years coincided with the eras of leaders such as William Lyon Mackenzie King, John Diefenbaker, and cultural movements involving Canadian Jewish Congress and the United Jewish Appeal.

Legal career and judicial service

Givens began practice as a barrister and solicitor, aligning with legal networks that included contemporaries from Osgoode Hall, practitioners linked to the Law Society of Upper Canada, and benchers who later interacted with judges at the Supreme Court of Canada. He appeared in Ontario courts during periods shaped by jurisprudence from the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms precursors and by influential jurists like Brian Dickson and Bora Laskin. Later in his career he accepted appointment to the judiciary, serving on tribunals and courts that adjudicated cases touching institutions such as the Ontario Court of Justice, the Court of Appeal for Ontario, and administrative bodies akin to the Human Rights Commission.

Political career and mayoralty of Toronto

Givens entered municipal politics during a transformative era that featured municipal leaders like Nathan Phillips, Allan Lamport, and later contemporaries including David Crombie and John Sewell. As an alderman and then as Mayor of Toronto, he worked on civic projects tied to agencies such as the Toronto Transit Commission, the Metropolitan Toronto Council, and cultural organizations like the Art Gallery of Ontario and the Royal Ontario Museum. His mayoralty confronted issues also addressed by provincial figures such as John Robarts and federal leaders including Lester B. Pearson, while civic debates often referenced developers and architects linked to projects influenced by names like John B. Parkin and E.J. Lennox. During his term he engaged with urban planning debates involving bodies like the Toronto Planning Board and transit discussions paralleling initiatives from Metropolitan Toronto.

Federal politics and parliamentary service

Transitioning to federal politics, Givens ran under the banner of the Liberal Party of Canada and served as Member of Parliament for York South, joining caucuses that included leaders such as Pierre Trudeau, Paul Martin Sr., and MPs who had served with Tommy Douglas and Lester B. Pearson. In the House of Commons he participated in committees and debates overlapping with portfolios managed by ministers from the Department of Finance (Canada), the Department of Transport (Canada), and the Department of Canadian Heritage. Parliamentary sessions during his tenure involved legislative initiatives influenced by precedents from the Canadian Bill of Rights era, and he worked alongside colleagues representing ridings once held by figures like David Lewis and John Diefenbaker.

Later career and contributions

After leaving elected office, Givens returned to legal and civic service, contributing to cultural and public policy institutions comparable to the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Ontario Arts Council, and university law faculties such as Osgoode Hall Law School and the University of Toronto Faculty of Law. He advised boards and engaged with public debates involving municipal reformers like Mel Lastman and provincial premiers including Bill Davis. His later judicial and advisory roles intersected with national cultural policy dialogues involving the Canada Council for the Arts and with urban redevelopment projects tied to authorities like the Toronto City Council and the Metropolitan Toronto Planning Board.

Personal life and legacy

Givens's personal life connected him to community institutions such as the United Jewish Appeal, the Canadian Jewish Congress, and civic charities active with philanthropists like Sam Steinberg and Arthur Ellis. His legacy is remembered within the municipal history of Toronto alongside mayors such as Allan Lamport, Nathan Phillips, and David Crombie and in legal circles alongside judges like Bora Laskin and Brian Dickson. Commemorations and discussions of his influence have appeared in municipal retrospectives, cultural histories of institutions like the Art Gallery of Ontario and the Royal Ontario Museum, and studies of Canadian parliamentary history that reference leaders such as Pierre Trudeau and Lester B. Pearson.

Category:1918 births Category:1995 deaths Category:Mayors of Toronto Category:Liberal Party of Canada MPs Category:Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Category:Canadian judges