The Honourable Doug Black, Q.C. was elected by Albertans as a Senator-in-Waiting on April 23, 2012. In that election, he received the most votes received by any elected representative in Canada before or since. He was subsequently appointed to The Senate of Canada on January 25, 2013. Today, he continues to be an active Senator on behalf of Albertans. Additionally, he chairs the Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce, the first Albertan to do so.
Prior to serving in the Senate, Senator Black practiced law, and served as a board member or advisor to several Canadian businesses. He was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2002 and was named in 2012 as one of Canada’s most influential lawyers by Canadian Lawyer Magazine.
Deeply involved in his community, Senator Black has been awarded the Alberta Centennial Medal in recognition of his community contributions. He has served as Chair of the Board of Governors of the University of Calgary, Chair of the Capital Campaign for the Banff Centre, Governor Emeritus of the Banff Centre, and was founder of Lakecrest School in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador.
Senator Black was the founding president of the Energy Policy Institute of Canada, the organization dedicated to the development of a Canadian energy framework. He is also the co-founder of Alberta2.0, a group of Alberta leaders who have developed a roadmap for a more robust and resilient Albertan economy.
Additionally Senator Black sits on the executive of the Canada-Europe Parliamentary Association and the Canada-China Legislative Association. He is currently a member of the Canadian Delegation to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in the Europe Parliamentary Assembly, the Canada-Japan Inter-Parliamentary Association, and the Canada- United States Inter-Parliamentary Group.
Senator Black lives in Alberta with his wife, and together they have two married children, and two grandchildren.