Alberta’s law society has formally reprimanded former provincial justice minister Kaycee Madu and ordered him to pay nearly $39,000 in costs. Madu was found guilty last year of conduct worthy of sanction when, as justice minister in 2021, he phoned Edmonton’s police chief after receiving a traffic ticket.

Madu was issued the ticket for distracted driving on March 10, 2021, by an Edmonton police officer. The officer said Madu had his cellphone in his hand while driving in a school zone. Madu then called Edmonton police Chief Dale McFee to discuss the $300 ticket.

During a hearing, Madu claimed he didn’t call McFee about the ticket but was seeking reassurance that he wasn’t being racially profiled or illegally surveilled. However, a panel of law society members determined that Madu’s actions were irresponsible and that he tried to use his position of power to influence a personal issue.

As a result, the panel issued a formal reprimand and ordered Madu to cover hearing costs, stopping short of suspending his law license or disbarment. Madu’s request to have the law society’s decision stand as the reprimand was rejected, with his lawyer arguing that the public attention the case garnered would be unavoidable.

Madu is currently appealing the panel’s discipline decision and could potentially face a suspended license or disbarment. Following his removal from the justice portfolio by then-premier Jason Kenney, Madu briefly served as labour minister and deputy premier before losing his re-election bid in 2023.

Meanwhile, McFee is concluding his tenure as Edmonton police chief this month and is set to assume a new role as the Alberta government’s top civil servant on Feb. 24.