Lawyer, municipal official.
Born at Wapella, North West Territories (now Saskatchewan) on 24 January 1899, son of Edel Brotman, he moved to Winnipeg in 1904 and attended Norquay School and St. John’s Technical High School. He then attended college and received the Gold Medal in Economics.
In mid-1918, near the end of the First World War, he enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force and was discharged after several months of service. He then attended the University of Manitoba (MA 1921) and the Manitoba Law School (LLB 1921), afterward establishing a private law practice at Winnipeg. He drafted an amendment to the Defamation Act passed in the Manitoba Legislature in 1934, the first such anti-libel legislation in the British Commonwealth. He was made a King’s Counsel in 1949.
He served on the Winnipeg city council (1943-1950, 1967-1971) and was instrumental in having the city assume ownership of the Playhouse Theatre. He also served on the executive of the Manitoba Bar Association. He was a candidate for Winnipeg North in the 1953 provincial general election and was the Returning Officer for the St. Johns constituency in the 1958 provincial general election. He lived at 55 Bannerman Avenue, Winnipeg.
He died at Winnipeg on 11 May 1986.
Attestation papers, Canadian Expeditionary Force, Library and Archives Canada.
“Ten Manitoba lawyers named King’s Counsel,” Winnipeg Free Press, 1 January 1949, page 1.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 13 May 1983, page 40.
Obituary [Sarah Brotman], Winnipeg Free Press, 26 December 2004, page 40.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 29 September 2023
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