Michael Bryant (public official)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Michael J. Bryant
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MPP for St. Paul's
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| In office June 3, 1999 – June 7, 2009 |
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| Preceded by | New district |
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| Succeeded by | To be determined |
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| Born | April 13, 1966 Victoria, British Columbia |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Occupation | lawyer, professor |
| Cabinet | Minister of Economic Development (2008-2009) Minister of Aboriginal Affairs (2007-2008) Attorney-General (2003-2007) |
Michael J. Bryant (born April 13, 1966) is a public administrator and former politician in Ontario, Canada. He is the chief executive officer of Invest Toronto, an agency owned and operated by the City of Toronto with a mandate to attract investment to the municipality and facilitate economic development. He is a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, representing the riding of St. Paul's for the Ontario Liberal Party. He served, until Monday May 25, 2009, as a member of Dalton McGuinty's provincial cabinet as Minister of Economic Development and Government House Leader. He had previously been the province's Attorney-General.
Bryant received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of British Columbia in 1988, and a Master's Degree from the same institution in 1989. While an undergraduate, he became a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity. He graduated as in 1992 from Osgoode Hall Law School with an LL.B. and was the silver medalist of his year. He then earned an LL.M. magna cum laude from Harvard Law School in 1994. Bryant is a Fulbright Fellow. He clerked at the Supreme Court of Canada in 1992-93, and was later a lawyer at the firm of Sullivan & Cromwell in New York City, as well as lecturing in law at King's College at the University of London in England, and practicing litigation at McCarthy Tétrault. In 1997, he became an adjunct professor in international law at the Department of Political Science at the University of Toronto.
Bryant was first elected to the Ontario legislature in the provincial election of 1999, defeating incumbent Progressive Conservative cabinet minister Isabel Bassett in St. Paul's by almost 5,000 votes (he had previously defeated Kathleen Wynne at the Liberal Party's nomination meeting, 328 votes to 143). The Progressive Conservatives won the election, and Bryant served as his party's Critic to the Attorney General for the next four years.
He was re-elected by a greater majority in the provincial election of 2003. The Liberals won a majority government in this election, and Bryant was appointed Ontario Attorney General and Minister with responsibility for Native Affairs and Democratic Renewal.
Bryant was appointed as Minister of Aboriginal Affairs following a cabinet shuffle on October 30, 2007. On September 18, 2008[1], he became Minister of Economic Development, replacing Sandra Pupatello.
Bryant, his wife Susan Abramovitch, an entertainment lawyer, and their two children, live in his midtown Toronto riding of St. Paul's.
On May 23, 2009, Bryant announced that he would be leaving provincial politics in order to become CEO of the newly-established Invest Toronto corporation, with Dalton McGuinty taking over his portfolio of Economic Development.[2][3] His resignation was effective June 7, 2009. A by-election to replace him has yet to be announced.
