following the death of the incumbent governor general, as did Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin when the Governor General underwent surgery in 2005. With the resignation of Julie Payette in January 2021, Richard Wagner served as Administrator until the appointment of Mary Simon as Governor General in July of the same year. The chief justice and the other justices of the court serve as deputies of the governor general for the purpose of giving Royal Assent to bills passed by Parliament, signing official documents or receiving credentials of newly appointed high commissioners and ambassadors. Current chief justice The current chief justice is Richard Wagner, who took office on December 18, 2017, succeeding Beverley McLachlin. Born in Montreal on April 2, 1957, Wagner had been a puisne Supreme Court justice for at the time of his elevation to chief justice. He previously sat on the Quebec Court of Appeal. List of chief justices Since the Supreme Court was established in 1875, the following 18 persons have served as Chief Justice: This graphical timeline depicts the length of each justice's tenure as chief justice: Notes References Supreme Court of Canada Lists of Canadian judges