Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Minister of Justice Mickey Amery announce proposed changes to several pieces of democratic process legislation, in Edmonton, on April 29.JASON FRANSON/The Canadian Press
Alberta’s Justice Minister is a long-time friend and relative through marriage of a man whose companies’ business dealings with the province’s health authority are now part of multiple investigations.
Mickey Amery, who also serves as the ruling United Conservative Party’s deputy house leader, confirmed his relationship to Sam Mraiche, whose businesses are tied to a lawsuit and multiple investigations, including by the RCMP and the provincial Auditor-General.
Mr. Amery told The Globe and Mail that he and Mr. Mraiche have been friends for “a very long time.” He confirmed they are related and, when pressed for details, said he and Mr. Mraiche are “loosely related” through marriage.
Mr. Amery is Alberta’s top lawyer and his department is involved in defending the government in a wrongful dismissal case filed in February by the health authority’s former chief executive, which details allegations of improper contracting and procurement in the health care system. He also oversees the province’s prosecution service, which would be involved if a criminal case arises from the RCMP investigation.
The allegations and investigations have dogged Premier Danielle Smith’s government, which has rebuffed calls for a public inquiry from the Official Opposition and a former member of Ms. Smith’s cabinet.
Former AHS chief executive Athana Mentzelopoulos, in a wrongful dismissal lawsuit filed in February, alleges government officials leaned on her to sign deals for private surgical facilities with Mr. Mraiche’s companies and others at prices she felt were inflated. She also alleges the government fired her in January because she was investigating a number of AHS contracts, including a $70-million deal with one of Mr. Mraiche’s companies to import children’s medication from Turkey.
None of the allegations have been tested in court. The provincial government alleges Ms. Mentzelopoulos was fired for incompetence. Mr. Mraiche, who is not the target of the lawsuit, said he acted properly at all times.
Mr. Amery said his relationship with Mr. Mraiche does not conflict with his job as Justice Minister.
“We all have our personal relationships,” he said in an interview on April 22. He said he has neither a business nor professional relationship with Mr. Mraiche.
Mr. Amery did not specify how he is related to Mr. Mraiche other than to say it is through marriage.
“We come from small places in Lebanon,” Mr. Amery said. “Loosely related, but we do have relations.”
Mr. Mraiche, through lawyer Scott Hutchison, confirmed he has long been on friendly terms with Mr. Amery and their families have known each other for years.
“Mr. Mraiche has never had any dealings with Alberta’s Ministry of Justice – business or otherwise," Mr. Hutchison said in a statement. “Mr. Mraiche has always conducted himself appropriately in all his dealings with Mr. Amery and any other public officeholder, past or present.”
In March, Ms. Smith appointed a retired judge from Manitoba to lead a third-party review of the allegations, but the UCP has rejected calls for a public inquiry.
Mr. Amery said independent offices are overseeing the investigations involving Mr. Mraiche’s business with the government.
“We’ve made sure that the integrity of that independence is upheld through a number of different processes,” he said, without providing further detail.
“The Auditor-General, as you know, is conducting a comprehensive review of thousands upon thousands of records and interviewing witnesses as he deems appropriate. We’re working to facilitate that as quickly as possible.”
The Auditor-General in February said it was reviewing allegations of improper contracting and procurement at AHS and Alberta Health. The RCMP confirmed its investigation in March.
In April, the Health Ministry instructed employees to redirect interview requests from Auditor-General Doug Wylie‘s office to a law firm hired by the government.
Mr. Wylie‘s office, in a statement, said the arrangement is not standard. The government maintains it hired the law firm to help co-ordinate the process.
The Justice Minister also oversees Alberta‘s Crown prosecutors, who consult with RCMP during investigations.
There is precedent in Alberta of appointing outside prosecutors to handle investigations involving the government.
In 2019, the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service appointed a special prosecutor from Ontario to handle the RCMP investigation into then-premier Jason Kenney’s UCP leadership campaign.
No charges have been laid in that case.
Andrew Flavelle Martin, an assistant professor at Dalhousie University’s Schulich School of Law, said Mr. Amery should take steps to formally distance himself from the government’s handling of Ms. Mentzelopoulos’s lawsuit.
“The question I‘d be concerned about is: How involved is he in directing the litigation around the wrongful dismissal given that his friend is involved in one of the contracts?” said Prof. Martin, whose research focuses on legal ethics for government lawyers and Attorneys General. “The optics are not good.”
Mr. Amery repeatedly answered questions about potential conflicts of interest by focusing on the rules governing gifts, rather than addressing his relationship with Mr. Mraiche.
“We have a very robust Conflicts of Interest Act that describes what needs to be disclosed in a situation where somebody receives something in connection with their role of public office,” he said.
When asked whether he informed the Premier of his relationship with Mr. Mraiche, Mr. Amery said: “My family and friendship relationships in general do not offend any conflict rules whatsoever. They do not trigger any Conflicts of Interest Act disclosures.”
The Premier’s office did not acknowledge questions about whether she was aware or concerned about the relationship.
The Alberta New Democratic Party pounced on the revelations in the Legislature, with Opposition House Leader Christina Gray asking Mr. Amery how he is managing “this very serious potential conflict of interest” and the Premier whether she would require the Justice Minister to recuse himself.
Joseph Schow, the government House Leader, argued Mr. Amery is not involved in the investigations. “Putting your name on a ballot and getting elected to this wonderful chamber does not preclude you from having friends and relatives,” he said.
The Conflicts of Interest Act addresses what gifts and benefits MLAs and other senior government employees can accept and how they must be disclosed.
The law prohibits MLAs from seeking to influence a decision that would further their private interest or the interests of “a person directly associated with the Member.” That definition is limited to a spouse, adult interdependent partner, business relationships, or someone acting with the MLA‘s consent.
Mr. Mraiche owns MHCare Medical Corp., which in late 2022 landed a $70-million contract to import children’s pain medication to Alberta from Turkey. MHCare has held $49.2-million of Alberta‘s money for more than a year since AHS paid it for drugs that never arrived, according to a letter the health authority sent the company in December. MHCare insists it is working to make good on the deal, albeit with revised terms.
Mr. Mraiche also owns stakes in two proposed chartered surgical facilities. Ms. Mentzelopoulos alleges she was under pressure to sign off on the new CSF deals, despite concerns over costs.
The Globe in July first reported that Mr. Mraiche and one of his associates gave premium hockey tickets to ministers and political staff. The UCP had previously eased the rules around gifts, making it easier for government officials to attend events such as hockey games without breaching the rules.
Mr. Amery did not deny attending hockey games with Mr. Mraiche. However, he stressed that the businessman did not accompany him and two of Ms. Smith’s senior advisers when they went to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup playoffs between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers at Amerant Bank Arena in 2024.
Mr. Amery said he flew commercial and went with friends, including Marshall Smith, the Premier‘s former chief of staff, and Becca Polak, now the Premier‘s principal secretary.
Sam Blackett, a spokesman for the Premier, in a statement said the staff and minister who travelled to Florida paid their own way. Mr. Smith, who is not related to the Premier, did not acknowledge a request for comment.
With a report from Eric Andrew-Gee