Obituary of Thomas Blair Drummie Q.C.

The death of Thomas B. Drummie, Q.C. of St. Andrews and formerly of Saint John, husband of Betty (McCullough) Drummie occurred suddenly on Sunday, March 19, 2017 at the Charlotte County Hospital. Born on February 20, 1931 in Saint John, he was the son of the late J. Harold Drummie, Q.C. and Winnifred C. (Blair) Drummie. Tom was educated at the University of New Brunswick, where he graduated with his B.A. and B.C.L. He studied at the London School of Economics and read law with Lewin & Drummie, Saint John, 1950. Tom was called to the Bar of New Brunswick in 1954; created Queen’s Counsel in 1972; and was Fellow at the American College of Trial Lawyers, 1992 – 2002. He became a partner at Drummie & Drummie in 1956; Assistant City Solicitor from 1957- 60 and began working at Drummie, Drummie Clark & Pappas in 1969. His career continued at Ryan Drummie & Co. in 1971. In 1972 Tom became a founding partner with Clark Drummie. He was a member of the Canadian Tax Foundation; Canadian Bar Association, Law Society of New Brunswick (Member Council 1968 – 70, 1971 – 74); Saint John Law Society (President 1971 – 73); Saint John Liberal Association (President, 1971 - 73); Life Fellow and belonged to The Foundation for Legal Research. He was awarded the Governor General’s Gold Medal in 1952 and the Beaverbrook Overseas Scholarship in 1954. Tom practised in most areas of law during his career. He was a prosecutor in his early days and went on to work mostly in corporate/commercial fields of law, including banking, acquisitions and mergers, and public utilities. He appeared in every level of the court system from Provincial Court to the Supreme Court of Canada and Federal Court. He sat on the Board of Directors for various corporations, including Labatt’s Brewery. Tom enjoyed golfing, skiing, hunting, fishing and politics. As Tom wrote – "Some highlights in my life were working with my father during his last 20 years of practice; attending admission of my son to the New Brunswick Bar; encouraging and supporting my daughter to start her own business; and the opening in 1976 of the building developed by our firm." In addition to his wife, Betty, Tom is also survived by their children, Gretchen Drummie and Blair Drummie both of Toronto; brother, Fred Drummie (Madeleine) of St. Andrews; nephew, Eric Drummie (Sarah) of Fredericton; niece, Ann Drummie of California; great-nephew, Christopher and sister-in-law, Mary Drummie of Ottawa. Resting at Brenan’s Funeral Home, 111 Paradise Row, Saint John (634-7424) with visiting on Wednesday, March 22, 2017 from 2-4 and 7-9 PM. The funeral service will be held from Brenan’s Chapel on Thursday, March 23, 2017 at 12:00 Noon. Interment will take place in Fernhill Cemetery. For those who wish, remembrances may be made to the CNIB.