Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories on address by the House of Commons and Senate of Canada. In 1955, the federal Parliament re-created a superior court of record for the Northwest Territories, known originally as the Territorial Court. The Territorial Court initially consisted of one judge appointed by the Governor-in-Council. The judge held office during good behaviour, until age 75, but was removable by the Governor-in-Council on address of the House of Commons and Senate. John Howard Sissons was the first judge of the second Supreme Court. The court currently consists of four judges residing in Yellowknife: Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta - originated from
Yellowknife Yellowknife began with the discovery of diamonds north of the city in 1991. The last of the gold mines in Yellowknife closed in 2004. Today, Yellowknife is primarily a government town and a service centre for the diamond mines. On April 1, 1999, its purview as capital of the NWT was reduced when the territory of Nunavut was split from the NWT. As a result, jurisdiction for that region of Canada was transferred to the new capital city of Iqaluit. Consequently, Yellowknife lost its standing as the Canadian capital city with the smallest population. Yellowknife is on the Canadian Shield,