The Honourable Dr. Andrew Furey, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, today named Karen Stone, KC, as the new deputy minister of Justice and Public Safety and deputy attorney general of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Ms. Stone replaces Denis Mahoney, KC, who, while retiring from the public service, will continue to be a part of the negotiating team created to draft the definitive agreements outlined in the memorandum of understanding between Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro and Hydro-Quebec.
Since June 2024, Ms. Stone was the interim chief executive officer of NL Health Services where she led the implementation of recommendations from Health Accord NL from a provincial health authority perspective and helped improve access to care.
During her long history in the public service she served in many senior leadership positions, including deputy minister of Health and Community Services where she helped the province navigate the global pandemic. She was also the deputy minister of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation when the province invited Newfoundlanders and Labradorians living abroad to return home during the successful Come Home Year celebrations, and the deputy minister of Immigration, Population Growth and Skills when the province experienced the largest growth in its population since 1998. Her bio is noted below in the enclosed biography.
Over the course of Mr. Mahoney’s successful career in the private and public sectors, he made many meaningful contributions to Newfoundland and Labrador. Most recently, he provided strong leadership through the 2024 Labrador forest fires and the subsequent safe evacuations of residents, as well as playing a critical role in improving the safety of the province’s communities and helping negotiate an MOU with Hydro Quebec that will invite considerable benefits for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. He also has a long history of community volunteerism through his involvement with such organizations as Memorial University’s Board of Regents, the 2025 Canada Games Host Society, and the Boys and Girls Club.
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“We are fortunate in Newfoundland and Labrador to have a highly talented public service and public service employees who make incredible contributions to our communities. I am very much looking forward to working with Ms. Stone and Mr. Mahoney in their new roles and would like to sincerely thank them for their work over the years. We are a stronger province because of your efforts.”
Honourable Dr. Andrew Furey
Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador
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Biography
Karen Stone, KC, completed her articles of law and was admitted to the bar in 1992. She began her public service career as a solicitor at the Department of Justice in 1995. She provided legal advice to numerous government departments before joining the Department of Health and Community Services in 2005 as its legislative consultant. She most recently served as the interim chief executive officer of NL Health Services.
Prior to that role, she was the deputy minister of Immigration, Population Growth and Skills. She has also served as the deputy minister of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation and the deputy minister of Health and Community Services. She has held the positions of assistant secretary to cabinet (social policy) with the Office of the Executive Council, assistant deputy minister of policy and planning, and assistant deputy minister of population health at the Department of Health and Community Services.
Ms. Stone’s law degree is from Osgoode Hall Law School and she has a Bachelor of Arts and a Certificate in Public Administration from Memorial University. She holds a Certificate in Alternate Dispute Resolution from the University of Windsor.