Born in Montreal, Quebec, the son of Marcus Doherty, an Irish-born judge of the Supreme Court for the Province of Quebec and Elizabeth (O"Halloran) Doherty, Doherty was educated at Saint Mary"s (Jesuit) College and received a Bachelor of Laws degree from McGill University in 1876 winning the Elizabeth Torrance Gold Medal, awarded to the student who completes the program with the most distinguished standing upon graduation.
McGill University.
In 1885 he served as a Lieutenant with the 65th Battalion, Mount Royal Rifles in the Northwest Rebellion. He was created a King"s Counsel in 1887. Doherty was a lawyer and also taught civil and International law at McGill University prior to being appointed a judge on the Quebec Superior Court from 1891 until 1906.
He was a defeated candidate for the Legislative Assembly of Quebec for the electoral district of Montreal West in the 1881 election and again for Montreal Centre in the 1886 election.
He was elected as the Conservative candidate to the Canadian House of Commons for the electoral district of Saint Anne in the 1908 federal election. At the end of World War I, Doherty was one of the Canadian delegates to the Versailles Peace Conference, and served as Canadian delegate to the League of Nations from 1920 to 1922.
Doherty remained Minister of Justice in the government of Arthur Meighen until its defeat in 1921. Doherty also played a leading role in the creation of the Canadian Bar Association in 1912 and served as its president in 1914.
He was appointed to the Imperial Privy Council in the 1920 New Year Honours for his service at Versailles, allowing him to use the title of "The Right Honourable".
