Aubin Calvert

Aubin’s practice is focused on administrative and constitutional law. She has appeared as counsel before all levels of court and various administrative tribunals, and has been recognized by her peers in the The Best Lawyers® in Canada: Ones to Watch in administrative and public law. Aubin also has experience advising clients on complex matters involving the intersection of civil and administrative law. She teaches conflict of laws at the Peter A. Allard School of Law and advises clients on jurisdictional disputes.

Before joining Hunter Litigation Chambers, Aubin served as a law clerk to Chief Justice Richard Wagner of the Supreme Court of Canada from 2016 to 2018. She received her J.D. in 2016 from the Peter A. Allard School of Law at the University of British Columbia and was called to the bar in 2017. Aubin holds a Ph.D. in political theory, also from the University of British Columbia.

Aubin has been a frequent contributor to continuing legal education and professional development programs, including for CLEBC and CBABC. She has presented on constitutional law issues at the CLEBC’s annual administrative law conferences. She is the co-author of two chapters of the British Columbia Administrative Law Practice Manual: Remedies on Judicial Review and Statutory Appeals (Chapter 14) and Costs on Judicial Review and Statutory Appeals (Chapter 20). In 2021 she joined the Supreme Court Advocacy Institute as session coordinator for British Columbia. Aubin was appointed to the Board of the British Columbia Law Institute in 2023.

Notable Cases

Auer v. Auer, 2024 SCC 36 and TransAlta Generation Partnership v. Alberta, 2024 SCC 37 (co-counsel with Devin Eeg): represented the intervener the Trial Lawyers Association of British Columbia in companion appeals that establish that the standard of review in judicial reviews of subordinate legislation (regulations, bylaws, etc.) is presumptively reasonableness.

News

November 2024

The Supreme Court of Canada released its judgments in Auer v. Auer, 2024 SCC 36 and TransAlta Generation Partnership v. Alberta, 2024 SCC 37. The cases redefine the standard of review for judicial reviews of “subordinate legislation” (regulations, bylaws, etc.). In the past, subordinate legislation could only be struck down if it was “irrelevant”, “extraneous” or “completely unrelated” to the objectives of the governing statute. The cases now make clear that reasonableness ­– i.e. whether the subordinate legislation reasonably fell within the scope of the delegated authority – is the presumptive standard. Aubin Calvert and Devin Eeg represented the intervener the Trial Lawyers Association of British Columbia in the appeals.

September 2024

Aubin Calvert and Devin Eeg represented the Trial Lawyers Association of British Columbia in Government of Saskatchewan (Minister of Education) v. UR Pride Centre for Sexuality and Gender Diversity, an appeal in the Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan that will decide whether a valid invocation of s. 33 of the Charter – the “notwithstanding clause” – ousts the jurisdiction of superior courts to review the constitutionality of legislation.

August 2024

We are pleased to announce that Aubin Calvert has been recognized in The Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in Canada (2025 edition). This distinction underscores Aubin’s exceptional skills and achievements in Administrative and Public Law. This recognition is a testament to her dedication and expertise. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Aubin on this well-deserved honor and look forward to her continued contributions and leadership in the legal profession.

April 2024

Aubin Calvert and Devin Eeg appeared in the Supreme Court of Canada on behalf of the intervener Trial Lawyers Association of British Columbia in the joint appeals Auer v. Auer and TransAlta Generation Partnership v. His Majesty the King in Right of the Province of Alberta.

March 2024

Claire Hunter, K.C. and Aubin Calvert successfully applied to stay proceedings in British Columbia in favour of an alternative forum, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, in a dispute involving the development and sale of supplemental type certificates for Twin Otter aircraft. The reasons for judgment are available here.

Aubin Calvert has been awarded the Adam Albright Adjunct Award for 2024. The award recognizes teaching excellence by an adjunct professor at the Peter A. Allard School of Law, where Aubin has taught conflict of laws since 2021. Recipients are selected by students to honour adjuncts who have had a significant impact on their legal education.

January 2024

Hunter Litigation Chambers is pleased and proud to announce the promotion of four Counsel to the firm: Aubin Calvert, Monique Evans, and Nicole Gilewicz, and Julia Roos. These appointments recognize the important contribution each of the new Counsel have made to the firm’s success, and going forward, their increased involvement in decisions concerning the operation and growth of the firm. Please join us in congratulating each of them on this significant and well-deserved achievement!

August 2023

Aubin Calvert is recognized by Best Lawyers® Canada: Ones to Watch (2024 Edition) for her work in Administrative and Public Law.

March 2023

Hunter Litigation Chambers was proud to represent Crystal Smith and Raymond Shaw in their application to permit registration of their baby son λugʷaləs K'ala'ask Shaw’s name on his birth certificate. Our clients reached a resolution with the British Columbia Vital Statistics Agency to permit the use Kwak̓wala characters on the birth certificate for their son. The Hunter Litigation Chambers team working on this matter included Claire Hunter K.C., Nicole Gilewicz, Aubin Calvert and Amanda Richards.

November 2021

Aubin Calvert was a speaker at the Administrative Law Conference 2021 hosted by the Continuing Legal Education Society of British Columbia. She presented on administrative tribunals and s. 96 of the Constitution.

October 2021

On October 21, 2021, Aubin Calvert was interviewed on CBC News Network about City of Nelson v. Marchi, a decision of the Supreme Court of Canada on the scope of liability in negligence of public authorities.

September

Aubin Calvert is co-teaching an upper year seminar on “conflict of laws” at the Peter A Allard School of Law this term.

June 2021

Claire Hunter, QC, Alexander Bjornson, and Aubin Calvert were successful in opposing an application for leave to the Supreme Court of Canada. The applicant shareholder had sought leave to appeal a decision of the BC Court of Appeal where the Court had upheld a previous dismissal of that shareholder’s petition to commence a derivative action against the respondent mining company. Hunter Litigation Chambers represented the mining company in the application. Reasons for judgment can be found here.

April 2021

Claire Hunter Q.C. and Brent Olthuis have jointed the BC roster of the Supreme Court Advocacy Institute. The Institute allows lawyers appearing before the Supreme Court of Canada to conduct an pre-hearing “moot” of their argument in front of senior appellate counsel, and obtain feedback from that counsel. The Institute was set up in 2007 by the Honourable Frank Iacobucci, for whom both Claire and Brent clerked, and other lawyers. Aubin Calvert is also involved with the Institute, with responsibility for co-ordinating BC sessions.

December 2020

Brent Olthuis and Aubin Calvert represented the District of Sicamous in appeal proceedings arising from a catastrophic 2012 flood. On 30 December 2020, the Court of Appeal released reasons for judgment, allowing the District’s appeal in part. The reasons may be found here.

July 2020

Aubin Calvert and Trevor Bant have each been re-acclaimed to the CBA BC Appellate Advocacy section executive for 2020-21 as, respectively, chair and legislative liaison.

The Supreme Court of Canada released its judgment in Atlantic Lottery Corp. Inc. v. Babstock, 2020 SCC 19, an important gaming law and class actions case in which Mike Stephens, Shannon Ramsay, and Aubin Calvert appeared on behalf of the intervener the British Columbia Lottery Corporation.

January 2020

Aubin Calvert obtained leave to appeal for her client pursuant to s. 193(e) of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act on the question of whether fraudulent intent is required to revoke the discharge of a trustee under s. 41(8) of the Act. The reasons of the Court of Appeal judge in chambers granting leave are here.

December 2019

On December 19, 2019, Aubin Calvert provided The Lawyer’s Daily with her initial reactions to the Supreme Court of Canada’s landmark trilogy revisiting the framework for administrative law standard of review.

On December 3, 2019, Mike Stephens, Shannon Ramsay, and Aubin Calvert appeared in the Supreme Court of Canada on behalf of the intervener British Columbia Lottery Corporation in Atlantic Lottery Corporation Inc., et al. v. Douglas Babstock, et al. The intervener factum is available here.

July 2019

Brent Olthuis and Aubin Calvert won an appeal challenging the issuance of an anti-suit injunction in the arbitral context. The judgment represents one of the first, if not the first, times an appellate court in Canada has addressed the topic. A copy of the reasons for decision can be found here.

June 2019

Mark Oulton and Aubin Calvert were counsel for Teal Cedar Products Ltd. in successfully defending an appeal brought from an interlocutory decision dismissing an application to remove a defendant on the grounds that it lacked the capacity to be sued. The decision of the Court of Appeal is available here.

February 2019

Claire Hunter, Q.C. and Ryan Androsoff were counsel to Thomas Fresh Inc., a major vegetable wholesaler, and Prokam Enterprises Ltd., a vegetable producer, in a successful appeal to the Farm Industry Review Board from decisions of the BC Vegetable Marketing Commission. In a decision following an 8-day hearing in the spring of 2018, the FIRB found that the Commission had exceeded its authority by purporting to set minimum prices for the sale of British Columbia potatoes into Alberta and Saskatchewan without complying with the requirements of the Statutory Instruments Act. The Hunter Litigation Chambers team that assisted with this hearing also included Aubin Calvert and co-op student Diana Sepulveda. The decision is available here.

April 2018

We are pleased to welcome Aubin Calvert to the firm as an associate. Between 2016 and 2018 she served as a law clerk to Chief Justice Richard Wagner of the Supreme Court of Canada. Aubin was called to the Ontario Bar in 2017 and to the British Columbia Bar in 2018.