Elizabeth Janzen

Elizabeth has a general civil litigation practice. She has advised and represented clients in administrative and regulatory proceedings as well as commercial, personal injury, employment, and estate litigation matters. She has appeared before all levels of court in British Columbia and has conducted hearings and investigations for various professional regulatory bodies. Elizabeth has also acted in leave proceedings before the Supreme Court of Canada.

After receiving her J.D. from the University of British Columbia in 2019, Elizabeth clerked for five justices at the Supreme Court of British Columbia (2019/20), for Justices John Hunter and Anne MacKenzie at the Court of Appeal for British Columbia (2020/21), and for the Hon. Justice Sheilah Martin at the Supreme Court of Canada (2021/22). She practiced at a litigation boutique in Vancouver before joining Hunter Litigation Chambers in 2026. In addition to her legal practice, Elizabeth co-teaches a course at the Peter A. Allard School of Law at UBC about the role of the Supreme Court of Canada in the Canadian legal system.

Notable Cases

Afridi v College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia, 2026 BCCA 378 (with Claire Hunter, K.C. and Julia Roos): we were counsel for the appellant physician in a successful appeal from an order striking his claims and dismissing his action against the College of Physicians and Surgeons and Northern Health Authority.

Superintendent of Real Estate v. Financial Services Tribunal, 2026 BCSC 226 - acted as co-counsel to the applicant in a judicial review of a tribunal decision setting aside a finding of professional misconduct against a real estate licensee, obtaining an order to set aside the tribunal’s decision and reinstate the findings of professional misconduct.

Smith v. Hoekstra, 2023 BCSC 2074 - acted as co-counsel for the plaintiff in a two-week personal injury trial, successfully obtaining a $1.2 million judgment.

Speckling v. Communications, Energy and Paperworkers’ Union of Canada, Local 76, 2025 BCCA 24 - successfully defended and obtained special costs of an appeal relating to an alleged breach of a union constitution.

Publications

“The Dangers of a Punitive Approach to Victim Participation in Sentencing: Victim Impact Statements after the Victims Bill of Rights Act” (2020) 43:4 Manitoba Law Journal 85.

News

September 2026

Claire Hunter, K.C. and Julia Roos were counsel for the appellant physician in a successful appeal from an order striking his claims and dismissing his action against the College of Physicians and Surgeons and Northern Health Authority. The Court of Appeal adopted counsel’s submissions that the lower court judge had erred in failing to recognize reasonable causes of action that had been pleaded in the court below in misfeasance in public office, negligence, and breach of contract. The Court of Appeal further agreed that the lower court judge and had erred in finding the proceeding to be an abuse of process, having relied on improper considerations and misapprehended the evidence in coming to that finding. Thanks to his success on appeal, the appellant will be allowed a further opportunity to apply to amend his pleadings in the BC Supreme Court. Ms. Hunter and Ms. Roos were assisted by Elizabeth Janzen in the appeal proceedings. The Court of Appeal’s reasons for judgment are available here.