News
December 2016
Hunter Litigation Chambers has been listed as one of the three top dispute resolution firms in British Columbia by the influential Chambers Guide 2017. John Hunter, Q.C., Ken McEwan, Q.C., Mike Stephens and Brent Olthuis were identified as leading litigation practitioners in the Guide. John was also listed for Aboriginal Law.
Ken McEwan, Q.C. and John Hunter, Q.C. have been recognized as leading litigation counsel in the London-based Who’s Who Litigation 2016. Ken and John were also identified in Lexpert’s 2016 Guide to the Leading US/Canada Cross-Border Litigation in the area of Corporate-Commercial Litigation. Ken was also recognized in Class Actions and Securities Litigation in the Lexpert Guide.
On December 8, 2016, together with Chief Justice Christopher Hinkson Ken McEwan, Q.C. gave a presentation entitled “Hidden Tips for Discovery” to the Canadian Bar Association Civil Litigation Vancouver section meeting.
Ken McEwan, Q.C. and Brian Duong successfully defended an application brought against a national law firm claiming a disqualifying conflict of interest in Stewart v. Stewart et. al., 2016 BCSC 2256.
Claire Hunter has been appointed vice chair of the Law Society of BC’s Access to Legal Services Advisory Committee for 2017. Claire has been a member of this committee since 2015.
Claire Hunter and Ken Leung obtained dismissals in chambers of four appeals brought against the Private Career Training Institutions Agency and its employees. The decisions are available here: Kikla v. Ayong, Fraser Valley Community College v. Private Career Training Institutions Agency
November 2016
Ken McEwan, Q.C. co-chaired the Advocates’ Society program on Arbitration Advocacy on November 2nd in Vancouver. John Hunter, Q.C. and Marshall Rothstein, Q.C. also participated in panels during the program.
A chapter on “Appellate Review of Commercial Arbitration Awards” written by John Hunter, Q.C. was published in the Annual Review of Civil Litigation 2016 (Thomson Reuters).
Greg Allen appeared in the Supreme Court of Canada on November 3rd on behalf of the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association in the appeal of R. v. Bradshaw concerning the admissibility of a former co-accused’s hearsay statement.
John Hunter, Q.C., Mark Oulton and Mike Stephens appeared in the Supreme Court of Canada on November 1st to argue the appeal of Teal Cedar Products v. B.C., a case that concerned the standard of the review of commercial arbitration awards.
Ken McEwan, Q.C. and Trevor Bant were counsel in an appeal concerning the test for implied waiver in court pleadings of solicitor-client privilege. The reasons for judgment, now the leading case in this province, are indexed as Soprema Inc. v. Wolrige Mahon LLP, 2016 BCCA 471.
October 2016
Mark Oulton and Ashley Caron successfully obtained an interim injunction to remove a blockade preventing logging activities under a timber sale licence in the northern interior. The reasons for judgment may be found here: DNT Contracting Ltd. v. Abraham and others.
Mark Oulton and Rebecca Robb successfully obtained an anton piller order to preserve evidence in a commercial case involving allegations of breach of contract, conversion and misuse of confidential and proprietary information. The reasons for judgment may be found here: Regal Ideas Inc. v. Haus Innovations Inc. and others.
Claire Hunter has been elected Chair and President of the Access Pro Bono Society of British Columbia.
On October 14, Claire Hunter appeared on a panel with the Honourable Mr. Justice Elliott Myers on Electronic Evidence: Current Issues and Best Practices as part of CLEBC's Electronic Evidence and eDiscovery 2016 program.
September 2016
The Supreme Court of Canada released its decision in Musqueam Indian Band v. Musqueam Indian Band (Board of Review), 2016 SCC 36, dismissing the appeal of the Musqueam Band who had sought to impose property taxes on the Shaughnessy Golf Club based on a residential values. John Hunter, Q.C. represented the Shaughnessy Golf Club in the appeal.
On September 26, Claire Hunter was the keynote speaker at the University of Victoria's launch of their Pro Bono Students Canada program for this year. Claire talked about how providing pro bono services can enhance life in private practice.
We are pleased to announce that Trevor Bant and Ashley Caron have joined the firm as associates. Both come to us after clerking at the Supreme Court of Canada and previously, the British Columbia Court of Appeal. Welcome to them both.
August 2016
Brent Olthuis has been appointed as a Director of the BC Law Institute (BCLI) from October 2016 to October 2019.
Ken McEwan, Q.C. and Rebecca Robb represented the Law Society of British Columbia in the Court of Appeal, successfully defending an appeal from a Discipline Panel’s finding of professional misconduct.
July 2016
Mark Oulton, Shannon Ramsay and Caily Dipuma successfully defended Canadian Forest Products Ltd. in respect of a $5.5 million claim arising out of alleged negligence and breach of contract relating to a 6,100 hectare wildfire occurring in 2010 near Vanderhoof, BC. The reasons for judgment can be found here.
Brent Olthuis represented the Law Society of British Columbia in a successful defence of solicitor-client confidentiality where a plaintiff sought client information from a deceased lawyer. The reasons for judgment are available here.
Brent Olthuis represented a licensed insurance agent in an administrative appeal from disciplinary proceedings. In the result, the licensee’s suspension was reduced from one year to two months. The reasons for judgment are available here.
Gib Van Ert’s article, “Portes et fenêtres—Louis LeBel et l'approche québécoise relative à l'interprétation du droit interne à la lumière du droit international" has been published in the June 2016 issue of Laval University’s law review, Les Cahiers de Droit.
June 2016
Brent Olthuis and Brian Duong represented VideoShare LLC, the plaintiff in Delaware proceedings alleging patent infringement by Google Inc. and others, in proceedings brought in British Columbia concerning the deposition of a witness. The reasons for judgment are available The reasons for judgment are available here.
John Sopinka’s classic book on trial practice has been revised by Ken McEwan, Q.C. and published by Lexis Nexis publishers as Sopinka on the Trial of an Action (3rd ed.) Ken has updated this important work with a chapter on the proper functioning of the trial, the professional and ethical responsibilities of counsel and access to justice considerations. He has also revised the chapter on the role of counsel, has discussed important cases since the last edition and discussed significant differences in trial practice across the country. This book will now be the standard work for trial practice in Canada. Congratulations to Ken for a major contribution to trial advocacy in this country.
May 2016
Ken McEwan, Q.C. has been named a member of the Canadian Bar Association National Class Action Task Force. The Task Force is comprised of members of the judiciary, as well as leading class action practitioners, representing both the plaintiff and defence bar, and different regions of the country. Ken joins as a representative of the defence bar in British Columbia. The work of the Task Force includes developing protocols and proposals for the administration of national and multi-jurisdictional class actions.
Claire Hunter has successfully defended an international child abduction claim brought in relation to Article 12 of the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. The reasons for judgment may be found here.
Claire Hunter and Eileen Patel successfully appealed an order in proprietary estoppel awarding the respondent a right to purchase the appellant’s interest in her share of the family home. The majority held on this issue that a remedy in proprietary estoppel cannot arise where the person making the alleged representation regarding the property in question has no current or immediate right to the property, settling a point of law not previously determined in British Columbia. The reasons are available here. (at paragraphs 98-119)
On May 13th, John Hunter, Q.C. participated on a panel at a Judicial Ethics Seminar presented by the National Judicial Institute. The topic of the panel was Judges’ Returning to Practice.
Ken McEwan, Q.C. and Emily Kirkpatrick successfully represented Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation in defeating a shareholder application to bring a derivative action in Lions Gate’s name against current and former directors and officers. The proceeding arose out of circumstances surrounding the attempted takeover of Lions Gate by Carl Icahn in 2010. The reasons for judgment may be found here.
Euromoney’s 2016 Guide to the World’s Leading Litigation and Product Liability Lawyers has been published, and John Hunter, Q.C. is listed among the Litigation counsel identified for Canada.
Mark Oulton successfully obtained summary dismissal of a claim that logging activities carried out under a valid timber sale licence constituted a private nuisance and/or gave rise to a claim in negligence. The reasons for judgment may be found here: Chingee v. British Columbia.
April 2016
We are pleased to announce that Brian Duong and Ryan Androsoff have joined the firm as associates. Brian articled with us in 2009, practised in Boston for two years and has spent the past two and a half years with Freshfields in Paris focussed on international commercial arbitration. Ryan was called to the B.C. bar in 2012 and has been practising civil litigation with a Vancouver firm since then. Welcome to them both.
On April 25, 2016, the British Columbia Court of Appeal released its decision in a trilogy of cases indexed as R. v. Dickey, 2016 BCCA 177 considering the constitutionality of two-year mandatory minimum sentences for certain drug offenses. The Court found that these mandatory minimum provisions were unconstitutional because they infringed section 12 of the Charter as being cruel and unusual punishment. Claire Hunter was counsel to the Pivot Legal Society on the appeal.
March 2016
For the fourth consecutive year (2013-2016), Ken McEwan, Q.C. has been named British Columbia litigator of the year by Benchmark Canada. Ken was also nominated as Canadian Competition Litigator of the Year, and Brent Olthuis was nominated as Emerging Talent of the Year. Hunter Litigation Chambers was nominated as British Columbia firm of the year. The firm has once again been identified in the current Benchmark 2016 as "Highly Recommended", the highest category in the Benchmark listing. Ken, John Hunter, Q.C., Randy Kaardal, Q.C., Bill Smart, Q.C., Michael Stephens and Brent are recognized as "Local Litigation Stars", while Claire Hunter is listed under "Future Stars".
Claire Hunter and Rebecca Robb brought a successful appeal on behalf of two hatching egg producers from a series of decisions of the British Columbia Broiler Hatching Egg Commission relating to the establishment of a quota system for specialty hatching egg production in British Columbia. In March 29, 2016, the Farm Industry Review Board found "significant errors of both policy and process" and set aside the decisions under appeal. The reasons are available here.
February 2016
On February 16, Claire Hunter was a panelist on a CBABC webinar entitled "The Inconvenient Truth - Not All Affidavits Are Created Equal" as part of the Litigation Skills Series 2016. In addition to Claire, who provided the perspective of a civil litigator, the panel included Meghan Selinger, providing the perspective of a family lawyer and Master Heather MacNaughton of the BC Supreme Court providing a view from the bench.
January 2016
We are pleased to announce that Shannon Ramsay has accepted our invitation to become one of the Counsel with the firm. Called to the bar in 2003, Shannon joined the firm in 2005. She practices in the areas of civil litigation, administration and gaming law.
Claire Hunter has been re-appointed to the Law Society of BC’s Access to Legal Services Advisory Committee. This committee monitors developments on issues affecting access to legal services and reports those developments to the Benchers as well as advising the Benchers on priority planning with respect to access to legal services.