Defending people in tough situations

Being charged with a criminal offence can be an extremely stressful, life-changing experience. I help people at all stages of a criminal case: investigation, arrest, resolution negotiations, at trial, and on appeal.

I represent people charged with all types of offences, no matter how big or small. However, my practice is focused on representing people charged with serious offences, including:

• Murder, manslaughter, and other offences involving a death

• Sexual assault and other sexual offences

• Firearms offences and other weapons offences

• Assault, assault causing bodily harm, and aggravated assault

• Drug trafficking and other drug-related offences

• Dangerous driving, impaired driving, and other driving offences

• Organized crime offences, including gang-related “mega trials”

• Fraud, theft, and other property crimes

Regulatory legislation governs various facets of life, from professional discipline to workplace safety to environmental protections and more. Individuals and companies can face serious sanctions for violating regulatory legislation. In the professional discipline context, alleged wrongdoing can have serious consequences. I assist clients facing regulatory investigations, allegations, and prosecutions.

I have represented clients in relation to a variety of regulatory matters, including:

• College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants investigations, interim suspension applications, and disciplinary hearings

• WorkSafeBC investigations

• Real Estate Council of BC (now part of the BC Financial Services Authority) investigations

• Fisheries Act & Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act prosecutions

• Security Programs Act matters, including applications for security-related licences

• Trespass Act prosecutions

Your rights don’t cease to exist just because you’ve been convicted. I help people incarcerated in provincial jails and federal penitentiaries protect their remaining liberty and ensure they are treated fairly when issues arise. My prison law practice includes representing clients in:

• faint hope applications

• disciplinary proceedings

• rebuttals to security level and risk assessments

• transfer applications

• applications for day parole and full parole

• appeals of parole board decisions

Please note that I do not represent prison law clients in relation to civil claims for damages or in class action lawsuits.

Pardons and record suspensions give people the clean slate they deserve. Whether you are eligible for a pardon or a record suspension depends on the nature and date of your criminal record. A panel of the Parole Board of Canada decides whether or not to grant a pardon/record suspension application.

I help ensure that clients put their best foot forward with their application. I explain the process, gather the necessary documentation, write submissions about why your application should be granted, and correspond with the Parole Board on your behalf.

Individuals ordered to comply with the Sex Offender Information Registration Act (SOIRA) face numerous obligations that limit their liberty and privacy. In recent years, the law has developed to recognize the hardship these obligations can create, as well as the registry’s limitations as a public safety tool. Eligible individuals can apply for a SOIRA exemption order or termination order to end their obligations under the registry. Whether or not an individual may obtain an exemption or termination order depends on their specific circumstances and the amount of time that has passed since the order was made.

I have helped clients obtain SOIRA exemption and termination orders.

Legislation enacted by the government must respect the individual rights and freedoms protected under the Constitution. Vindicating these rights can require constitutional challenges to legislation or the actions of state actors like the police.

I have had the privilege of litigating novel and complex constitutional issues at the trial and appellate level. I have been counsel on constitutional challenges, including challenges to:

• the retrospective application of changes to the “faint hope” provisions in the Criminal Code

• the retrospective application of the Truth in Sentencing Act to individuals whose offences pre-date the Act but whose charges post-date the Act

• the strict application of the close-in-age provisions in s. 150.1 of the Criminal Code

• the records screening regime in s. 279.92 of the Code that renders certain types of evidence presumptively inadmissible in sexual offence proceedings

Sometimes things don’t work out the way they should at trial. In all criminal matters and most other matters, an appeal is the next step in the fight. Appeals are very different from trials, and require different forms of legal advocacy to succeed.

I have successfully represented appellants and respondents on appeal.