Course Chairs 
Sandra F. Guarascio — Roper Greyell LLP, Vancouver
Lindsay M. Lyster — Moore Edgar Lyster, Vancouver

About the Course Chairs 
Sandra F. Guarascio is a partner with Roper Greyell LLP, Vancouver and has been recognized by Lexpert, Best Lawyers Canada, and Who's Who Legal for her work in workplace human rights. She assists public and private sector employers by providing balanced, strategic, and proactive advice for unionized and non-unionized environments. Sandra practices in all areas of employment and labour law, with a particular interest in human rights and respectful workplace issues. She is an experienced investigator, facilitator and speaker, and has conducted numerous workshops dealing with management issues, discrimination, accommodation, and workplace harassment and bullying.

Sandra clerked with the BC Supreme Court and was called in 2002. She has been the co-chair of CLEBC's award-winning, annual two-day Human Rights Conference since 2007.

Lindsay M. Lyster joined Moore Edgar Lyster in April 2010 and became a partner in 2011. She served as a member of the BC Human Rights Tribunal between 2002 and 2010. Immediately prior to that, she was the Policy Director of the BC Civil Liberties Association. Before that, Lindsay practiced labour, employment, and public law with a major national law firm for seven years.
Lindsay's practice focuses on acting for employees and trade unions in labour, employment, and human rights matters. She has a particular interest in administrative and constitutional law, and has appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada in a number of leading constitutional and human rights cases.

Lindsay graduated from UBC Law School in 1991 as the gold medalist, following which she clerked for Madam Justice McLachlin at the Supreme Court of Canada, before being called to the bar in 1993.
Lindsay is the president of the BC Civil Liberties Association. She is the co-chair of CLEBC's annual Human Rights Conference, and is a frequent lecturer and author in labour, human rights, employment, and administrative law, as well as advocacy and legal ethics. She has taught administrative law, federalism, charter litigation, and human rights in the workplace at UBC Law School. 

Featured Speaker
Matt Eisenbrandt has over 15 years of experience in the field of international justice, and is one of Canada's leading experts on universal jurisdiction prosecutions and corporate accountability for human rights violations. Matt is currently a Special Consultant at Camp Fiorante Matthews Mogerman on the firm's business and human rights cases, including two lawsuits against Canadian mining companies for alleged abuses connected to their overseas operations. Matt is also a Special Advisor to the Canadian Centre for International Justice, where he spent nine years overseeing the organization's casework on behalf of survivors seeking justice for serious human rights violations. He previously served as the Legal Director for the Center for Justice & Accountability (CJA), a US-based group that holds human rights abusers accountable through legal cases, particularly under the Alien Tort Statute. He was CJA's lead counsel in jury trials against military commanders from El Salvador and Haiti, and a member of the trial team in a lawsuit against a Salvadoran man for his role in the death-squad murder of beloved archbishop Oscar Romero. Matt is the author of Assassination of a Saint, a book about CJA's investigation of Romero's killers.

Matt has a J.D. from the University of Virginia School and B.A. degrees in Latin American studies and History from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Planning Committee 
Tonie Beharrell — Legal Counsel, Health Sciences Association of BC, Vancouver
Jon Chapnick — Senior Advisor, Workplace Mental Health, University of BC, Vancouver
Devyn Cousineau — BC Human Rights Tribunal, Vancouver
Robyn Durling — Former Co-Director, BC Human Rights Clinic, Vancouver
Christopher M. McHardy — McCarthy Tétrault LLP, Vancouver
Laura Track — Community Legal Assistance Society, Vancouver
Robyn P.M. Trask — BC Teachers' Federation, Vancouver
David G. Wong — Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, Vancouver

Faculty
Patricia M. Barkaskas — Academic Director, Indigenous Community Legal Clinic and Instructor, Peter A. Allard School of Law, UBC, Vancouver
Tonie Beharrell — Legal Counsel, Health Sciences Association of BC, Vancouver
Jon Chapnick — Senior Advisor, Workplace Mental Health, University of BC, Vancouver
Mark E. Colavecchia — Harris & Company LLP, Vancouver
Devyn Cousineau — BC Human Rights Tribunal, Vancouver
Matt Eisenbrandt — Special Consultant, Camp Fiorante Matthews Mogerman, Victoria
Sandra F. Guarascio — Roper Greyell LLP, Vancouver
Stephanie D. Gutierrez — Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, Vancouver
Sara Hanson — Moore Edgar Lyster, Vancouver
Katherine A. Hardie — BC Human Rights Tribunal, Vancouver
Kirsten Hume Scrimshaw — Ally Workplace Law Corporation, Vancouver
Krista James — National Director, Canadian Centre for Elder Law, Vancouver
Eleni Kassaris — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, Vancouver
Kelsey Lavoie, JD, MA — Advocate, Vancouver Island Human Rights Coalition, Victoria
Kevin Love — Community Legal Assistance Society, Vancouver
Lindsay M. Lyster — Moore Edgar Lyster, Vancouver
Brett Matthews — Hastings Labour Law Office LLP, Vancouver
Carolyn M. MacEachern — Young Anderson, Vancouver
Christopher M. McHardy — McCarthy Tétrault LLP, Vancouver
Ryley M. Mennie — McCarthy Tétrault LLP, Vancouver
Shona A. Moore, QC — Moore Edgar Lyster, Vancouver
Donovan G. Plomp — McCarthy Tétrault LLP, Vancouver
Gabriel M.A. Somjen, QC — Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, Vancouver
Chanelle C.O. Wong — Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP, Vancouver
David G. Wong — Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, Vancouver

Click here for full faculty bios »

Day 1: Thursday, November 30, 2017

Welcome and Introduction 

Conducting Workplace Investigations 

• when and why to investigate
• who should conduct the investigation
• procedural fairness
• legal privilege
• privacy and confidentiality
• cases demonstrating flawed investigations

Tonie Beharrell — Legal Counsel, Health Sciences Associations of BC, Vancouver
Donovan G. Plomp — McCarthy Tétrault LLP, Vancouver

Break

Update on Accommodation of Family Status and Family Emergencies 

• evolution of the test for prima facie discrimination based on family status in BC and the federal jurisdiction
• the role of the employer, the union, and the employee in exploring accommodation
• boundaries of family status: is there a duty to accommodate personal emergencies, outside of Ontario's statutory right to personal leave?
• caregiving relationships and caregivers are being recognized in the cases and who is missing from the jurisprudence
• the role of human rights law in the search for work-life balance

Kirsten Hume Scrimshaw — Ally Workplace Law Corporation, Vancouver
Krista James — National Director, Canadian Centre for Elder Law, Vancouver

A Review of the Scope of the Human Rights Code: Sections 8, 10, and 13 

• discussion of the Schrenk case and/or decision before the SCC
• review of the consideration of how relationships impact the question of jurisdiction
• consieration of the extent of and limits to the applicability of the Code to tenancy, services customarily available to the public, and employment

Katherine Hardie — BC Human Rights Tribunal, Vancouver
David G. Wong — Fasken, Martineau DuMoulin LLP, Vancouver 

Lunch with Featured Speaker:
The Nevsun and Tahoe Cases: Litigation in Canada Alleging Abuses in Overseas Operations 

• review of BC lawsuit by Eritrean refugees against Vancouver-based Nevsun Resources alleging they were forced labourers at Nevsun's mine in Eritrea, including claim of direct liability, traditional common law torts, and torts in violation of customary international law (i.e.: slavery, forced labour, torture, and crimes against humanity)
• review of BC lawsuit by Guatemalans against BC's Tahoe Resources alleging they were injured when security personnel opened fire on a peaceful protest
• review of applications by Nevsun and Tahoe to stay BC cases under the doctrine of forum non conveniens

Matt Eisenbrandt — Special Consultant, Camp Fiorante Matthews Mogerman Victoria 

Break

Mental Disability: Cases, Strategies, and Enabling Insights 

• review of notable 'mental disability' decisions from the past year; discussion of themes and common issues
• exploration of strategies and insights to help human rights practitioners navigate 'mental disability' matters: i.e.: identifying and contesting stereotypical assumptions and generalizations; responding to 'pushback' and 'workplace morale problems'
• exploration of the tools and insights provided by a 'trauma-informed' framework

Jon Chapnick — Senior Advisor, Workplace Mental health, UBC, Vancouver 
Kelsey Lavoie, JD, MA — Advocate, Vancouver Island Human Rights Coalition, Victoria

Judicial Review Update 

• review and update of significant BC Supreme Court, BC Court of Appeal, and Supreme Court of Canada cases

Devyn Cousineau — BC Human Rights Tribunal, Vancouver
Stephanie D. Gutierrez — Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, Vancouver

Day 2: Friday, December 1, 2017

Welcome and Introduction 

Case Law Update 

• key cases
• analysis and trends
• effects on practice

Christopher M. McHardy — McCarthy Tétrault LLP, Vancouver
Ryley M. Mennie — McCarthy Tétrault LLP, Vancouver 

Break

Applications to Dismiss for Complaints Filed Out Of Time 

• the parameters for dismissal under section 27(1)(g) of the Code
• review of recent case law

Eleni Kassaris — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, Vancouver

Limited Retainers: Benefits, Risks, and Ethical Considerations 

• when to consider using limited retainers
• how limited retainers can increase access to justice
• practical tips for drafting limited retainers
• the risks involved in acting on a limited retainer
• ethical considerations, including when disclosure of a limited retainer is required

Sara Hanson — Moore Edgar Lyster, Vancouver
Kevin Love — Community Legal Assistance Society, Vancouver 

Lunch

The Duty to Accommodate Doesn't Have To Be "Unduly" Hard! 

• the responsibilities of the employer, the union, and the employee in the duty to accommodate
• the benefits of having a cooperative approach
• success stories

Mark E. Colavecchia — Harris & Company LLP, Vancouver
Brett Matthews — Hastings Labour Law Office LLP, Vancouver 

Case Law Update On the Provision of Services Under Section 8 

• procedural issues in section 8 cases, including anonymization, representative complaints, and jurisdiction
• characterization of the service being offered
• is the service customarily available to the public?
• the interaction between section 8 and constitutional freedoms
• bona fide reasonable justification, duty to accommodate, and applications to dismiss in the context of provision of services cases
• other interesting section 8 cases since 2011

Carolyn M. MacEachern — Young Anderson, Vancouver
Chanelle C.O. Wong — Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP, Vancouver 

Break

Ethics Fact Patterns 

• what would/should you do?
• discussions in context

Shona A. Moore, QC — Moore Edgar Lyster, Vancouver
Gabriel M.A. Somjen, QC — Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, Vancouver 

Closing Remarks