Pension Division on Relationship Breakdown 2023

Course Chair
Colin Galinski — Galinski Pension and Benefits Law, Vancouver

About the Course Chair
Colin Galinski provides pension and benefits legal services to boards of trustees, plan sponsors, administrators, labour & employment counsel, and individuals. In addition, Colin practices extensively in the area of pension division on relationship breakdown, where he is retained by family lawyers, mediators, and individuals to draft and implement pension division arrangements.

Prior to establishing Galinski Law, Colin practiced pension, benefits, and executive compensation law in the Vancouver office of a large international law firm. His career started in 2003 in Ontario, where he spent a number of years in collective bargaining and pension and benefits negotiations between faculty members and management at a top tier university.

Colin enjoys being active in the legal community, in particular, speaking and writing for CLEBC, and presenting to numerous associations across BC and the Yukon territory. 

From 2019 to 2021, Colin was the Chair of the BC Law Institute project committee which culminated in the publication of the Report on Pension Division: A Review of Part 6 of the Family Law Act. He is the Past Chair of the Pension and Benefits Law Section of the CBA (BC Branch) and has served on the Board of Directors of the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation (RCHF) from April 2015 to June 2019. RCHF is an independent charitable organization that raises millions of dollars each year to fund major projects, priority equipment needs, facility enhancements, research, education, and innovation at RCH. 

Colin coaches youth hockey, baseball, and soccer, and enjoys spending time in the BC outdoors with his spouse and their two children.

Online Moderator
Beatrice C. McCutcheon — Cook Roberts LLP, Victoria

Faculty
Stephen Cheng, FCIA, FSA — Managing Director & Senior Consulting Actuary, Westcoast Actuaries Inc., Vancouver
Gillian Dabbs — Director, Policy — BC Pension Corporation, Victoria
Stephanie Griffith — Bilsland Griffith Benefit Administrators, Burnaby
Peter Leask, KC — Vancouver
Beatrice C. McCutcheon — Cook Roberts LLP, Victoria
Mark R. Slay — North Shore Law LLP, North Vancouver

Course Materials Contributor
Katherine Lam — North Shore Law LLP, North Vancouver

Click here for full faculty bios

Course Introduction and Land Acknowledgement (9:00 – 9:15)

Nadia Myerthall — Program Lawyer, CLEBC, Vancouver
Colin Galinski — Galinski Pension and Benefits Law, Vancouver
Online Moderator: Beatrice C. McCutcheon — Cook Roberts LLP, Victoria

Taking Stock—Where We Are Today in BC and How Did We Get Here (9:15 – 9:45)

• overview of BC pension division system
• best practices to identify client pension entitlement
• history and future of Part 6 of the Family Law Act

Colin Galinski — Galinski Pension and Benefits Law, Vancouver

View from the Bench and Beyond (9:45 – 10:20)

• "do it yourself" or "hire an expert"
• the value of valuation

Peter Leask, KC — Vancouver

BREAK (10:20 – 10:35)

Bill 17 Amendments to Part 6 of the FLA: A Primer (10:35 – 11:20)

• expansion of entitlement to include the estate of a deceased spouse
• availability of commuted values transfers vs. periodic payment
• expansion of division of annuities and other retirement savings vehicles

Mark R. Slay — North Shore Law LLP, North Vancouver

Pension Administrator Insights and Tips (11:20 – 12:05)

• best practices and most common issues the Pension Corporation encounters when administrating pension divisions
• tips that will help family lawyers ensure a smooth pension division experience for their clients

Gillian Dabbs — Director, Policy — BC Pension Corporation, Victoria
Stephanie Griffith — Bilsland Griffith Benefit Administrators, Burnaby

NETWORKING LUNCH (provided to in-person registrants) (12:05 – 1:05)

Actuarial Advice and Services (1:05 – 1:50)

• pension valuation for compensation payment purposes (outside plan)
• estimates of pension or lump sum for member and spouse (within plan)

Stephen Cheng, FCIA, FSA — Managing Director & Senior Consulting Actuary, Westcoast Actuaries Inc., Vancouver

Drafting Tips and Traps for the Family Lawyer (1:50 – 2:35)

• identifying the pension—how to determine the applicable legislation and the available methods of division
• drafting provisions about pension division—when to use precedents and when to get help

Beatrice C. McCutcheon — Cook Roberts LLP, Victoria

BREAK (2:35 – 2:50)

Drafting Exercise: Group Reports and Discussion (2:50 – 3:50)

Colin Galinski — Galinski Pension and Benefits Law, Vancouver

Closing Remarks (3:50 – 4:00)

Colin Galinski — Galinski Pension and Benefits Law, Vancouver