Prosecution and Defence of Sexual Offences 2023

Course Chairs
Mila Shah — Crown Counsel, BC Prosecution Service, Vancouver
Kevin B. Westell — Pender Litigation, Vancouver

About the Course Chairs
Mila Shah is Crown Counsel with the Criminal Appeals office in Vancouver. She regularly argues appeals in the BC Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada. Prior to joining the Crown, Mila was criminal defence counsel for several years, with a focus on appellate litigation.

Mila currently serves on the executive of the Appellate Advocacy Section of the CBABC, she is an advocacy advisor for the Supreme Court Advocacy Institute, and she co-teaches a course on preventing wrongful convictions at UBC Allard School of Law.

Kevin Westell is a founding principal at Pender Litigation. In addition to his criminal and regulatory defence work, he is often retained to act as Crown Counsel, counsel for witnesses in criminal proceedings, and as amicus curiae (counsel for the court). He has represented clients and the Crown in jurisdictions across Canada on matters of all levels of seriousness.

He has represented professionals subject to proceedings before the BC Securities Commission and Office of the Police Complaints Commission, the Law Society of BC, the College of Physical Therapists of BC, patients subject to proceedings before the BC Review Board, and amateur athletes and athletic organizations subject to proceedings before the Sports Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada.

Kevin currently serves as an elected Bencher of the Law Society of BC for Vancouver County and as the Chair of the CBA National Criminal Justice Section.

Faculty
The Honourable Madam Justice Catherine A. Murray — Supreme Court of BC, Vancouver
The Honourable Madam Justice Palbinder K. Shergill — Supreme Court of BC, New Westminster
The Honourable Madam Justice Janet L. Winteringham — Supreme Court of BC, Vancouver
The Honourable Judge Jeff Campbell — Provincial Court of BC, Port Coquitlam
The Honourable Judge Mark R. Jette — Provincial Court of BC, Surrey
The Honourable Judge Andrea Ormiston — Provincial Court of BC, Chilliwack
Brent R. Anderson — Johnson Doyle Nelson & Anderson, Vancouver
Janet A.M. Dickie — Crown Counsel, BC Prosecution Service, Vancouver
Stephanie Dickson — Pender Litigation, Vancouver
Jennifer Dyck — Crown Counsel, BC Prosecution Service, Vancouver
Susanne Elliott — Crown Counsel, BC Prosecution Service, Vancouver
Kristy Neurauter — Myers, Karp, Patey & Neurauter, Vancouver
Tony Paisana — Peck and Company, Vancouver
Eric Purtzki — Fowler, Blok, Vancouver
Lesley A. Ruzicka, KC — Crown Counsel, Criminal Appeals and Special Prosecutions (Prosecution Support), BC Prosecution Service, Victoria
Emily K. Yao — Crown Counsel, BC Prosecution Service, Prince George

Click here for full faculty bios

Course Introduction and Land Acknowledgment (9:00 – 9:05)

Raymond Lee — Program Lawyer, CLEBC, Vancouver
Mila Shah — Crown Counsel, BC Prosecution Service, Vancouver
Kevin B. Westell — Pender Litigation, Vancouver

The Conduct of Sexual Offence Trials: View from the Bench (9:05 – 10:05)

Moderator: Mila Shah — Crown Counsel, BC Prosecution Service, Vancouver
The Honourable Madam Justice Catherine A. Murray — Supreme Court of BC, Vancouver
The Honourable Madam Justice Janet L. Winteringham — Supreme Court of BC, Vancouver
The Honourable Judge Mark R. Jette — Provincial Court of BC, Surrey

Transition Break (10:05 – 10:10)

Assessing Credibility: Myths and Stereotypes (10:10 – 11:10)

Susanne Elliott — Crown Counsel, BC Prosecution Service, Vancouver
Eric Purtzki — Fowler, Blok, Vancouver

Transition Break (11:10 – 11:15)

All About Consent: Consent, Vitiating Consent, and Honest but Mistaken Belief in Communicated Consent (11:15 – 12:15)

Moderator: The Honourable Judge Jeff Campbell — Provincial Court of BC, Port Coquitlam
Janet A.M. Dickie — Crown Counsel, BC Prosecution Service, Surrey
Tony Paisana — Peck and Company, Vancouver

LUNCH (12:15 – 1:00)

Complainants and Third Party Records (1:00 – 2:00)

The Honourable Madam Justice Palbinder K. Shergill — Supreme Court of BC, New Westminster
Stephanie Dickson — Pender Litigation, Vancouver 
Lesley A. Ruzicka, KC — Crown Counsel, Criminal Appeals and Special Prosecutions (Prosecution Support), BC Prosecution Service, Victoria

Transition Break (2:00 – 2:05)

Testimonial Accommodations for Complainants (2:05 – 3:05)

The Honourable Judge Andrea Ormiston — Provincial Court of BC, Chilliwack
Brent R. Anderson — Johnson Doyle Nelson & Anderson, Vancouver
Emily K. Yao — Crown Counsel, BC Prosecution Service, Prince George

Transition Break (3:05 – 3:10)

The Sexual Offence Case: Practical Approaches to Negotiations/Settlements (3:10 – 4:10)

Moderator: Kevin B. Westell — Pender Litigation, Vancouver
Jennifer Dyck — Crown Counsel, BC Prosecution Service, Vancouver 
Kristy Neurauter — Myers, Karp, Patey & Neurauter, Vancouver

Concluding Remarks (4:10 – 4:15)

Mila Shah — Crown Counsel, BC Prosecution Service, Vancouver
Kevin B. Westell — Pender Litigation, Vancouver