Suing and Defending the Crown 2022

Course Chairs
The Honourable Madam Justice Karen A. Horsman — BC Court of Appeal, Vancouver
Catherine J. Boies Parker, KC — Arvay Finlay LLP, Victoria

About the Course Chairs
Justice Karen Horsman graduated from UBC Law School in 1992. After clerking at the BC Supreme Court, she completed her articles at the Ministry of Attorney General.

Justice Horsman spent most of her career as a barrister with the Ministry of Attorney General, initially in the civil litigation group and later in the constitutional/administrative law group. As AG counsel, she had conduct of a range of cases from relatively straightforward personal injury claims to complex constitutional litigation. She frequently appeared as counsel for the Province before a variety of administrative tribunals, the BC Supreme Court, the BC Court of Appeal, and the Supreme Court of Canada. Justice Horsman is a co-editor and contributing author to the textbook Government Liability: Law and Practice. She is a member of the editorial board of Introducing Evidence at Trial: A British Columbia Handbook.

She was appointed Queen's Counsel in 2014. In August of 2018, she was appointed a judge of the BC Supreme Court. In April of 2022, she was appointed a judge of the BC Court of Appeal.

Catherine Boies Parker, KC is a partner at Arvay Finlay LLP. Catherine's practice focusses on cases involving constitutional law, Aboriginal title, treaty rights, privacy, and administrative law. 

Catherine has appeared at all levels of court and before numerous administrative tribunals. She is called to the bar in both BC and the Yukon. 

Catherine is honoured to have received the George A Goyer, KC Memorial Award from the Canadian Bar Association, the Contribution to the Law Award from the Victoria Bar Association, and a Human Rights Award, sponsored by the Vancouver Island Human Rights Committee and presented by The Honourable Stephen L. Point.

Catherine is a member of the Board of Directors of the Together Against Poverty Society (TAPS).

Faculty
Arden Beddoes — Beddoes Litigation, Vancouver 
Andrew B. Gage — West Coast Environmental Law, Vancouver
Andrew D. Gay, KC — Gudmundseth Mickelson LLP, Vancouver 
Jason B. Gratl — Gratl & Company, Vancouver
Leah Greathead — Legal Counsel, Ministry of Attorney General, Victoria
Judith Hoffman — Department of Justice, BC Regional Office, Vancouver
Robert J.M. Janes, KC — JFK Law Corporation, Victoria
Alexander Kirby — Arvay Finlay LLP, Vancouver
Emily Lapper — Legal Counsel, Ministry of Attorney General, Vancouver
Jessica Magonet — Prisoners' Legal Services, Burnaby
Lee Mauro — Legal Counsel, Ministry of Attorney General, Victoria
Reidar M. Mogerman, KC — Camp Fiorante Matthews Mogerman LLP, Vancouver
John G. (Gareth) Morley — Legal Counsel, Ministry of Attorney General, Victoria
Julia W. Riddle — Arvay Finlay LLP, Vancouver
Scott Robertson — President, Indigenous Bar Association, Nahwegahbow, Corbiere Barristers & Solicitors, Rama, Ontario
James Sayce — Koskie Minsky LLP, Toronto
Banafsheh Sokhansanj — Department of Justice Canada, Vancouver 
Chris Tollefson — Professor, University of Victoria Faculty of Law and Principal, Tollefson Law Corporation, Victoria
Micah Weintraub — Legal Counsel, Ministry of Attorney General, Vancouver
David Wu — Arvay Finlay LLP, Victoria

Welcome and Land Acknowledgement (9:00 – 9:05)

The Honourable Madam Justice Karen A. Horsman — BC Court of Appeal, Vancouver
Catherine J. Boies Parker, KC — Arvay Finlay LLP, Victoria

Crown Litigation Practice and Procedure (9:05 – 9:50)

• naming the right parties
• choosing the right process (action v. judicial review)
• procedure in litigation against the Federal Crown 

The Honourable Madam Justice Karen A. Horsman — BC Court of Appeal, Vancouver
Banafsheh Sokhansanj — Department of Justice Canada, Vancouver 
David Wu — Arvay Finlay LLP, Victoria

BREAK (9:50 – 10:00)

Class Actions Against Government (10:00 – 10:45)

• an overview of recent class action decisions involving government
• a deeper dive into two basic questions:
  • how are class actions for and against the government different from non-governmental cases?
  • from the perspective of first principles of class actions legislation, how can we do a better job with these kinds of cases in the future?

Lee Mauro — Legal Counsel, Ministry of Attorney General, Victoria
Reidar M. Mogerman, KC — Camp Fiorante Matthews Mogerman LLP, Vancouver

BREAK (10:45 – 10:55)

Tort Update (10:55 – 12:00)

• a survey of recent developments in the law of Crown liability in tort, including:
  • City of Nelson v. Marchi, 2021 SCC 41: the government policy defence
  • Waterway Houseboats Ltd. v. British Columbia, 2020 BCCA 378: proximity and the government regulator
  • Rosewall v. Sechelt (District of), 2022 BCSC 448: Crown liability in nuisance in the exercise of emergency powers
• the evolving tort of misfeasance in public office
• update on the doctrine of collateral attack (Myers v. Canada (Attorney General), 2022 BCCA 160)

Moderator: The Honourable Madam Justice Karen A. Horsman — BC Court of Appeal, Vancouver
Arden Beddoes — Beddoes Litigation, Vancouver 
Jason B. Gratl — Gratl & Company, Vancouver
Micah Weintraub — Legal Counsel, Ministry of Attorney General, Vancouver

LUNCH BREAK (12:00 – 12:30)

Civil Damages for Charter Breaches (12:30 – 1:15)

• Charter damages as a remedy in class actions
• the interplay of tort and Charter damages
• developments in the quantum of Charter damages post-Ward

Andrew D. Gay, KC — Gudmundseth Mickelson LLP, Vancouver 
James Sayce — Koskie Minsky LLP, Toronto

BREAK (1:15 – 1:25)

Building a Public Interest Practice (1:25 – 2:25)

• developing relationships with clients and communities in need of legal support
• finding and/or creating a workplace that supports the development of a public interest practice
• taking on files appropriate for your year of call: balancing client need and the need to provide quaility service

Alexander Kirby — Arvay Finlay LLP, Vancouver
Emily Lapper — Legal Counsel, Ministry of Attorney General, Vancouver
Jessica Magonet — Prisoners' Legal Services, Burnaby
Julia W. Riddle — Arvay Finlay LLP, Vancouver

BREAK (2:25 – 2:35)

Climate Change Litigation (2:35 – 3:20)

• an overview of the types of climate change litigation in Canada
• the public interest and public and private parties in climate litigation
• the use of science in constitutional and tort litigation

Andrew B. Gage — West Coast Environmental Law, Vancouver
John G. (Gareth) Morley — Legal Counsel, Ministry of Attorney General, Victoria
Chris Tollefson — Professor, University of Victoria Faculty of Law and Principal, Tollefson Law Corporation, Victoria

BREAK (3:20 – 3:30)

Litigation Between the Crown and Indigenous Groups (3:30 – 4:30)

• litigation and the honourof the Crown
• Federal and Provincial litigation guidelines—how they affect the substance and form of litigation
• UNDRIP legislation

Moderator: Catherine Boies Parker, KC – Arvay Finlay LLP, Vancouver
Leah Greathead — Legal Counsel, Ministry of Attorney General, Victoria
Judith Hoffman — Department of Justice, BC Regional Office, Vancouver
Robert J.M. Janes, KC — JFK Law Corporation, Victoria
Scott Robertson — President, Indigenous Bar Association, Nahwegahbow, Corbiere Barristers & Solicitors, Rama, Ontario

Closing Remarks (4:30 – 4:35)

The Honourable Madam Justice Karen A. Horsman — BC Court of Appeal, Vancouver
Catherine J. Boies Parker, KC — Arvay Finlay LLP, Victoria