BCLI welcomes three new members

The British Columbia Law Institute is pleased to welcome three recent appointees to its Board. They are: Margaret Mason, Partner, Bull Housser & Tupper LLP, appointee of the Law Society of British Columbia for a three year term commencing May 1, 2015. Dennis Pavlich, Professor, Peter A. Allard School of Law, appointee of the Dean of the Peter A Allard School of Law at the University of British Columbia for September 21, 2015 to June Read more…

BCLI Starting New Project on Litigation Financing

The number of self-represented litigants in British Columbia’s courts has been steadily increasing. In her 2013 report, University of Windsor Faculty of Law professor Dr. Julie Macfarlane wrote that the inability to afford legal counsel is the most consistently-cited reason for self-representation and a lack of access to justice. In response, the British Columbia Law Institute is starting a new project on litigation financing to explore the public, private, and third-party funding opportunities used in Read more…

In Memoriam: Remembering the Hon. Flora MacDonald, O.C.

The British Columbia Law Institute and the Canadian Centre for Elder Law would like to express sympathy to the family, friends, and colleagues of the Honourable Flora MacDonald, O.C.. Flora MacDonald, who passed on July 26th, was a Distinguished Fellow at the Canadian Centre for Elder Law and a keynote speaker at the 2005 Canadian Conference on Elder Law. “Flora MacDonald’s legacy is one of selfless service,” said Executive Director Kathleen Cunningham. “Her commitment to Read more…

BCLI announces selection of new Executive Director

The British Columbia Law Institute / Canadian Centre for Elder Law is pleased to announce the selection of a new Executive Director, Kathleen Cunningham, B. Comm, LL.B, MPS, TEP to lead BCLI effective June 1, 2015. Jim Emmerton, current Executive Director, is scheduled to retire June 30, 2015. Called to the bar of the Law Society of British Columbia in 1986, Ms. Cunningham is a distinguished lawyer with particular expertise in trust law and law Read more…

BCLI welcomes Bill 24, the new Societies Act

The British Columbia Law Institute applauds the introduction of Bill 24, which will create a modern Societies Act for British Columbia. The bill implements the bulk of the recommendations made in BCLI’s Society Act Reform Project. “This bill is a landmark for British Columbia’s not-for-profit sector,” said Margaret Mason, chair of BCLI’s Society Act Reform Project Committee, “which will benefit from modern and up-to-date legislation for years to come.” BCLI carried out the Society Act Read more…