Benchers

Called to the Bar in 1998, Jeevyn Dhaliwal, KC holds broad-based experience in employment law and practises in the area of workplace immigration law at Larlee Rosenberg in Vancouver.

First elected as a Bencher for the 2014-15 term and again in 2017, and having served the Law Society in various capacities since 2013, Jeevyn is President for 2024. She is the Chair of the Executive Committee and a member of the Finance and Audit Committee. 

Jeevyn’s service to the profession has included elected positions on the Canadian Bar Association (BC Branch) Provincial Council and the Vancouver Bar Association Board of Directors, in addition to having been a longstanding board member and Past President of the South Asian Bar Association of British Columbia. Her community involvement more broadly includes instructing in Capilano University’s Legal Studies Department and sitting as a board member of Creative BC, and she is also a past member of the UBC Alumni Advisory Council.

Brook Greenberg, KC has been a member of the Litigation Department of Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP since being called to the bar in 1998. His practice focuses on complex commercial, construction and forestry litigation. He has appeared before all levels of court including the Supreme Court of Canada. He has been the partner responsible for pro bono matters in Fasken’s Vancouver office since 2004. He has taught civil procedure as an adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia from 2006 to the present.

First elected a Bencher for 2016, Brook is the First-Vice-President for 2024. He is Chair of the Trust Review Task Force and Finance and Audit Committees, and a member of the Executive Committee and Truth and Reconciliation Advisory Committee.

Brook has been involved with the Law Students’ Legal Advice Program since 1993, first as a student clinician, clinic head and executive member, and then as a supervising lawyer at various clinics. In 2012, Brook joined the founding board of directors of the Greater Vancouver Law Students’ Legal Advice Society. Brook also acted as Secretary/Treasurer of the GVLSLAS in 2012 and 2013. He then served as President in 2014 and 2015, and as Past-President in 2016. Brook has remained a member of the board to the present.

In the community, Brook served from 2005 to 2012 on the board of directors of MOSAIC, a not-for-profit provider of settlement and support services for immigrants and refugees. He was Vice-President of MOSAIC in 2008, and President from 2009 to 2011.

Thomas L. Spraggs (Tom) is the owner and operator of Spraggs Law. He holds a Bachelor of Laws, Master of Laws and Masters of Business Administration. Tom is also a Qualified Arbitrator. His law firm has navigated significant growth over the last several years, and his lifelong passions for technology and learning have helped him develop unique approaches to collaborative work processes and practice management. The firm was acknowledged by the Canadian Bar Association with the 2016 Innovative Workplace Award.  
  
Elected a Bencher for Westminster County since 2020, Tom is currently a member of the Lawyer Development Task Force, the Discipline Committee and the Executive Committee.

Tom's past volunteer work includes serving with the British Columbia Law Institute and Canadian Centre for Elder Law as a director from 2012 to 2020. He served on the Strategic Planning Committee, the Audit, Finance and Risk Committee (as Chair), and as Chair of the Board for two terms. He also chairs the CBABC Civil Litigation Tri-Cities/New Westminster section.  

As a member of the Law Societies of British Columbia, Yukon and Alberta, Tom's work has been primarily in civil litigation. He has been a frequent participant in the Continuing Legal Education of BC Solo and Small Firm Conference as well as co-chairing the 2018 Professional Wellness for Lawyers and Law Firms. Tom is a regular contributor to the Trial Lawyers Association of BC publication The Verdict, writing on legal technology. Tom is actively involved in the technology start-up community and is working with several legal innovation and digital technology projects.

Aleem Bharmal, KC is a human rights lawyer with the Community Legal Assistance Society (CLAS) and was its former Executive Director for 12 years from late 2007 to 2019. Aleem was called to the bar in 1995 and has practised human rights law for over 20 years.

First elected a Bencher for 2024, Aleem is a member of the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Advisory Committee and the Trust Review Task Force.

He has been a presenter on human rights, social justice, access to justice and legal ethics issues. He served as the President of the Canadian Bar Association, BC Branch (CBABC) for the 2022-23 term and has chaired or been on the executive of a number of CBABC sections and committees. He is also a CBABC law student mentor with the UBC Allard School of Law, his alma mater.

In late 2015, Aleem and his co-counsel, Clea Parfitt, won a very lengthy, high-profile racial discrimination case involving Indo-Canadian veterinarians in BC. In early 2016, he was involved with other non-profit groups and stakeholders in the launch of an Islamophobia Legal Assistance Hotline presently administered by Access Pro Bono BC.

In 2016, Aleem was awarded the CBABC President’s Medal in recognition of his significant contributions to the legal profession; in 2017, he was elected to the CBABC Provincial Council and then onto the CBABC Executive in 2018; and in 2019, he was appointed King’s Counsel by the Attorney General of BC in recognition of his major contributions to the law in BC.

Tanya is a family law lawyer who was called to the bar in British Columbia in 1995. She is a Collaborative Lawyer, Family Law Mediator, Arbitrator and Parenting Coordinator, and prepares Hear the Child Reports. In 2021, she was elected as a Bencher of the Law Society of British Columbia for the County of Vancouver. In 2022 and 2023, Tanya sat on the Access to Justice, Discipline and Practice Standards Committees.

For 2024, Tanya will be a member of the Complainant’s Review Committee and a member of the Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Committee.

Tanya is a member of the Health and Justice Alliance Steering Committee, a collaboration between lawyers and doctors working to reduce the harm British Columbians experience when going through relationship break down. She is a Board Member of the British Columbia Collaborative Roster Society and a co-chair of the Pro Bono Collaborative Committee. Tanya is a Past President of BC Sailing. 

Tanya’s family law practice is focussed on consensual dispute resolution because she believes that such processes are practical, cost effective, are in the children’s best interests and reflect the values of the Family Law Act.

Born and raised in Vancouver, Tanya is the mother of two adult children.  She loves skiing, sailing, hiking, travel and spending as much time as possible with her family, friends and many dogs.

Nikki Charlton has spent her legal career at Farris LLP. She was called to the bar in 2004 and became a partner in 2015. Nikki practises in the challenging field of family law, with a dynamic practice that offers mediation, collaborative law, arbitration and litigation. She also serves as a neutral to resolve family law disputes. Nikki is an accredited parenting coordinator, family law mediator and child interviewer.

First elected a Bencher for 2024, Nikki is a member of the Credentials Committee.

Nikki obtained her BA with distinction at the University of Victoria and her law degree at the University of British Columbia. She co-chaired the Continuing Legal Education Society of BC’s Biennial Family Law Conferences in 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2023. She served on the board of the British Columbia Collaborative Practice Roster Society for six years; during her tenure, she supported the development of the Pro Bono Collaborative Family Law Project, a voluntary and confidential program for unrepresented parties going through separation. Nikki also served on the Board of the BC Parenting Coordination Roster Society, and is a member of the Trial Lawyers Association of BC, the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals, the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts and the Hear the Child Society of BC.

Before becoming a lawyer, Nikki worked as a respite and support worker, including with youth at risk and children with disabilities. She has participated in numerous charitable fundraising activities and has been on the board of the North Shore Disability Resource Association. 

When not working or volunteering, you can generally find Nikki playing her heart out on the tennis court or managing the expectations of her two teenage daughters, Ellie and Kate.

Jennifer Chow, KC is Senior Counsel at the federal Department of Justice, focusing on constitutional, administrative, Indigenous and commercial litigation. She was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2016.

First elected a Bencher for 2018, Jennifer is a member of the Executive Committee, Practice Standards Committee and a Complainant’s Review Committee. She also sat on hearing panels before becoming a Bencher.

Jennifer served on the Canadian Bar Association, BC Branch’s Executive Committee for six years, and was the first visible minority president of the BC Branch. Her past service at the CBA includes two-term elected member of the Provincial Council, chair of the Equality and Diversity Committee, chair of the Annual Branch Conference Committee, Treasurer of the Women Lawyers Forum and chair of the Professional Development Courses. She won the Community Service Award in 2010.

She is currently a member of the Trauma Informed Practice Project Steering Committee (Access to Justice Initiative), and a former member of the Judicial Council and former secretary of Dress for Success Vancouver.

Jennifer regularly contributes to professional development, including CLEBC, DOJ-CBABC Professional Development Courses and PLTC Advocacy Courses. She co-taught an Indigenous law course at the University of Victoria law school. Her speaking engagements have included topics on diversity, administrative law, Aboriginal law and Federal Court practice. Jennifer is an active mentor and articled student principal. She has appeared at all levels of court, including the Supreme Court of Canada.

Christina is a civil litigator and a proud member of the Brokenhead Ojibway Nation. Christina was called to the bar in 2010, during which time she has worked as in-house counsel for a large national insurer as well as in private practice in both British Columbia and Manitoba. Her past experience is broad, including work in the areas of civil litigation and regulatory matters. She has appeared at all levels of Court in Manitoba and has appeared in the BC Supreme Court and BC Provincial Court.

Elected a Bencher in the July 2023 by-election, Christina is a member of the Credentials Committee and the Truth and Reconciliation Advisory Committee.

Throughout her career, Christina has been an active volunteer in the legal community. She is the founder of the Canadian Bar Association, BC Branch’s Aboriginal Lawyers Forum (ALF), the first forum of its kind in Canada. The ALF works to support and improve the retention of Indigenous legal professionals through networking, mentorship, professional development and opportunities to celebrate Indigenous culture.

She has volunteered with the CBA Judicial Advisory Committee and the Women Lawyers Forum (Kamloops), Young Lawyers and Insurance Law section. She is also the former president of the Kamloops Bar Association and past chair of the national Canadian Defence Lawyers’ Diversity and Inclusion Committee. She has presented at Continuing Legal Education Society of BC (CLEBC) conferences, as well as at the University of British Columbia’s faculty of law and the Thompson Rivers University’s faculty of law. She has also mentored Indigenous law students at UBC and TRU.

Cheryl D’Sa, KC was called to the bar in 2008, is a mediator and currently the managing partner of Narwal Litigation LLP, a firm devoted to criminal defence, personal injury, professional regulation and securities litigation.

Elected a Bencher in the May 2020 by-election, Cheryl is Chair of the Lawyer Development Task Force and a member of a Complainant’s Review Committee. She is also a Bencher representative on the Board of the Continuing Legal Education Society.

She is a former president of the Vancouver Bar Association. She has held seats on several Canadian Bar Association committees, including the Business of Law and Automobile Committees, and was chair of the Solo & Small Firm Section. She has been an active volunteer in the legal profession and community: as a mentor for Allard Law first-year students, Women Lawyers Forum members and through Federation of Asian Canadian Lawyers BC; and as a guest speaker for the CBA, BC Branch, the Trial Lawyers Association of British Columbia and the Advocates’ Society, among others.

Cheryl was named one of the Top Forty Under 40 by Business in Vancouver in 2019.

Tim Delaney practises general civil litigation with Lindsay Kenney LLP in Vancouver.

Tim was first elected a Bencher for 2023, and is Chair of a Complainants’ Review Committee and a member of the Practice Standards Committee.

He has served in numerous volunteer positions for the Canadian Bar Association, BC Branch: as an elected member of the Provincial Council, a member of the Audit Committee, the Advisory Committee to the Judicial Council, as Chair and a member of the Legislation and Law Reform Committee, and as National and Provincial Chair of the Law Week Planning Committee.

Tim has been a member of the Trial Lawyers Association Executive Committee, President and Director of the Law Courts Inn Society, President and elected member of the Vancouver Bar Association and Director of Act II Child & Family Services Society (a society that operates counselling programs and a safe house for battered women and their children). He has been a volunteer lecturer to the Continuing Legal Education Society several times, a volunteer judge to UBC Moot Court program for several years and a volunteer to Access Pro Bono clinics for several years.

He is currently a Director of the I’m a HIPpy Society (a society dedicated to hip health in children), has coached minor hockey with the Vancouver Thunderbirds Minor Hockey Association and has coached flag football with the Westside Warriors Minor Football Association.

Called to the bar in 2010, Brian has worked in the areas of criminal defence, family law and child protection, and as Director’s Counsel for the Family Maintenance Enforcement Program. He is a member and Hereditary Chief of the Tsetsaut Gitxsan Nation. He is passionate about issues of diversity, lawyers’ mental health, reconciliation and good governance.

Brian was first elected a Bencher for 2022, and is Vice-Chair of the Practice Standards Committee and a member of the Truth and Reconciliation Advisory Committee.

Brian has dedicated his career to the protection of vulnerable people, both as the Manager of Family Law Services for Legal Aid BC and as a Fellow for CanAge, Canada’s national seniors’ advocacy organization, which offers a powerful national voice to protect the rights and well-being of aging Canadians. He is also a Member at Large for the British Columbia Law Institute. 

He previously served as President of the Campbell River Bar Association for three terms. He has presented on various topics to Continuing Legal Education and Elder Abuse Prevention Ontario, and has volunteered on an Indigenous Courts committee and working group. He is also on the Campbell River Athletic Association Board of Directors for his local rugby club.

Brian enjoys spending time with his family and listening to and playing music (multiple instruments).

Called to the bar in 1982, Ravi Hira, KC has practised law for over 41 years, primarily as counsel. During that time, he has served as Crown counsel, special prosecutor, criminal defence lawyer, commercial litigator and mediator to advocate for professionals in diverse fields. Ravi’s practice includes complex commercial litigation cases, criminal defence cases, appearances as counsel on various Public Inquiries, and administrative law cases. He has appeared in all levels of court in British Columbia and the Supreme Court of Canada.

First elected a Bencher for 2024, Ravi is a member of a Complainants' Review Committee.

Ravi has spent 18 years on the Canadian Bar Association's national and provincial councils. He has also served as a Commissioner at the Securities Commission, a director of the British Columbia Law Institute and of the International Centre for Criminal Law Reform and Justice Policy, and a member of the UBC Senate. He has written and presented many papers at legal conferences, as well as co-authored a book on British Columbia criminal procedure.

James A.S. Legh is a partner with Stevenson Luchies & Legh. He was called to the Manitoba bar in 1987 and the British Columbia bar in 1988. His practice is a blend of litigation and solicitor’s services, undertaking workplace investigations and previously adjudicating on federal property assessment appeals.

First elected a Bencher for 2024, James is a member of the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Advisory Committee.

James has been on the board of the Victoria Bar Association for over 20 years, serving as president twice. He has also been a member of various CBABC committees, including the Judicial Advisory Committee, and previously taught civil procedure at the University of Victoria Faculty of Law.

Outside of the law, James has been involved with various charitable organizations including the Victoria Foundation, the Children’s Museum of Victoria, the Learning Disabilities Association and Kaleidoscope Theatre. He has been a Scouts Canada member and leader for over 50 years, has summited high-altitude mountains around the world and has owned a number of successful businesses.

Benjamin D. Levine completed his undergraduate degree at the University of British Columbia, and earned a law degree from the University of Victoria in 2001. He started his legal work articling at Legal Aid BC and was called to the bar in Prince George in 2002. Benjamin began his career working at a small Prince George firm and has been there ever since, representing over 2500 clients in relation to their criminal, immigration, child protection, family and various other needs.

First elected a Bencher for 2024, Benjamin is a member of the Trust Review Task Force and the Truth and Reconciliation Advisory Commitee. 

He has volunteered on the boards of many societies, including the Prince George Immigrant and Multicultural Services Society, Activators Prince George, the CBA’s Prince George Criminal Subsection and the St. Patrick’s House Society. He was the recipient of the CBA’s Provincial Equity and Diversity Award in 2013 in recognition of both his community and professional work.  

Jaspreet Malik is a graduate of the University of British Columbia Faculty of Law, and was called to the bar in 2001. He runs the South Fraser Law Group, a boutique litigation firm in Surrey that practices in the areas of personal injury, commercial and family litigation. Early in his career, Jaspreet practiced criminal defence litigation. 

Jaspreet is the first turbaned Bencher in British Columbia. First elected a Bencher for 2024, he is a member of the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Advisory Committee.

He has volunteered with the Canadian Cancer Society, the Satnam Education Society and various community sports organizations. Jaspreet has been an editor of the Professional Legal Training Course (PLTC) Practice Materials and has mentored several junior lawyers.

Jay Michi is a graduate of the Thompson Rivers University Faculty of Law’s inaugural 2014 class. He was called to the bar in 2015. Jay practices criminal law throughout interior BC, specializing in complex cases. He is an avid swimmer and he has two young daughters and a hamster named Sulu.

First elected a Bencher for 2024, Jay is a member of the Credentials Committee.

Georges Rivard is originally from Québec City, and was called to the bar in 1992. He has been practising criminal law for 27 years, as Crown and defence, conducting trials in English and French throughout the province. He has lived in Fort St John for 14 years.

First elected a Bencher for 2022, Georges is Chair of a Complainants’ Review Committee. He has represented members on Law Society issues.

Georges has done presentations to the RCMP and lawyers on legal issues, has been a past representative of the TLABC and was a regular guest on Radio Canada to discuss current legal issues and cases.

Georges is a member of the Nation Métisse Autochtone de la Gaspésie, Bas-Saint-Laurent, Îles-de-la-Madeleine. He is aware of issues affecting First Nations communities and has represented First Nations before the Federal Court in Ottawa.

Georges is involved in kitesurfing, skiing, snowmobiling in back country and motorcycle riding.

Gurminder Sandhu, KC attended UBC law school and was called to the bar in 2000. He currently practises general litigation at Hamilton Duncan.

First elected a Bencher for 2022, Gurminder is Vice-Chair of the Credentials Committee and the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Advisory Committee.

In serving the legal community, Gurminder has acted in the following roles over the past 20 years: volunteer with Salvation Army Legal Clinic, LSLAP, PLTC and CBA Practice Panel; mentor with TRU Law and UBC Law; Secretary, South Asian Bar Association; executive, CBA Research Section; elected representative, CBA Provincial Council; and member of CBA BarTalk, Provincial Judicial Committee and Federal Judicial Committee.

Barbara Stanley, KC is a partner with Stanley Law in Trail. She practises in the area of family law, in addition to real estate conveyancing, wills and estates. She attended UBC, completing her law degree in 1992, and was called to the bar in 1993.

Elected a Bencher in March 2017, Barbara is Vice-Chair of the Discipline Committee.

Barbara serves as the supervising lawyer for the Trail Family & Individual Resource Society’s Poverty Law Advocacy Program funded by the Law Foundation (since October 2019). She has been an appeal board tribunal member with the Health Professions Review Board, a mentor for young female lawyers with the CBA Women Lawyer’s Mentoring, a governor of the Law Foundation and has served as Secretary-Treasurer, Vice-President and President of the Kootenay Bar Association.

Barbara has a broad range of volunteer experience in her community, including serving as a governor of Selkirk College, a director of Kootenay Friends of Children Foundation and director, secretary and chair of Trail Family & Individual Resource Centre Society.

Called to the bar in 2018, James Struthers is the founder and managing lawyer of macushlaw, a law firm with offices in Vancouver and Victoria. James primarily practices corporate, commercial and real estate law for non-profits, charities and impact enterprises.

First elected a Bencher for 2024, James is a member of the Finance and Audit Committee and the Practice Standards Committee.

James co-founded the bGuiled Debate Society, a charitable, comedic legal debate that takes place annually. He also co-founded the BC Small Firm or Solo Practitioner Society, a slack workspace and support community of nearly 300 solo practitioners and small firms. James is also a Supervising Lawyer with Access Pro Bono’s Everyone Legal Clinic, and is an alumnus of the BC Civil Discourse Society and Mission Possible boards.

James, his wife Raquel and their two pups Pip and Lily split their time between Kaslo, BC, and the Lower Mainland.

Michael Welsh, KC, has a mixed ADR and litigation practice based in Penticton. He has extensive litigation experience at all levels of the court system, including the Supreme Court of Canada.

First elected a Bencher in 2018, Michael is Chair of the Credentials Committee and a member of the Executive Committee.

Appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2017, Michael is a former President of the Canadian Bar Association, BC Branch and former President of the ADR Institute of BC. He has been a member of both the CBA and the Trial Lawyers Association of BC for several decades, and is a Fellow of the International Institute of Arbitrators and roster member of the Vancouver International Arbitration Centre. He is an experienced mediator and arbitrator, holding the designations C. Med., C.Arb., FCIArb, and C.Fam.Arb.

Michael is author of many legal, ADR and other publications in the Advocate, BarTalk, the Verdict and Canadian Arbitration & Mediation Journal, including the Advocate wine column. He is presenter at many professional development events by organizations such as the CBABC, CLEBC, TLABC and Law Seminars International.

Michael was a commercial grape-grower for over a decade and was twice President of the BC Grape Growers’ Association. He has been a BC VQA wine judge since 2003 and is a former President of two Rotary Clubs.

Kevin B. Westell was called to the bar in 2009 and is currently a founding principal at Pender Litigation, where he practises criminal, regulatory and administrative law. In addition to his work as defence counsel, Kevin also acts as ad hoc Crown counsel, amicus curiae, and as counsel for vulnerable witnesses from time to time.

Elected a Bencher for 2021, Kevin is Vice-Chair of the Lawyer Development Task Force and a member of the Discipline Committee.

Kevin also teaches trial advocacy skills to law students and junior lawyers through programs that include UBC’s Allan McEachern Course in Trial Advocacy, the CLEBC Winning Advocacy Skills Workshop, and the Osgoode Hall Intensive Trial Advocacy Workshop.

He currently serves as the Secretary of the Canadian Bar Association (CBA) National Criminal Justice Section, the Chair of the Criminal Law Section of the Uniform Law Conference of Canada (ULCC) and as one of the Regional Representatives for the Criminal Defence Advocacy Society (CDAS).  In the past he has chaired the TLABC Criminal Law Committee, the Advocate’s Club, and the CBA Vancouver Criminal Justice Subsection.

Kevin has been recognized as a leading practitioner by Best Lawyers in Canada© in 2022 and was featured on Business in Vancouver Magazine’s Forty under 40 List.

In addition, Kevin has served the community as a volunteer on the boards of the Strathcona Community Centre and the Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention Centre of BC.

Gaynor C. Yeung is a litigator and partner at Whitelaw Twining. Since being called to the bar in 1996, she has practised insurance law, litigating a broad array of matters but primarily focusing on personal injury and professional negligence claims. She has defended and advanced cases at all levels of court in British Columbia. Recently, Gaynor expanded her practice to include mediation. She is currently recognized by the Best Lawyers in Canada as a leading litigator in both Insurance Law and Personal Injury Litigation.  

Elected a Bencher in a 2021 by-election, Gaynor is Chair of the Practice Standards Committee.

Throughout Gaynor’s career, she has been an active volunteer in the legal community. In 2018, the Vancouver Bar Association recognized Gaynor with the Peter S. Hyndman Mentorship award for her work with students and junior practitioners. She continues to mentor our next generation of lawyers through the CBA Women Lawyers’ Forum, the Federation of Asian Canadian Lawyers, and the Peter A. Allard School of Law (as well as guest lecturing at the university and at VBA programming). She has recently completed her second term as a member of the Advisory Committee to the Judicial Council. Gaynor is a volunteer for the Lawyers’ Assistance Program and Access Pro Bono.

Called to the bar in 2002, Jonathan Yuen articled in Kamloops before moving to Smithers in 2003 to work with Gamble & Co. on the Federal Crown Contract. He has practised largely as a barrister, including ad hoc Crown, criminal defence, family and child protection cases, appearing in both Provincial and Supreme Court. As counsel for the Director under the Child, Family and Community Service Act since 2009, his practice ranges throughout Prince Rupert County, with regular court appearances in almost every court in the region.

First elected a Bencher for 2024, Jonathan is a member of the Truth and Reconciliation Advisory Committee.

He has been active on the CBA’s Judicial Advisory Committee and, along with Sarah Westwood, organized the annual Bench, Bar and Court Users’ summer barbecue and archery tournament from 2011-2019.